January 1, 2024 marked the 74 th anniversary of one of the Commonwealth’s most successful political
parties, the People’s Progressive Party. This note is not about the remarkable history of the PPP, but it is
noteworthy to reflect on two of the many credentials of the PPP – it has always, continuously for 74
years, aggressively throughout its history, promoted women and youth in leadership. It would be
difficult to find another political party in the Commonwealth or in the world that can match the PPP’s
record on empowering youth and women.
In the same week as the PPP celebrated its 74 th anniversary, during the very first week of 2024, it is no
accident, it is not coincident, that two distinguished young women commanded attention, both locally
and internationally.
Guyanese, no matter what their political affiliation, no matter what their religion or race, had to feel
pride when Carolyn Rodrigues took the stage at the UN and hoisted Guyana’s Golden Arrowhead, our
flag, as Guyana took its place for a two-year term in the Security Council on January 2 nd , 2024. Only 15
countries sit in the Security Council. Five countries – the US, the UK, France, China and Russia – are
permanent members of the council; 10 other countries, like Guyana, are temporary members, serving
two-year terms. The other countries, besides Guyana, that serve temporarily are Algeria, Ecuador,
Japan, Malta, Mozambique, South Korea, Siera Leone, Slovenia, and Switzerland. Note than nine
CARICOM countries have never served in the Security Council in the 70 years since the Security Council
have been in operation. While Guyanese feel pride that our country is one of a small handful of
developing countries sitting in the Council, it could not have escaped any of us that a young Guyanese
indigenous woman took her place in a council dominated by old men. Guyanese women must have felt
enormous pride, but so must all Guyanese, men and women.
This is the latest in a long list of accomplishments for Carolyn Rodrigues. In 2001, she was appointed as
Minister of Amerindian Affairs when she was barely 25, being among the youngest ministers and MPs in
our history as a country. She was the first Amerindian woman to be a minister. Distinguishing herself
and piloting the Amerindian Act in Parliament, she was promoted to be the first ever Amerindian and
first ever woman to be a minister of Foreign Affairs. For a period between 2015 and 2020, she served at
the FAO headquarters in Rome, before returning to be Guyana’s UN Representative, being the first
woman, other than a short stint by Janet Jagan, to hold that post. Carolyn makes us all proud as she is
one of the most respected UN ambassadors in New York at this time.
On the same day, January 2, 2024, as Ambassador Rodrigues took her place in the Security Council,
President Irfaan Ali announced on January 2, 2024, the appointment of Sonia Parag as the new Senior
Minister of Local Government and Regional Development. The Honorable Sonia Parag became the first
ever woman to be appointed as a Minister of Local Government and Regional Development. The
Honorable Sonia Parag is a relatively newcomer to politics, having joined the PPP’s 2020 election
campaign team. After the swearing in of President Irfaan Ali on August 2, 2020, she was appointed as a
young Minister of Public Service. As Minister of Public Service, Minister Parag was entrusted by
President Ali to deliver on the PPP’s manifesto promise of 20,000 scholarships for Guyanese by 2025.
Two years to go still, she nearly accomplished this goal already. Like all the PPP Ministers, Minister Parag
has crisscrossed Guyana, meeting people in all ten regions of our country. Sonia Parag has rapidly
become a role model for girls and women in our country.
Clearly, Carolyn Rodrigues and Sonia Parag in the very first week of 2024 underlined the continued
elevation of women leadership in Guyana. The accomplishments of these two young Guyanese women,
further solidified in the first week of 2024, continue to underline two of the many incredible PPP
credentials. Both of these distinguished Guyanese are youthful and women. Since the formation of the
PPP, 74 years ago, when women such as Janet Jagan, Jessie Burnham, ??, ?? played leadership roles, the
PPP has been in the lead in the Caribbean and the commonwealth promoting women’s rights and
equality, rejecting the notion that youth are the leaders of tomorrow, and promoting the notion that
youth must play leadership roles now. Since its formation in 1950, the PPP has always had youth playing
leadership roles.
Cheddi Jagan was in in his twenties when he became an MP and was barely 30 when he became the first
leader of the PPP. He was not yet 35 when he became Premier, even if his premiership lasted for just
133 days before the British used its military might to depose and lock him up. Ashton Chase was just a
little older than 20 when he became the youngest minister ever in the Commonwealth. Carollyn
Rodrigues, like Irfaan Ali and Bharat Jagdeo, was barely 25 when she became a senior minister in
Government. There is no disputing the PPP’s credential of empowering youth.
In the present PPP government, the President is a youthful PPP member, Dr. Irfaan Ali. There are several
other youthful members of the cabinet. Among these youthful members are women such as Priya
Manickchand, Sonia Parag, Susan Rodrigues, Vindiya Persaud and Oneidge Waldron.
But Carolyn Rodrigues taking the seat on behalf of Guyana during week one of 2024 at the Security
Council and Sonia Parag taking up the Ministerial leadership role in Local Government and Regional
Development remind us all that the PPP has an incomparable record when it comes to women equality
and empowerment. We must not forget that a woman has served as a prime minister and as a president
in Guyana with a PPP government. It was also the PPP who put forward a woman, Elizabeth Harper, as a
Prime Minister Candidate during the 2015 election campaign. It was the first time that a party had
placed a woman as its PM candidate in an election.
It would be remiss on our part in this context not to note the presence in the cabinet of a veteran
woman, Gail Teixeira, the Minister of Governance and Parliamentary Affairs. She served as a young
woman when she was appointed as Minister of Health in October 1992. Thirty-two years later, she is still
serving as a Minister. She also served previously as a Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports and as a
Minister of Home Affairs.
There is no denying that the PPP stands way above most political parties in the Commonwealth when it
comes to empowerment of youth and women. The first week of 2024, through the accomplishments of
Carolyn Rodrigues and Sonia Parag, remind us all that the PPP has stood firm to two of its mission, first
articulated 74 years ago, that women and youth are to be empowered.