Regional Maritime body elects new governing council

The ship of Caribbean women in the maritime industry is being steered by a newly elected Governing Council, voted into office at the Women in Maritime Association, Caribbean’s (WiMAC) Annual General Meeting and Elections held on December 10,2021. Affectionately referred to as “SEAsters,” the members hail from different countries and territories that span the Caribbean Sea, a WiMAC release states.

The newly elected Governing Council is as follows:

President, Tamara Lowe, Country Manager of Tropical Shipping Dominica (Dominica).

The Immediate Past President is Dwynette D. Eversley, Consultant, (Trinidad and Tobago).

Vice President of Membership and Administration is Ms. Kemi Linton, Trade and Maritime Specialist, Barbados Port Inc. (Republic of Barbados).

Vice President of Public Relations and Marketing is Tricia King, Marine Management Area and Habitat Monitoring Officer, Department of Marine Resources (St. Kitts and Nevis).

The Vice President of Research and Development is Suzette Balkaran, senior instructor, Centre for Maritime and Ocean Studies, University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) and Energy Efficiency Advisor, Maritime Technology Cooperation Centre (MTCC) Caribbean (Trinidad and Tobago).

Vice President of Women and Development is Thecla Joseph-Charles, Director of Fisheries and Marine Resource Management, Turks and Caicos (St. Lucia).

Director of Finance is Ilaisa Lila, Business Support Officer, Maritime Authority Suriname (Suriname).

Member-at-large is Jennifer Nugent-Hill, Director of Government and Community Affairs, Tropical Shipping, (Florida/United States Virgin Islands).

The Operations Manager at WiMAC’s secretariat which is based in Jamaica is Valerie Simpson, while Deniece Aiken currently serves as Acting Director, Corporate Affairs until the respective officer is elected at the upcoming Special General Meeting.

Following the elections, president Lowe said: “We, as women in the maritime industry have the knowledge, experience and skills to be the diversity that we want to see in the industry, but it is only together can we achieve it. My goal is tackling gender-inequality in the maritime industry from the inside out with the main focus of creating a powerful network of inspired women; inspired women who inspire change.”

The mission of WiMAC is to foster the development and participation of women in the maritime sector and contribute to the growth of the industry within the Caribbean Region.