Outstanding women achievers

 Margaret Sampson-Browne

In a profoundly male-dominated field, Margaret Sampson-Browne has risen through the ranks to become most powerful woman in the Police Service, carrying the rank of Deputy Police Commissioner in charge of Community Relations.

Jearlean John

Rising from humble beginnings in Charlotteville, Tobago, John has become a powerhouse in her own right, heading the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) and as chairman of the Urban Development Company of Trinidad and Tobago (Udecott). 

Helen Bhagwansingh

Helen Bhagwansingh, chairman and CEO of the Bhagwansingh Group of Companies, broke the proverbial glass ceiling when she became the first woman to be inducted into the T&T’s Chamber of Industry and Commerce’s Business Hall of Fame last December. It was Bhagwansingh’s planning, ability to develop strategies, as well as set goals and make sound financial decisions, that made the group into the formidable enterprise it is today. 

Pennelope Beckles-Robinson

Pennelope Beckles-Robinson is the first woman to be elected Deputy Speaker in  the Parliament of T&T. Beckles-Robinson served as the representative for Arima between 2000 and 2010 and has held various diverse portfolios, having been Minster of Social Development, Minister of Culture and Tourism, as well as Minister of Public Utilities and the Environment. She first entered Parliament in 1995 as an Opposition senator.

Catherine Kumar

Catherine Kumar, is chief executive officer and secretary to the board at the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce, a position she took up in January 2010. Before this, Kumar held several senior leadership positions such as president and country head of RBTT Bank Limited and inspector of financial institutions at the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago. She also served as the first female president of the American Chamber of Commerce of Trinidad and Tobago and the Bankers’ Association of Trinidad and Tobago, and she also chaired the Caribbean Group of Banking Supervisors.