NIA CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (November 20, 2018) — Hon. Hazel Brandy-Williams, Junior Minister of Gender Affairs on Nevis, is attending a two-day conference in Barbados co-hosted by ParlAmericas, UN Women, Caribbean Institute for Women in Leadership (CIWIL) and The Commonwealth.

The conference which is being held at the Radisson Aquatica Resort from November 19-21, 2018, brings together representatives from 10 Caribbean countries seeking to advance gender-responsive leadership and governance in the region. The theme is

“Transformational Leadership for Gender Equality in the Caribbean: Regional Strategies and Partnerships.”

Mrs. Brandy-Williams spoke to the Department of Information from Barbados on November 20 about the meeting.

“This meeting brings together parliamentarians, ministers and representatives of National Gender machineries, civil society and multilateral organizations from across the Caribbean, to discuss initiatives to advance women’s leadership and gender equality, and to develop strategies to mainstream this focus in national sustainable development efforts.

“Participants will coordinate agendas on these important issues, strengthen partnerships with diverse stakeholders. The outcome of this meeting will be a CARICOM (Caribbean Community) Draft document of a Regional Gender Equality Action Plan and Policy,” she said.

Mrs. Brandy-Williams believes her participation at the meeting will position her to continue with the empowerment of women and girls in the region but more so in Nevis.

“Being able to contribute to the draft CARICOM Regional Gender Equality Action Plan and Policy is pivotal for me. I not only will be helping women in Nevis but across the region realise their goal of making it into parliament.

“Additionally, this policy looks also at the Social Protection of Women and girls’ access to public services, build sustainable infrastructure and most importantly the empowerment of women and girls,” she said.

Mrs. Brandy-Williams added that she would continue to be an advocate for change.

“I will continue to be an advocate for changes to the present structure in the Federation to one that could see more women entering politics. I will continue to advocate for more social safety nets that would benefit the most vulnerable especially women with disabilities. I will continue to encourage and empower women to access education and use that tool to eradicate poverty and promote economic growth,” she said.

The participants at the Barbados meeting come from Antigua, Barbuda, Anguilla, Barbados, Bahamas, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Dominica, St. Kitts, Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, St. Lucia and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Patron for the conference is Dame Billy Miller, a founding member of the CIWIL who continues to be an advocate for women political participation