Cayman Islands Culture & Heritage Policy Consultation Phase Ends

The public consultation phase for the Cayman Islands’ first National Culture and Heritage Policy and Strategic Plan has come to a close, and the Ministry of Health and Culture would like to thank all community members and stakeholders who participated.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to everyone who took part in the policy development process,” Premier and Minister for Health and Culture, Hon. Alden McLaughlin said. “Against the background of our country’s rapid growth, it is important to safeguard the practices of our culture and heritage. Thank you to everyone across all three islands who contributed to the draft National Culture and Heritage Policy and Strategic Plan for the Cayman Islands 2017-2016.”

More than 214 discrete pieces of feedback were received, with people completing the comprehensive feedback form online, submitting hard copies, or sending through marked-up documents via e-mail.
The public consultation period was designed to give the public the opportunity to have a voice in the draft stage of the policy, as well as to contribute to what will be the final vision, values and objectives.
“When the public consultation period began the Ministry and stakeholders hit the ground running,” Ministerial Councillor for Health and Culture Roy McTaggart explained. “We wanted to make sure that during the month of January we got the community involved as much as possible, to ensure everyone had a chance to give their feedback and have their questions or concerns answered.”
During the public consultation phase, the Ministry participated in various talk shows, radio appearances, and hosted successful open house sessions on all three Islands as well as informational sessions in West Bay, Bodden Town, North Side and East End.
“These sessions served as an opportunity for the public to meet one-on-one with the policy staff of the Ministry along with the Culture and Heritage Steering Committee members, and add suggestions on what they believe the policy should encompass,” Ministry of Health and Culture Chief Officer Jennifer Ahearn said.
“The Ministry is appreciative of all the individuals who called into radio stations when we were guests, called or emailed through to the Ministry, attended the public meetings, and took the time to submit the feedback forms on this important policy,” Deputy Chief Officer for the Ministry of Health and Culture Nancy Barnard explained.
The Ministry would also like to thank the members of the Cabinet-appointed steering committee of public and private sector stakeholders, for their hard work and dedication in developing the draft policy. The group has worked closely with the Ministry over the past year to research and develop situational analyses for their respective sectors, in regards to all matters relating to the development of this new policy and plan.
Members are: Jennifer Ahearn, Nancy Barnard and Natasha Powell of the Ministry responsible for Culture; Managing Director of Cayman National Cultural Foundation (CNCF), Marcia Muttoo; Director of Cayman Islands National Museum (CINM), Dr Peggy Leshikar-Denton; Director of National Gallery of the Cayman Islands (NGCI), Natalie Urquhart; Director of the National Trust for the Cayman Islands (NTCI), Christina Pineda; Chair, Tourism Attractions Board, Carla Reid; President, Cayman Maritime Foundation/Cayman Catboat Club Representative, Jerris Miller; Ministry of Education representative, Kiva Powell; Cayman Traditional Arts Owner, Chris Christian; Founding CINM Director, Anita Ebanks and representatives of the Cayman Islands National archive (CINA), the Ministry of Tourism, and the Legal Department.
All of the feedback received during the public consultation period will be used to further create the framework for the new policy, which is expected to be rolled out over a 10-year period from 2017 to 2026.