Kamla Persad-Bissessar

Kamla Persad-Bissessar has served as the political leader of the United National Congress of Trinidad and Tobago since January 2010 and as the leader of the opposition since September 2015. Persad-Bissessar previously served as prime minister and as attorney general of Trinidad and Tobago. She is the first woman to serve as attorney general, acting prime minister and leader of the opposition in that country.

Persad-Bissessar was born on April 4, 1952, in Siparia. She attended Norwood Technical College and later, the University of the West Indies (UWI) where she obtained a bachelor of arts in 1974 and a diploma in education in 1976. She was a lecturer in language and linguistics at UWI's St. Augustine and Mona campuses and a teacher at Lakshmi Girls' Hindu College. She was also a social worker with the Church of England Children's Society in London.

In 1985, Persad-Bissessar opted to pursue a career in law and entered the Hugh Wooding Law School, where she was named top student at her graduation two years later. She worked in the chambers of Mr. Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj before practicing on her own from 1988.

Persad-Bissessar entered politics in 1987 when she became an alderman for the National Alliance for Reconstruction in the St. Patrick County Council. She was appointed as an opposition senator in November 1994. She was also elected parliamentary representative for Siparia in 1995 and 2000. She was sworn in as attorney general under Ramesh Maharaj on November 9, 1995 but relinquished that position when she was appointed minister of legal affairs on February 2, 1996, a post she held until October 1999 when she was appointed minister of education. In October 2001, she was again sworn in as attorney general, serving until December 2001. She served as leader of the opposition from April 2006 to November 2007, and again from February to May 2010. In January 2010, she was elected political leader of the United National Congress, and in May 2010, she assumed office as prime minister, serving until September 2015.

Sources:

Council of Women World Leaders (n.d.). “KAMLA PERSAD-BISSESSAR” Council of Women World Leaders. Retrieved December 9, 2022. https://www.councilwomenworldleaders.org/kamla-persad-bissessar.html

Permanent Mission of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago to the United Nations Office at Geneva (n.d.). “Kamla Persad Bissessar biography & profile ” Permanent Mission of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago to the United Nations Office at Geneva. Retrieved December 9, 2022. http://www.ttperm-mission.ch/pminister.html

World Economic Forum (n.d.). “Kamla Persad-Bissessar" World Economic Forum. Retrieved December 9, 2022. https://www.weforum.org/people/kamla-persad-bissessar