international womens day 2015

Basseterre, St. Kitts, March 10, 2015 (SKNIS): One day ahead of the international observance, Cyndie Demming and Samantha Rochester were identified as pioneers and honoured by the Department of Gender Affairs in commemoration of International Women’s Day on March 07, 2015.

WASHINGTON, CMC – President of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Luis Alberto Moreno, in his message to mark International Women’s Day, has called for gender equality in the Caribbean and Latin America.

“On this International Women's Day, we reaffirm our commitment to the advancement of women and the achievement of more prosperous and egalitarian societies,” said Moreno in a statement.

He said the advancement of women carries with it a promise of progress for all of society.

UNITED NATIONS, (IPS) - If we look at the headlines or the latest horrifying YouTube clip, Mar. 8 – International Women’s Day – may seem a bad time to celebrate equality for women.

 But alongside the stories of extraordinary atrocity and everyday violence lies another reality, one where more girls are in school and more are earning qualifications than ever before; where maternal mortality is at an all-time low; where more women are in leadership positions, and where women are increasingly standing up, speaking out and demanding action.

On this International Women’s Day 2015, we salute the writer/singer of the official CARICOM Song  “Celebrating CARICOM” – Ms. Michele Henderson, a highly acclaimed recording artiste from the Commonwealth of Dominica.

The CARICOM Song is the official, patriotic song of the Community, which celebrates the history, culture and identity of the people of the Caribbean.

The Song was launched at the Thirty-Fifth Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community, CARICOM, held in Antigua and Barbuda, 1-4 July 2014.

This year marks significant milestones in the global development agenda, including the 20th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the adoption of a new sustainable development agenda to replace the existing Millennium Development Goals.  There is growing consensus that Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment will be even more crucial to this new agenda; reaffirming the commitment to inclusion, dignity and respect for women and to valuing their assets and abilities; as the foundation of economic development and poverty reduction.

The Honourable Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, is the seventh and current Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. She was sworn in as Prime Minister on May 26, 2010 and is the country’s first female Prime Minister. Persad-Bissessar is the political leader of the United National Congress and leads the People’s Partnership, a coalition of five parties, formed for the general election of 24 May 2010.

The Most Honourable Portia Lucretia Simpson Miller O.N., M.P. first became Jamaica’s seventh Prime Minister in March 2006 and was conferred with the Order of the Nation in May 2006.

Prime Minister Simpson Miller’s ascension to Jamaica’s highest political office, came after having served for 17 years as a Cabinet Minister with portfolio responsibility for Labour, Social Security and Sport; Tourism, Entertainment and Sport; and Local Government, Community Development and Sport.  Mrs. Simpson Miller has also had portfolio responsibilities for Women’s Affairs,

(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana)     Today, I join with the global community to salute women and girls everywhere, particularly those of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).  It is well known that it is the women of our Community who have been the bedrock of society and have been agents of change within our societies. In so doing, they have been steadfast in their determination to improve their economic, social, political, cultural and legal status.