NARS attended the 13th Association of Parliamentary Librarians of Asia and the Pacific (APLAP) Conference which was held for three days from 15-17 June 2021. This year’s conference was hosted by the Congress of the Philippines in an online format due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the theme of the conference being “Enhancing the Responsiveness and Relevance of Parliamentary Library and Research Services During Times of Crisis.” During the conference member countries delivered presentations and shared their experiences on how they responded to the crisis.

 Lee Jeongjin, legislative research officer at NARS, spoke on the theme “Enhancing the Responsiveness and Relevance of Parliamentary Library and Research Services During Times of Crisis” and elaborated on how NARS assisted and supported the National Assembly in its legislative and parliamentary activities in three categories.

Firstly, NARS offered reports on responses to COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 45 relevant reports were published from February to December 2020. These reports touched upon different COVID-19 responses by fields, overseas cases and implications, and relevant legislation amendment measures.

Secondly, NARS hosted various seminars and published reports to support the legislative discussion and help the National Assembly to smoothly shift to ‘virtual parliament’. The National Assembly amended the National Assembly Act to enable online meeting system and vote digitally to maintain legislative activities during the pandemic. During this process NARS assisted the National Assembly by providing information on overseas cases and by reviewing legislative issues.

Thirdly, NARS collected various opinions on major issues through the holding of virtual meetings and seminars, and continues to work hard to draw legislative and policy implications.

The conference aimed to assist in the development of parliamentary libraries and research services units in the region by providing a venue for participants to share their knowledge and experiences, and discuss new developments in support of the expansion of innovative practices and processes.