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  • 10 months ago
The Women Parliamentarians of T&T Leadership Programme is building a network of collaboration, empowering women to increase their presence and influence in Parliament and political decision-making.

The programme has now welcomed its second cohort.Alicia Boucher brings us the highlights from the launch.
Transcript
00:00The launch of the Young Women in Power to Serve, YES! Leadership Programme 2025
00:05took off at a rotunda of the Red House. President of the Women Parliamentarians
00:10of TNT and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Bridget Annissette George
00:14said, to build a stronger and better country, it is important to encourage
00:18women to embrace political leadership and decision-making roles. She expressed
00:23hope that the WPTT YES! Programme would help foster such leadership, though she
00:28noted the balancing act it poses for many women parliamentarians.
00:34We have experienced firsthand the difficulties managing the traditional
00:39roles of wife and mother while establishing a career in political
00:45service. We are fully aware of the skills needed to excel at this job. Who better
00:54than to share this knowledge and experience with aspiring young women
01:00parliamentarians, if not us. Annissette George believes that if women
01:07truly understand the importance of helping one another, the nation will
01:12benefit as a whole. She praised the 2024 cohort for a job well done and encouraged
01:18the current cohort to work hard to reap the benefits in the future. You will
01:24learn, you will grow, and you will leave this programme a stronger and more
01:30committed leader than you entered. Be receptive to the mentorship offered.
01:37Programme and Projects Officer of WPTT, Carolyn Siposad-Bachen said 50 out of 132
01:45applicants were selected for Cohort 2. She said they form a diverse group from
01:50around the country, inclusive of sixth form and tertiary education students as
01:55well as professionals. Bachen expressed hope from what she called the
01:59Parliament's rubber-stamping side of the spectrum to a more transformative
02:04legislature and one centred upon facts. Too often parliamentary debates are
02:12filled with statements that lack factual grounding. During the eight weeks, the
02:19sessions will cover a variety of topics, as we did last year, including
02:25leadership, development, research, debate skills, media engagement, advocacy, data
02:32analysis and artificial intelligence, and parliamentary procedures and protocols.
02:37In 2024, the topic was sextortion. This year's cohort will focus on human
02:44trafficking. Member of Parliament for Tabaquit, Anita Heinzelin and Public
02:48Engagement Officer for the WPTT refers to the leadership program as critical.
02:54You have young ladies who have gone through a very rigorous application
03:00process. They have subjected themselves to weeks of training that will end with
03:06a debate in Parliament. The YES leadership program is done in
03:11collaboration with international entities such as United Nations Women,
03:16UNDP, PAL Americas and the Caribbean Women in Leadership. Meanwhile, Anissa
03:22George extended her gratitude to the men present at the event, acknowledging
03:26their importance as allies in this initiative. Alicia Boucher, TV6 News.
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