MOLEG approves Nepal’s accession to Council of Asian Legislative Institutions and …

MOLEG approves Nepal’s accession to Council of Asian Legislative Institutions and discusses ways to strengthen access to law- Hosting the General Assembly of the Council of Asian Legislative Institutions (CALI) and 14th Asian Legislative Experts Symposium (ALES) -The Ministry of Government Legislation (Minister Cho Won-cheol) held the “General Assembly of the Council of Asian Legislative Institutions (CALI)” and the “14th Asian Legislative Experts Symposium (ALES)” consecutively on September 17 (Thu) and 18 (Fri). CALI is designed to discuss common legislative challenges among Asian countries, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and digital transformation, and to establish a permanent body for cooperation. It was launched last November with legislative institutions from four Asian countries — Korea, Mongolia, Thailand, and Uzbekistan — as members. At this year’s General Assembly, Nepal’s participation as a new member of CALI was approved, and a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to formalize its accession was signed. Members also agreed to continue active exchange by conducting research on legislative issues and holding online and offline seminars in 2027 as well. The following day, September 18, the 14th Asian Legislative Experts Symposium was held under the theme “Current Status of Legal and Policy Frameworks and Cooperation Strategies for Enhancing People-Centered Access to Law in the Asian Region.” A total of seven countries participated, including Indonesia, Laos, and Malaysia, with officials from each country’s legislative institutions giving presentations. This year’s symposium is intended to help link the Asian Legislative Experts Symposium (ALES) with the Council of Asian Legislative Institutions (CALI). The symposium will come to an end this year. From now on, CALI seminars will take over the role of the Asian Legislative Experts Symposium (ALES) and serve as a platform for knowledge exchange. The symposium covered cases and policies regarding how Asian countries have enhanced public access to law via legal information systems, as well as the process of translating such policies into law. Based on the presentations, participants broadly exchanged views on future direction for cooperation, including the exchange of legislative information among countries. “The laws and systems we establish must stay close to the everyday lives of people,” said Cho Won-cheol, Minister of Government Legislation. “We will continue to broaden the scope of cooperation among Asian countries and ensure that the tangible results of this cooperation are reflected in our laws and systems.” Attachment 1. Overview of the Council of Asian Legislative InstitutionsAttachment 2. Program of the 14th Asian Legislative Experts Symposium