A new support programme to assist developing parliaments has been established by a group of international politicians meeting in Bermuda.

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) agreed the move at its meeting last week in Hamilton.

It will provide more than £100,000 in seed funding for developing parliaments to improve services and train parliamentarians and staff to strengthen democracy.

The CPA will encourage major international businesses to further provide funds.

The committee, composed of 35 members representing the Commonwealth's more than 175 legislatures, launched the new programme to offer direct support to parliamentary development projects such as:

¦ financing a staff organisational review for the Parliament of Namibia and

¦ supporting the Parliaments of Saint Lucia, Zanzibar and Nigeria's Kwara state in making improvements to their research services.

Support will also go to a parliament and media Workshop for Seychelles, a workshop for women Parliamentarians on HIV/AIDS and a programme to develop Pacific benchmarks for democratic legislatures.

Executive Committee Chairman, Dato' Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal, Malaysia's Minister of Rural and Regional Development, said: "The CPA will support projects to bring tangible benefits on the ground to emerging parliaments.

"Parliamentary democracy is the best way to achieve development and ensure long-term peace and security for all Commonwealth people.

"The current economic crisis will put great pressure on all our parliaments and on the gains we have made in development and in advancing democratic governance, so the Commonwealth parliamentary community will rally round to help all our Assemblies."