(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) The Caribbean Health Leadership Institute (CHLI) will hold its graduation ceremony for the fourth cohort of its Leadership Training Programme on Wednesday 7 March 2012. The event will take place simultaneously via videoconferencing sites across the Caribbean.

This year a total of 41 students will graduate from the course from the following countries: Antigua and Barbuda; Aruba; Bahamas; Barbados; Cayman Islands; Dominica; Grenada; Guyana; Jamaica; Montserrat; St Kitts and Nevis; St Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago. The students come from a number of different backgrounds in the health sector.

The Valedictorian for this year’s ceremony is Dr. Robin Roberts, Director, University of the West Indies (UWI) School of Clinical Medicine and Research, Bahamas. Other speakers include Mr. Ken Hunt, Acting Deputy Director, Caribbean Regional Office, Global AIDS Programme (GAP), Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); Dr. Delroy Fray, Inaugural President, CHLI Alumni Association and Professor Nigel Harris, Vice Chancellor, UWI who will deliver the charge to graduates.

From its inception in 2008, CHLI has been tasked with enhancing the skills and effectiveness of Caribbean leaders in the regional health sector. This includes persons leading HIV and AIDS programs. The ultimate aim of the Institute is to develop a cadre of leaders who will contribute to the improvement of national and regional health systems. To date, 76 persons have graduated from the CHLI programme.

The focus of the CHLI programme is personal and professional development, with a view to strengthening leaders who will influence the performance of work teams and contribute to the improvement of national and regional health systems.

The principal aim is not academic qualification, but personal learning and acquisition of wisdom that can be applied to workplace settings. However, the programme interfaces with post-graduate academic leadership programmes at UWI.

CHLI’s partners include the CDC, the Pan Caribbean Partnership Against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP), the University of North Carolina (UNC) and the Centre for Creative Leadership (CCL).