Four hardworking Dominican women have been recognized for what has been described as their invaluable contribution in the area of climate resilience, sustainable development and agriculture.
They are; Adelina Destouche who received the award for empowerment of community persons for disaster risk reduction, Onia Charles and Alberta Sorhaindo for agriculture/food security and Annaclette Thomas (nee Frederick) for sustainable development.
They were awarded at the 7th Annual Exceptional Women’s Award Ceremony organized by the Ministry for Youth Development and Empowerment, Youth at Risk, Gender Affairs, Seniors Security and Dominicans with Disabilities via the Bureau of Gender Affairs in observance of International Women’s Day 2022.
Minister for Gender Affairs, Dr. Adis King, while addressing the ceremony, highlighted the important role women are playing as natural resource managers and agents of change.
“It is imperative that we, as a nation, recognize the role and draw on our women’s commitment to live the experiences and expertise in shaping strategies and responses,” the Minister said.
According to her, their lived experiences are sources of wisdom for all, more so, younger women who are themselves in search of their strength, their abilities, and their wisdom.
Noting that the awardees are fully aware of inequality issues and the urgency that sustainable development requires and demands, Dr. king emphasized the importance of women’s contributions to society describing them as ” the bedrock of this nation, agents of change, the backbone of our families, our society and our community.”
Pointing out they have remained consistent over the years with some dedicating their whole lives to community development and food security, she urged the honorees to continue to work together to leverage “our strength to have a greater impact for a sustainable future for all.”
“The women here today are our unsung heroes of our rural communities. We hope their stories can be an inspiration to many of you,” Dr. king stated.
Meanwhile, Minister for Public Works and the Digital Economy, Senator Cassani Laville who represented Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, said the government of Dominica is committed to the safety and dignity of women and will ensure that the right systems are developed to protect them from gender related abuse, inequality and discrimination.
“This year we are committed to break the bias for women to have equal access and opportunities in all aspects of life,” he remarked. “I am proud to say that in Dominica we are well on our way to breaking that bias”
He said women are being empowered to build more resilient lives and livelihood to prepare them for the uncertain and often disrupting nature of climate change and disaster at the national level.
“In the past few years we have seen a growing emphasis for assistance to women in farming to equip them and to engage them in sustainable farming practices to build their agro-processing enterprises and contribute to overall food [security],” Laville stated.
He said government’s efforts to empower women are also being manifested in the provision of access `through education and social services.
“At the national level we are also creating greater access for women in public sector management,” Laville said. “We are seeing more women entering the entrepreneurship space and inspiring others in their circle to become more productive.”
International Women’s Day was observed under the theme: “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow.”
The citations for the awardees are posted below.
Disclaimer: The comments posted do not necessarily reflect the views of DominicaNewsOnline.com and its parent company or any individual staff member. All comments are posted subject to approval by DominicaNewsOnline.com. We never censor based on political or ideological points of view, but we do try to maintain a sensible balance between free speech and responsible moderating.
We will delete comments that:
See our full comment/user policy/agreement.
1 Comment