The IPU facilitates parliamentary diplomacy and empowers parliaments and parliamentarians to promote peace, democracy and sustainable development around the world.
Nearly every country in the world has some form of parliament. Parliamentary systems fall into two categories: bicameral and unicameral. Out of 190 national parliaments in the world, 78 are bicameral (156 chambers) and 112 are unicameral, making a total of 268 chambers of parliament with some 46,000 members of parliament. IPU membership is made up of 181 national parliaments
Throughout the year, the IPU and its Members organize many events for parliamentarians to exchange good practices, acquire the latest information and identify avenues for action.
The IPU has been collecting data on parliaments since its inception in 1889, including information on women’s participation in politics since 1945. In this section, discover the IPU's knowledge bank for and about parliaments.
The Tunisian Assembly of People's Representatives has established a comprehensive digital platform dedicated to engaging civil society and promoting participatory democracy in lawmaking and oversight. The platform allows interaction between civil society and elected representatives through five online spaces.
First, there is a space for social media exchange for direct interaction with MPs. For lawmaking there are two spaces – one for submitting online proposals and opinions on draft laws currently in progress, and another for submitting proposals that can be adopted and transformed by a group of (minimum 10) MPs into legislative initiatives. There is a fourth space where civil society can submit proposals for inquiries to be adopted and presented by MPs as oral or written questions to the Executive as part of their oversight role. Finally, there is a fifth space for showcasing civil society programmes and activity.