The Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), through its Parastatal Monitoring Department (PMD), hosted a specialised training session under the theme “Organisational Governance: International Best Practices” on October 2, 2025.
The session brought together senior public officials and governance practitioners for an in-depth exploration of global standards for effective, ethical and transparent governance, with a focus on applying the ISO 37000:2021 Governance of Organisations framework, which has been recently adopted as a National Standard.
The training session, which was facilitated by Dr. Alison Gajadhar-Foster, Management Systems Consultant from KMA Consulting Ltd., and Ms. Kit Juelle Frank-Amoroso, Attorney-at-Law, who both serve as co-convenors of the national committee on governance standards, aimed to enhance understanding of governance principles, clarify the distinct roles and responsibilities of ministries, boards and management, and promote continuous improvement in the governance of statutory bodies and parastatal organisations.
Participants engaged in interactive discussions and knowledge-sharing on key topics including:
- The ISO suite of governance standards, covering anti-bribery, whistleblowing and compliance management systems;
- Governance conditions and components, such as leadership quality, accountability frameworks and organisational culture;
- The ISO Governance Maturity Scale and Scorecard, tools used to assess governance effectiveness; and
- The design of a Governance Oversight Framework tailored for Saint Lucia’s statutory bodies.
Attendees included senior representatives from the Parastatal Monitoring Department, Cabinet Office and the National Emergency Management Office (NEMO).
According to the PMD, the training supports its mission to ensure that Saint Lucia’s parastatal entities operate efficiently and in full compliance with national laws and financial regulations. It also forms part of the Department’s broader effort to foster a culture of transparency, accountability and responsible leadership across the public sector.
Permanent Secretary at the Parastatal Monitoring Department, Ms. Josette Maxwell-Dalsou, underscored the significance of the initiative, stating:
“Strengthening governance across our public institutions is not just about compliance, it is about cultivating integrity, accountability and trust in the way we serve the people of Saint Lucia.”
As part of the next phase, the PMD will engage parastatals and other government departments to explore the rollout of a wider awareness campaign on international governance best practices, targeting Permanent Secretaries, Statutory Boards and the Cabinet of Ministers.
