Minister Melanie Griffin welcomed Curry back to The Bahamas, happy to have such a gem return with an eager spirit to help women, and the family as a whole, in her native country. Curry has officially been appointed Director of the new Department of Gender & Family Affairs in the Ministry of Social Services and Community Development. Minister Griffin officially introduced Ms. Curry to the press as well as Ministry stakeholders during a press conference at the Ministry's new building on John F. Kennedy Drive on Monday.

This brand new department is an expansion of a former unit within the Ministry - the Bureau of Women's Affairs. The expansion includes a focus not only on women and girls, but it will also now include men and boys. The approach, according to Curry, is a holistic one in which strengthening the family as a unit and promoting the protection of each individual member of the family is paramount.

The Department of Gender & Family Affairs looks at men and boys, women and girls, and considers how to improve the Bahamian family. It will look at gender-based violence (violence against women, gang violence, etc.), high school drop-outs, developing healthy relationships, and a host of other issues affecting the family. Curry will be responsible for structuring the department and advising on legal and policy issues. She will also be scrutinising laws, policies and programs to determine where the country stands according to international standards. Her work will result in policy development and the introduction of programs to empower and advance women and men as equal partners in national development and the presence of strong family units. The department will also work to educate people around the issues of equality, fairness and justice to raise the awareness of these issues with people from all walks of life. Her team will also work closely with the existing advocacy groups to support work already in action in this regard.

Department staff (l-r) Elaine Hinsey, Registry Clerk; Director Gaynel Curry; Aneesah Abdullah, Administrative Cadet; and Melvyn Symonette, Senior Assistant Secretary

Curry comes with a wealth of international experience combined with a passion for her homeland. She grew up in the Chippingham area of New Providence with a strong mother who instilled the importance of education, excellence and self-pride in her children. This positive reinforcement that can set the course in a person's life for the better. It's the kind of message she wants children in this country to hear and to feel today. Time spent with her grandmother in the Hay Street area added strong cultural and realistic elements to her upbringing that never left her.

For nearly two decades, Curry has climbed the ranks of the United Nations framework. Her work has been so effective that she is sought after by several countries and international institutions to assist with advocacy and policy advice. She has been granted leave for a couple of years to assist her beloved country, but remains a staff member of the UN, which continues to consider her a valuable member of the institution. She comes to us from the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in New York, where she served as the Acting Chief of Global Issues and the Gender and Women's Rights Advisor. In her capacity as chief, she managed, supervised and coordinated the work carried out by the office on a broad range of thematic human rights issues. Those issues include economic, social and cultural rights and sustainable development; sexual violence in conflict; human rights and counter-terrorism; racial discrimination and the rights of minorities and indigenous peoples; and the rule of law and access to justice. Her primary functions included providing policy advice to senior leadership on global trends and developments in the UN Security Council, General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council and the Commission on the Status of Women.

Curry started her career in the UN as a Human Rights Officer in Geneva, Switzerland in 1998, servicing the Committee on the Rights of the Child. She subsequently supported several other human treaty bodies, including the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. She served as the UN Human Rights Advisor in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of East Timor at independence, facilitating the country's ratification of the core international human rights treaties as well as the inclusion human rights in its policies and institutions. Having come from an archipelagic nation herself, Curry was able to become instrumental to these island people, far away between the South China Sea and Indian Ocean.

Afghanistan welcomed her for 18 months, as she worked to strengthen coherence in the common policies and programs of the Afghan government, troop contributors, donors and UN entities on issues of governance, rule of law and human rights. Her commitment and success in rolling out effective strategies led to her being selected to set up the UN's first Women Protection Advisors to respond to conflict related to sexual violence inSouth Sudan. Having helped in so many areas of significance all around the world, the UN commissioner her to the headquarters in New York, where she resided for seven years before being called home.

Before joining the UN, Curry worked as a Personal Assistant in the Office of the Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and as a Senior Assistant Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She attained a Master's Degree in International Human Rights Law from the University of Oxford, UK. She also holds another Master's Degree in International Affairs with a specialisation in Public International Law from the American University in Washington, DC. She also holds a Degree in Law (LLB) from the University of London and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History and Social Sciences from the University of the West Indies. Her tertiary education began right at home, where she obtained an Associate's Degree in History and an Advanced Diploma in Public Policy and Administration from The College of The Bahamas.

Her daughter, Angel, is absolutely elated about the move, soaking up all the Bahamian sunshine and culture she can, while embellishing in the love shown to her by her family members. Coming from the greys and blacks of New York City, moving to the Bahamas could be any child's dream. In this case, she has the privilege of coming "home".

Curry is gearing up for an important week of events this month, in what is among her first duties as the new director of the Department of Gender and Family Affairs. National Women's Week will he hosted November 20 - 26, 2016 under the theme: "Promoting Women as Equal Partners with Men in National Development". Events include a church service; an interactive dialogue at the COB Performing Arts Center; a forum in partnership with the Zonta Club, which launches the "Sixteen Days of Activism"; and an "Orange your Office" Competition, which invites the entire Bahamas to display the colour orange in their work spaces on November 25 as a way of symbolising a brighter future without violence. National Women's Week will also feature Family Island forums and a fun/health walk and celebration to be held on National Women's Day, with a focus on young women leaders and remembering the Women's Suffrage Movement.