MIND Hosts Forum on Gender-Based Violence

The Management Institute for National Development (MIND), in support of the 16 days of activism against gender based violence, has partnered with the Bureau of Women’s Affairs to host a Discussion Forum, under the theme: ‘Addressing Gender-Based Violence: It’s 2015’.

The forum is scheduled for Friday, December 4, from 9:00 a.m. to  11:00 a.m. at the Kingston  campus of  MIND, at  235A Old Hope Road.                                                                    The discussion  initiative seeks to facilitate constructive conversations on strategies to eliminate violence against women and girls, and create an inclusive platform to engage a wide cross section of stakeholders from the public and private sectors.                          According to the Marketing Manager at MIND, Shawnette Henry, the objectives of the campaign include: engaging men and boys as advocates and agents of change, to challenge harmful social cultural norms and gender stereotypes; and re-engaging youth, in particular the millennial generation, through social media, to create and disseminate anti-violent and empowering messages to accelerate the progress towards achieving gender equality.                                                                                                                     Speakers for the Forum include: Deputy Commissioner of Police, Novlette Grant; Anthropologist and Chairman of Fathers Incorporated, Dr. Herbert Gayle and Attorney-at-Law and Human Rights Advocate, Margarette McCaulay, JP.

Miss Henry  said  MIND is committed to the country’s  Vision  2030 National Development Plan,  which  sees Jamaica as ‘the place of choice to live, work, raise families and do business’ and more specifically, Goal number two, which speaks to a safe and secure society.

The 16 days of activism, which began on November 25 will end on December 10.