IN keeping with its commitment to appoint ‘competent’ and ‘capable’ persons to carry out critical functions, the Government of Guyana has announced the appointment of eight permanent secretaries within government ministries.
At the Ministry of Health, Collette Adams will be replaced by Malcolm Watkins. Watkins holds a master of organisational leadership from the Southern New Hampshire University and is a certified supply chain professional.

Prior to his new appointment, he held the position of procurement manager at the Ministry of Health, Guyana.
Additionally, Sharon Hicks has been appointed Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs. Hicks is the holder of a bachelor’s degree in accountancy from the University of Guyana and a certificate in developmental psychology.
She previously held the position of management development officer at the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, and also held the position of auditor as well as internal affairs investigator at the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA).

Meanwhile, Mae Toussaint Jr. Thomas has been appointed to the Ministry of Home Affairs. She is the holder of a diploma in accountancy from the University of Guyana (UG) and a certificate in project management. She previously served as the assistant accountant at the Office of the President.
Another well-qualified individual, Vladim Persaud was appointed Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Public Works. He holds a BSc in economics, a graduate diploma in development studies, and a master of public administration from the UG and is pursuing an international master of business administration at the Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School of Business.
Persaud previously served at the Guyana National Bureau of Standards, as the head of the Finance Department and earlier at the Ministry of Finance as an economic and financial analyst II, in the budget, fiscal and monetary division.
Another economist, Sharon Roopchand-Edwards, was appointed to the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce.
She is an economist by training and previously held the position of principal academic engagement officer within the Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, at the University of Guyana.
She was also a lecturer in the Department of Economics, UG, and served as a director on the board of the Bank of Guyana and as a member of the bank’s audit committee. Roopchand-Edwards also served on a number of other boards and committees including the Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission (CCAC) among others.
Meanwhile, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security will be Shannielle E. Hoosein-Outar.
She holds a BSc in business management and a post graduate diploma in international relations from UG. Hoosein-Outar previously served as the development manager at Massy Guyana Ltd.
Government has also announced the appointment of Andre Ally to the Ministry of Housing and Water. Ally holds a master of business administration from the Australian Institute of Business and several professional IT Certificates. He served at the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) as the Head of ICT from 2008 to 2017 and at Ansa McAl, as the country manager and later its regional manager.

Finally, Government has announced the appointment of Bishram Kuppen as the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour. He is a former two-term elected councillor of the Georgetown City Council and previously served as a corporate management officer at an international company abroad for many years. He also served as a commissioned officer of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF).