Invitation & Practical information (AFRECON 2015)

The Conference and related meetings will take place at the following venue:

Gaborone Sun Hotel & Conference Center
Plot 4727, Chuma Drive
Gaborone, Botswana
Tel: +267 395 1111
http://www.suninternational.com/gaborone-sun

Should you wish to use social media, please use #AFRECON on all Twitter and Facebook posts.

The theme of the Conference is “Consolidate the working class trade union solidarity, democracy, freedom, social justice and quality public service delivery”.

Meetings

The meetings schedule will be as follows:

• Tuesday 22 September 9:00-12:30 AFREC (for members only)
• Tuesday 22 September 14:00-18:00 WOMEN’S SEMINAR
• Wednesday 23 September 9:00-12:30 YOUTH SEMINAR
• Wednesday 23 September 14:00-18:00  AFRECON
• Thursday 24 September 9:00-18:00  AFRECON
• Friday 25 September 9:00-18:00 AFRECON

We remind you that the African & Arab Countries Regional Executive Committee (AFREC) is open to titular members only. However, if substitutes are in Gaborone at the time of the meeting, they will be allowed to attend as observers.

Lunches and coffee breaks will be provided for sponsored and non-sponsored participants during the meetings for which they will be registered.

Sponsorship

Due to financial constraints, PSI is able to offer a very limited number of sponsorships. Affiliates might be considered for sponsorship on the following conditions:

• Affiliates must have fulfilled their financial obligations to PSI by 1^st July up to and including 2015 affiliation fees;
• Affiliates who have paid regularly, entirely and in due time during the last five years (2010 to 2014 inclusive) have priority;
• Affiliates who respect the principle of equal representation between men and women in their delegation, in accordance with PSI Constitution, have priority.
  
  

Delegation entitlements

Delegates

According to the PSI Constitution (Article 6.6), unions are entitled to send a specific number of delegates to Congress, based on payment of affiliation fees. These entitlements also govern the union’s voting rights. The same rule applies for AFRECON. Voting rights will be based on 2010-2014 inclusive (5 years).

“… Affiliates’ representation is based on the following schedule. Each gender should be equally represented where there is more than one delegate unless this is not feasible due to very significant over-representation of one gender within the affiliate’s membership.

1 delegate              up to      5,000 members

2 delegates            from      5,001 to              10,000 members

3 delegates            from      10,001 to             20,000 members

4 delegates            from      20,001 to             35,000 members

5 delegates            from      35,001 to             50,000 members

6 delegates            from      50,001 to             100,000 members

plus one delegate for each additional 50,000 paid-up members and/or part thereof…”

According to PSI Constitution (Annex 4: Congress rules/Standing Order), unions are entitled to send a specific number of observers to Congress, based on payment of affiliation fees. The same rule applies for AFRECON.

“… Affiliated organisations may send observers on the basis of one per 100,000 paid-up members and/or part thereof. Each gender should be equally represented, where there is more than one observer, unless this is not feasible due to very significant over-representation of one gender within the affiliate’s membership…”

Visitors

Any other union’s representatives will be considered as “visitor”. “Visitors” are those participants who have neither delegate nor observer status, either because their delegation entitlement has already been filled or because they represent a non-affiliated organisation.

Voting at conference

Voting will take place according to the PSI Constitution (Annex 4: Congress Rules/Standing orders). Head of delegation will receive ballot forms for “card” votes and all delegates will receive voting cards for “show of hands” votes.

The PSI Constitution provides for voting by proxy. Unions that are unable to attend the Conference should nominate another participating union from the same constituency to cast the proxy vote and inform PSI in writing by 24^th August 2015.

“… Any affiliated organisation unable to be represented at Congress may authorise the delegate of another organisation from the same sub-region to represent it. Such authorisation shall be valid on condition that the General Secretary of PSI is informed of it in writing four weeks in advance by the organisation giving authority. No organisation may exercise the proxy votes of more than three other organisations…”

Accommodation

PSI has reserved a number of bedrooms at the Gaborone Sun Hotel, which adjoins the Conference Centre.

Please note that all sponsored participants will be required to share a room with another sponsored participant, as decided by the PSI Secretariat.

Hotel confirmations will be sent to participants around end of July-early August.

The participants not sponsored by PSI should contact the hotel directly to make their own bookings (mentioning AFRECON and PSI). Please be aware that pre-payment of the reservation might be requested by the hotel as a guarantee.

Travel arrangements and local transport

PSI will be arranging flights for sponsored participants ONLY and their tickets will be booked to arrive and depart as close as possible to the opening and closing dates of the Conference and/or relevant pre-meetings.

Non-sponsored participants should make their own travel arrangements to Gaborone and inform us about their flight details (flight number with arrival/departure dates and times) as soon as possible, in order to include them in the transportation from the airport to the hotel. If we don’t have these details in good time, non-sponsored participants will have to take a taxi to the Gaborone Sun Hotel & Conference Centre, which can be very expensive.

All participants (sponsored and non-sponsored) who have given us their flight schedule will be met by our local affiliates at Sir Seretse Khama International Airport in Gaborone. Bus transfers will be organised from the airport to the hotel, with returns to the airport at the end of the Conference.

Visa and health requirements

Please consult the nearest Botswana Embassy to check whether you need a visa to go to Gaborone. These arrangements can take some time, so the earlier contacts are made the less is the likelihood of problems or delays. The final list of participants will be sent to local authorities to facilitate the visa process. If you need a personal invitation letter, please contact Clarisse.Heronneaud@world-psi.org to request one.

Be aware that if you fly with South African Airways via South Africa, you need a transit visa. If you fly with Kenyan Airways, you don’t need a transit visa.

Participants should be sure to have their vaccinations up to date. Again, you should check with the embassy to know the exact requirements. Yellow fever vaccination is recommended, as well as anti-malaria treatment.

Documents for the conference and related meetings

You will be provided with the Regional Action Plan for 2015-2018, as well as the detailed programme of the Conference and related meetings. More background documents will be sent mid-August.

Interpretation and translation

During the Conference and related meetings, interpretation will be provided in Arabic, English, French and Portuguese.

Documents for the various meetings will be translated into English and French. Only some of them will be translated into Arabic and Portuguese.

Participation form

In order to ease the registration process, we will take into account the names, which were submitted to us last year, unless otherwise mentioned.

Summary of important dates and deadlines

We look forward to meeting you all in Gaborone for a successful Conference!