Institute for Gender and Development Studies

Professor Sterling Frost, Chair

Deputy CEO, Operations and Administration, First Citizens, Professor of Practice in Management Studies 
Faculty of Social Sciences, The UWI St. Augustine Campus

Dr Sterling Frost is a Senior International Management Executive with three decades of Global Corporate career experience in North America, Latin America and the Caribbean region. Dr Frost has held senior positions in financial services in the areas of Retail and Commercial Banking, Operations, Public Affairs and Human Resources.  

Prior to joining the First Citizens Group in 2016 as Deputy Chief Executive Officer - Operations and Administration, he served as Director of Human Resources at the Miami-based Citibank Latin America Head Office. There he had oversight of 12,000 employees across 13 countries in the Central American and Caribbean region, serving 1.2 million clients. In addition, his past directorships include financial institutions across Trinidad and Tobago, Panama, Nicaragua and Honduras. He currently serves on the boards of several subsidiaries within the First Citizens Group. 

Dr Frost’s academic qualifications include a Master’s degree and a Doctorate in Business Administration from The University of the West Indies (UWI). In February 2019, he was appointed Professor of Practice: Management Studies at The University of the West Indies, Trinidad and Tobago in recognition of his professional competence, distinguished practice, notable teaching and service contributions. He is the recipient of The UWI Inaugural Distinguished Alumni Award bestowed in 2011 on high performing individuals who consistently operate at world-class levels. 

Passionate about the need to nurture and develop human capital, Dr Frost has for the last 15 years been an Adjunct Lecturer at The UWI for both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. He lectures in the areas of Organizational Behaviour and Development, Human Resource Management, Cross Cultural Management and Strategic Planning. 

Apart from his knowledge sharing in the classroom, his commitment to support human capital as the optimal pathway towards national development is reflected in his Chairmanship of The Lydian Singers as well as, The UWI Faculty of Social Sciences Advisory Board. He is the Deputy Chairman of The UWI Institute for Gender and Development Studies External Advisory Board, and a Director of the Board of the Foundation for Enhancement and Enrichment of Life (FEEL) and The UWI Development and Endowment Fund.

Board Members

Dr Vaalmikki Arjoon

Lecturer in Finance, Department of Management Studies, The UWI, St Augustine

Dr Vaalmikki Arjoon is a lecturer at the University of the West Indies, where he currently lectures in Finance, Economics and Statistics at the Department of Management Studies. Prior to joining UWI, he lectured at the University of Nottingham in the UK and at their campus in China.

Ms Roberta Clarke

Attorney-at-Law, President, Coalition Against Domestic Violence & previoulsy, Regional Director, UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

Roberta Clarke is a human rights and social justice practitioner and advocate. She is currently the Regional Director (acting) for the UN Women East and Southern Africa Regional Office and has held similar portfolios for UN Women in the Caribbean and in Asia and the Pacific. In 2018, she was the UN Women Head of the Libya Programme.

She is a lawyer with post graduate qualifications in sociology and international human rights law. She has worked in various capacities with the University of the West Indies, the Caribbean Association for Feminist Research and Action, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean and as an attorney in private practice in Trinidad and Tobago. 

Amongst current national and international affiliations,  she is the Chair of the Executive Committee of the International Commission of Jurists, the Chair of the Barbados Population Commission and a Board member of several NGOs in Trinidad and Tobago, including the Coalition against Domestic Violence and the Cropper Foundation.

Mr Khamal Georges

Journalist
Lead Newsgathering Editor
Guardian Media Limited

Ms. Patricia Ghany

President, The American Chamber of Commerce of Trinidad and Tobago

Patricia Ghany is the Chief Financial Officer at Esau Oilfield Supplies Co. Ltd. The company has supplied and supported the oil and gas industry for more than 45 years, providing pipes, valves and pipe fittings for the development of upstream, midstream and downstream sectors. With over 25 years’ experience in various aspects of the Oil & Gas sector, Ms. Ghany is proficient in the areas of Procurement, Business Development and Project Management.

Ms. Ghany graduated from the University of Toronto with a B.A. in Sociology and an M.B.A. in International Business and Finance. She has also completed graduate courses in International Management and Cross-cultural Counseling at Harvard University. Before returning to Trinidad in 1995, she was an International Trainer and Consultant in the areas of Cross-Cultural Management, Diversity and Team Building in Austria and Germany. Ms. Ghany is a member of the Family Firm Institute, in Boston and has earned her Advance Certificate in Family Business Advising and Certificate in Family Wealth Advising.  She has a vision to increase public awareness and broaden the understanding of developments in the fields of family businesses and family wealth in Trinidad & Tobago.

Ms. Ghany is currently the President of the American Chamber of Commerce of Trinidad & Tobago and has held positions of Vice President  & Treasurer during her five terms on the Board of Directors. She presently serves on the boards of Guardian Holdings Ltd, Guardian Group Trust Ltd., AACCLA, Dialogue Solutions Ltd and The Women in Family Business Network. She is also a co-franchise owner of Challenge Island Miami, a cross-curricular enrichment program on the cutting edge of STEAM and 21st century learning skills.

Ms Savitree Seepersad

Deputy Permanent Secretary (Acting), Ministry of Finance, Government of The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

Mrs. Savitree Seepersad currently serves as a Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, a position she has held from November 2, 2015.   Her current portfolio at the Ministry includes the provision of technical advice and support in financial management, public accounting and other matters relating to the Ministry of Finance and its various stakeholders.  Mrs. Seepersad also coordinates all activities in relation to Trinidad and Tobago’s international tax transparency and exchange of information obligations. Additionally, she holds responsibility for the Double Tax Treaty Unit of the Ministry and is a member of a team negotiating Double Taxation treaties on behalf of Trinidad and Tobago. 

Mrs. Seepersad’s career spans over thirty-five (35) years, most of which was spent providing dedicated service to the Treasury Division, Ministry of Finance, in several positions.   While at the Treasury Division, Mrs. Seepersad was strategic in the execution of projects such as the Government Payment System and IGP/IhRIS. Mrs. Seepersad also provided advice on financial management and accounting and pension matters in the public service and was actively involved in reform initiatives in these areas.

Mrs. Seepersad accomplishments include development of a policy, system and procedures for the implementation of a credit card facility in the public service and coordination of an outreach exercise to provide service to public service pensioners at regional locations.

Mrs. Seepersad shares her wealth of knowledge and expertise to many Boards and Committees.  Mrs. Seepersad is currently a Director on the Board of First Citizens Bank Limited, a Member on the Board of the Airport Authority of Trinidad and Tobago, Chairman, Human Resource Committee, Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) and Member of National Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terrorism Committee (NAMLC), just to name a few.

Mrs. Seepersad is a Fellow of the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (FCCA) and a Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Trinidad and Tobago (CA).

Mr Abraham Smith

Chief Executive Officer, Digicel Trinidad and Tobago

Abraham Smith was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Digicel Trinidad and Tobago in November 2020. He brings more than 20 years international senior management experience to the role, having previously worked in the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Russia and the Americas. 

Abraham first joined Digicel in February 2019 as the Consumer Director where he led Digicel’s consumer and digital businesses, as well as marketing and business intelligence for two years. He was instrumental in conceiving and driving customer-first digital initiatives that resonated with customers and staff; and his contributions have translated into increased usage and revenues which saw Digicel record its best year ever in T&T in 2019.

Prior to this, Abraham served as the Mobile Strategy Advisor for a worldwide religious nonprofit organization with 15 million members in over 150 countries. He has extensive experience in the telecommunications industry, having served as Chief Executive Officer of Wataniya Telecom Maldives, Managing Director of WARF Telecom, CEO of Smart Telecom in Nepal and CEO of Coscom (Ucell) in Uzbekistan.  

Abraham has a degree from Georgetown University in international business and has taught as an adjunct professor of digital marketing at the LDS Business College in Salt Lake City, Utah USA. He currently sits on the Advisory Board for the Institute for Gender and Development Studies, University of the West Indies. Abraham lives in Trinidad and Tobago and is married with two daughters.