Davis first woman consular dean

“I am enjoying the planning stage of my tenure in working with a dynamic group of colleagues and friends in the Consular Corps to expand our footprint in Trinidad and Tobago.” she said.

Davis, who took up the position a few months ago, chaired her second meeting of the consular corps on May 10 at the Radisson Hotel, Wrightson Road, Port-of-Spain She said after the meeting: “I think the meeting went quite well, as it was further enriched by the presence of career consuls from Canada, Chile and Jamaica. At the CCTT we are reintroducing having career consuls join the honorary consuls, because we share many issues, concerns and activities.” The organisation represents 31 countries, 15 of which are European, but there are also members from West and Central Asia, South and SE Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, South America and the Caribbean.

Davis said: “Within the recent past, a few countries have established full diplomatic missions, viz. Grenada, Guyana and Peru.

Additionally, there are about eight of us who are nationals of our ‘sending’ countries.” She explained: “Honorary consuls generally represent countries which do not have full diplomatic missions in what we call the receiving states, and act as unpaid officers to facilitate various activities between the sending state (the country represented) and the receiving state. In the case of the membership of the CCTT, while we may share many similar functions, there are some functions which may be quite different, for a variety of reasons.

“Issues requiring action may be far-reaching, but ordinarily range from provision of oversight of nationals from the sending state who are either residents or in transit through, the receiving state; government- to-government liaison services, and of course promotion of the sending state in areas such as trade, tourism, cultural and economic development, all to deepen and enrich bilateral relations between the two countries.

The functions of consuls, whether honorary or career, are largely accomplished through the facilitation and guidance of the Ministry of Foreign and Caricom Affairs, and to a certain extent by other line ministries.” Davis said in addition to their official duties, the honorary consuls also raised funds to help disenfranchised people or the less popular NGOs which always need financial attention, and have contributed to many charities. Asked whether she faced special challenges as the first woman to serve as dean, given that the corps is dominated by men, Davis said, “Is the Pope Catholic? Women always have challenges when it is perceived that we are encroaching on a man’s territory.

As a young girl in school, being in science, I became accustomed to operating in a male world.

“I try, though, not to see gender, but rather talent-pooling and co-operation in getting the job done. We (men and women) all have something to bring to the proverbial table, be it in knowledge, wisdom, action or experience.” She said she knew some of her colleagues were waiting to see if she could do the job, “But I look at it in a different way: I may be the first woman to get the job as dean, but this is by no means the first job for this woman dean.” The dean, along with the treasurer and secretary of the corps, is elected each year because the corps is a voluntary organisation, and depends on those who are willing and able to serve, said Davis, adding: “I would be delighted to serve again.” On whether she has set any goals for herself and the corps, she said: “Absolutely. I am always goal-setting. Sometimes an idea comes to me in the wee hours of the morning and I jot it down in the dark to ensure that it is not forgotten during the night. I derive extreme satisfaction and delight from operationalising my goals.

She said though the level of achievement was already very high, she wanted to leave the corps even better than she found it.

“I would like to be seen not only as the first female dean, but as a dean who caused for advancement of the business of the corps.

“There are already a number of ideas that I have floated within the executive and other colleague members. These have internal and external ramifications and will be revealed in due course.” Davis thinks the goals of the corps, individually and/or collectively, should include: Contribution –to increase its level of activity within the national community, spending some of its time engaging and motivating young people; Continuation of fund-raising efforts in novel ways; Fostering excellence – focusing on STEM education for schoolchildren; Initiation of collaboration and co-operation with their fellow Caribbean consular corps; Consolidation and promotion of their role in the World Federation of Consuls (FICAC) and recruitment of new country representatives to serve.

She said the corps is now re-establishing linkages with its career consular counterparts so as to serve their collective receiving state better.

Davis is also the chair of the FICAC Caribbean Committee, co-chair for the Caribbean of its Membership Committee, and a member of its Charitable Agreements and Events, World and Regional Conferences Committee.

She is also a lecturer in physiology at the Faculty of Medical Sciences and Associate Dean of Communications at the University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus.