Event honours women in Cayman
(CNS Local Life): A recent gala luncheon, which celebrated 20 years of Cayman marking Honouring Women Month, provided an opportunity for people to discuss the importance of greater gender balance from the classroom to the boardroom. The sold-out event, held 15 March, also enabled the 220 participants to acknowledge the progress that has been made and the further change that is needed on gender equality.
Hosted by the Family Resource Centre and taking as its cue this year’s #BalanceforBetter theme, the event attracted participants from most of the Cayman’s leading accounting and law firms as well as attendees from the public sector, stated a government press release.
Gloria McField-Nixon, Chief Officer in the Portfolio of the Civil Service, gave the keynote address in which she acknowledged the contributions of outstanding Caymanian women, past and present, who have championed women’s rights, and encouraged others to break corporate and societal glass ceilings.
McField-Nixon said that working towards gender balance is not only a women’s issue, it is also a human rights issue because supporting women means supporting families. She detailed the civil service’s track record on encouraging gender parity through its equal opportunities policies and practices, the release said.
She also spoke about the work still needed to achieve full gender balance as the Cayman Islands’ largest single employer, but noted that the civil service had already achieved gender parity in the chief officers’ senior leadership team.
The event also included a panel discussion comprising Maple’s partner Christina Bodden; Water Authority-Cayman Director Dr Gelia van Genderen; entrepreneur and radio personality Ruthanna Young; the first female engineer at Caribbean Utilities Company, Namitha Abraham; and Deputy Chief Officer of Community Affairs André Ebanks. CIGTV News Director Donna Bush moderated the discussion.
“I would like to thank and acknowledge the work of the Family Resource Centre in raising awareness for the need to promote gender equity,” said Minister for Health Dwayne Seymour. “The support for this year’s Honouring Women Month luncheon was overwhelmingly positive and is a testament to the increasing importance being placed on the issue of gender parity within our society.”
Category: Civil Service, Community, Local News
