The Ministry of Education, Youth, Sports, Agriculture, and Lands has formally appointed Tammy Ebanks as Deputy Chief Officer (DCO). Ms. Ebanks has been a civil servant for almost 20 years and had been acting as a DCO for the last 2 years in the former Ministry of Education, Employment and Gender Affairs. In this role, she had oversight of Capital Expenditure, Finance, Administration, Special Projects and the subject areas of Gender Affairs and Labour. Prior to the 2017 General Election, she was appointed as DCO, and with the change in the Ministry’s subject areas, she now oversees Administration, Agriculture, and Lands.

Entering the civil service in1998, Ms. Ebanks’ vast years of experience at different management and policy levels and participation in a wide range of special projects have provided her with a wealth of knowledge that makes her a true asset to the Ministry’s Senior Management Team. Her knowledge, coupled with her passion for service to the people of the Cayman Islands, made her a perfect choice for this position.

Ms. Ebanks began her career as Programme Officer at the former Women’s Resource Centre (now Family Resource Centre) and within 10 years ascended to the position of Director. She introduced initiatives like the Clothesline Project, the Quincentennial Distinguished Women Award and expanded Honouring Women Month. She also helped revitalize the Domestic Violence Intervention Training Programme that is still actively used to sensitize front-line professionals today. During this time, she also obtained a post-grad Diploma in Gender and Development Studies from the University of the West Indies.

Ms. Ebanks’ post graduate studies, educational background in Sociology, and years of experience made her the ideal candidate for the position of Senior Policy Advisor for Gender Affairs which she entered into in 2008 at the then, Ministry of Health and Human Services. She maintained that position until formally confirmed as DCO in May 2017. While working within various ministries, she has successfully managed the legislative development and public consultation process of several bills and laws: Protection from Domestic Violence Law (2010), Gender Equality Law (2011), Labour Relations Bill (2015), Labour (National Minimum Basic Wage) Order (2016) and National Pensions (Amendment) Law (2016). She also led the team which organized the first ever National Conference on Women and Girls in 2014, and she managed the requirements and processes in order to ensure that Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) was extended to the Cayman Islands in 2016.

Having a long standing interest in women’s and children’s rights, she served for five years as a Cabinet appointed Member of the Cayman Islands Human Rights Committee (the entity created prior to the current Human Rights Commission). Since her appointment by Cabinet in 2012, Ms. Ebanks has also been an active Member of the Gender Equality Tribunal, which hears discrimination complaints made under the Gender Equality Law.

With this new position, Ms. Ebanks is embarking on a challenge as she brings her talents to the subject areas of Agriculture and Lands. Chief Officer Christen Suckoo sings her praises, “She has excellent communication, research, analytical, management and administrative skills. She is a hard-worker and always delivers sound advice to assist with policy development. It is not often that you find someone who can be technically savvy but still has an immense passion for service and goodwill. This positively impacts her colleagues and those she supervises. Ms. Ebanks is an invaluable resource, and I am happy that she is a member of the Senior Management Team for our Ministry. I have tremendous faith in her capabilities as she takes on this new challenge and I am certain she will continue to lead by example.”

Ms. Ebanks said, “My experience of working in the Cayman Islands Government for nearly two decades has afforded me many diverse opportunities, which have tremendously developed my skills as a leader and a manager, and I am grateful for yet another opportunity to put my skill set to work and be a part of this Ministry’s team. I am looking forward to this new challenge and collaborating with my colleagues as we work together to serve the people of the Cayman Islands and improve our society by achieving the important strategic goals of this Ministry.”

Ministry of Education, Youth, Sports, Agriculture, and Lands is proud to have appointed Ms. Tammy Ebanks as a Deputy Chief Officer and is certain she will continue to her excel in this new position.