Office of the Pro Vice-Chancellor and Principal. Wednesday, January 10, 2024 — The University of the West Indies (The UWI) Global Campus (formerly Open Campus) congratulates Honourable Ambassador Dr June Soomer on being appointed Chair Designate of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent (PFPAD). Her appointment took effect on January 1, 2024.
Ambassador Soomer is a proud UWI alumna and currently serves as Chair of The UWI Global Campus Council. She is among five (5) persons elected by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and one of two CARICOM representatives on the PFPAD. Ms Gaynael Curry from The Bahamas is the other representative. The outgoing Chair is Dr Epsy Campbell Barr, former Vice-President of Costa Rica.
Ambassador Soomer received her PhD in History from The UWI in 1994 and was the first female to graduate with a doctorate in this discipline at the Cave Hill Campus. As an accomplished author and historian, she served in the diplomatic, financial and educational fields regionally and internationally. She also has over 40 years of academic and professional experience in management, operational and technical areas; has developed a solid understanding of contemporary development issues; and continues to advocate for equality and equity in sustainable development, particularly in the Caribbean Region.
Since 2008, Ambassador Soomer has served on several national and regional committees. She was the first woman to serve as Saint Lucia’s Ambassador to the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and CARICOM with responsibility for Diaspora Affairs, a position she held from 2008-2016. She also served as an OECS Commissioner and was the first female Secretary General of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) from 2016-2020. She was Head of the Maritime Boundaries Delimitation Team for Saint Lucia with Barbados and St Vincent and the Grenadines and a Member of the National Working Group on Free Circulation of Goods in the OECS.
Over the years, she has received numerous awards for her work across the Region. In July 2018, she was awarded The UWI Alumni Association Pelican Award for excellence in diplomacy, public service and the promotion of regionalism, representing the 1989-1998 decade of the university with distinction. In October of that year, she was also recognised for outstanding leadership by the Cave Hill Campus on the 70th Anniversary of The UWI. In 2021 she received Saint Lucia’s highest national award, the Saint Lucia Cross, for her distinguished work in the fields of education, diplomacy, regionalism and development specialty and the Order “José de Marcoleta” in the Degree of Grand Cross, from the Republic of Nicaragua.
The Permanent Forum for the People of African Descent was launched in 2021 by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), as a consultative mechanism for people of African descent and other relevant stakeholders to improve the safety and quality of life and livelihoods of people of African descent. The Permanent Forum also serves as an advisory body to the Human Rights Council, in line with the programme of activities for the implementation of the International Decade for People of African Descent 2015 – 2024.
The mandate of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent includes contributing to the full political, economic and social inclusion of people of African descent through its modalities, formats, and substantive and procedural aspects.
Pro Vice-Chancellor & Principal, The UWI Global Campus, Dr Francis O. Severin is delighted by this news. He reflects, “These outstanding and prominent appointments of Dr June Soomer at the helm of well-respected Regional and International bodies are irrevocable proofs of her standing and profile in the eyes of her peers.” He continues, “The foregoing has not in any way altered the person she is, that is, pleasant, down-to-earth, authentic, and calmly confident. We are proud of and honoured to have her as our Campus Council Chair and the fact that she is a UWI alumna, gladdens our hearts tremendously. “The Global Campus Senior Management Team congratulates Honourable Ambassador Dr June Soomer and wishes her success in this new role.
