The Antigua and Barbuda Chapter of the Women in Maritime Association Caribbean (WiMAC) was launched at the Tradewinds Hotel with an official ceremony and cocktail reception on March 8, International Women’s Day.
The special event was celebrated under the theme and motto: “Inspire Inclusion – Count her in – Invest in Women – Accelerate progress,” and began with the Reverend Denise Smith-Lewis, Minister of the Cedar Hall Moravian Church, delivering the invocation, a release said.
Senator Samantha Marshall, Minister of State with responsibility for Social Transformation, was the keynote speaker.
She affirmed that “there is so much to be done to promote and inspire inclusion, and to present women with equal access to opportunities and resources in order to realise their full potential”, and expressed her elation that the local chapter has chosen to play its role in advancing this cause, the communique added.
In her inaugural address, Shenica Sebastian, President of the WiMAC Antigua and Barbuda Chapter Inc, emphasised that “it was not an easy road. We had numerous challenges to navigate, but we can now happily report that the WiMAC Antigua and Barbuda Chapter is now a registered non-profit organisation”.
With delight she further stated, “we are now on equal standing with other established chapters in Jamaica, Dominica, Barbados, Guyana and Suriname that are committed to exerting collective influence within the Caribbean maritime space”.
To date, eight regional Women in Maritime Associations have been formed around the world: notably Africa, the Arab States, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America, and the Pacific, covering some 152 countries and dependent territories.
