High-Level Advisory Group on Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism

The IPU High-Level Advisory Group on Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism was established in 2017 to serve as the global focal point for parliamentary activities related to counter-terrorism efforts.

The Group is composed of members of parliament who have specific relevant knowledge and experience. It usually meets twice a year in camera during IPU Assemblies, although additional meetings may be held outside the Assemblies. It is a subsidiary body of the Governing Council, to which it reports.

The Group guides the work of the Joint Programme on Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism of the IPU, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT). A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the three organizations to institutionalize the cooperation between the IPU and the United Nations and help bring the experiences of parliamentarians worldwide to the attention of UN agencies.

The Joint Programme will support work at the national, regional and international levels. It aims to facilitate the transposition of international resolutions and decisions into domestic legislation and promote regional parliamentary cooperation.

In concrete terms, this means organizing global parliamentary summits; creating a global parliamentary network of members of relevant parliamentary committees; holding regional and national capacity-building sessions; and developing a web platform with a legislative database and a virtual parliamentary assembly feature.