The Plenary Assembly is composed of all Senators. It is the supreme and a decision making organ.

Responsibilities 

1. to elect members of the Bureau of the Senate, Bureaus of the Standing Committees and the Committee;
2. to adopt the draft agenda of the ordinary and extraordinary session;
3. to consider and take decisions on items on the agenda of the Plenary Sitting;
4. to decide on adjournment of the Plenary Sitting;
5. to adopt the relevance of bills and vote laws;
6. decide that a bill be considered by the Conference of Chairpersons;
7. to take decisions on reports of Standing Committees and those of the Committee;
8. to approve the appointment of officials;
9. to approve Hansard and verbatim reports of Plenary Sittings;
10. to decide on the publication of Hansard and verbatim reports of Plenary Sittings held in camera.
11. to make a resolution setting up an ad hoc Committee and determining its mandate;
12. to elect members of an ad hoc Committee and an inquiry Committee as well as their chairpersons;
13. to resolve setting up a Committee of inquiry, elect its members and determine its mandate;
14. to adopt terms of reference for the Committee when monitoring the activities of the Senate organs;
15.  to approve recommendations of the Conference of Chairpersons;
16. to direct assignments to other organs of the Senate where necessary;
17. to approve the establishment of Senators’ network or forum or friendship group and decide on their suspension or dissolution when need be;
18.  to take measures against a Senator caught in a case of misconduct;
19. to take a final stand on an issue on which the Conference of Chairpersons failed to reach an agreement;

20. to elect Parliament representatives in international organisations;

21. to approve the Senate administrative services;

22. to decide on the start and the end of the senatorial leave;

23. to approve that the position of the President, one of the Vice-Presidents, the two Vice-Presidents or all the members of the Bureau have fallen vacant;

24. to make decisions on any other issue put at the table by the Bureau of the Senate or by a Senator;

25. to make decisions on any other matter not under any organ of the Senate.

Ordinary session

The Senate has three (3) ordinary sessions, each session lasting two (2) months:

1. the first session commences on 5 October;
2. the second session commences on 5 February;
3. the third session commences on 5 June.

When the first or last day of the session is not a working day, the opening or closing of the session is postponed to the next working day.

Between two ordinary sessions, the activities of the Standing Committees, field trips and activities related to oversight over the Executive continue.

The President of the Senate can convene the Plenary Assembly in an extraordinary session after consulting other members of the Bureau, or upon request of the President of the Republic on the proposal of the Cabinet, or when requested by one quarter (1/4) of members of the Senate.