Some frontline public officers are honing their skills in Spanish through the Venezuelan Institute for Culture and Cooperation (IVCC).
And, Minister of State in Foreign Trade and Business, Sandra Husbands, has underscored the importance of this initiative.
Minister Husbands emphasised that having a second language was vital to Barbados’ future success, as she delivered remarks on Tuesday, at the launch of the inaugural special programme for the frontline officers, at the Barbados Defence Force (BDF), St. Ann’s Fort, The Garrison, St. Michael.
“Building our nation is going to require a complete transformation of everything that we do; how we’ve done it in the past will no longer suffice to make us successful. We have to change and move all of our organisations to a new level, a higher level and ensure that they’re properly equipped to engage the new global arena that is emerging. And part of that work is engaging with our neighbours in Latin America and other Spanish-speaking countries.…
“To achieve this, we have to ensure that our people are bilingual and therefore can engage deeply with the people of Venezuela and Spanish-speaking countries, so that we can collaborate around our common problems and bring new creative and innovative solutions that benefit our nation,” Minister Husbands suggested.
Acting Chief of Staff of the BDF, Commander Mark Peterson, gave the rationale for BDF officers’ participation in the training. “For the military, effective communication is essential as it is vital to the success of any military operation. Whether in a training environment or a stability operation in a foreign territory, the need to understand what is being communicated and to be equally understood remains a priority.
“It is, therefore, undeniable that the need for a second language as a military practitioner is paramount. The BDF is fully cognisant of the criticality of having a second language and we strongly believe this collaboration between the BDF and the Venezuela Institute will be extremely beneficial,” Commander Peterson said.
Twenty-seven students, consisting of personnel from the BDF, Barbados Fire Service, The Barbados Police Service and Emergency Ambulance Service will take part in the two-year face-to-face course, which will be offered at basic, intermediate, and advanced levels, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, at St. Ann’s Fort.
Also in attendance at the launch were Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of Barbados in Venezuela, Commander Aquinas Clarke; Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs and Information, Curtis Gilkes, and Chargé d’Affaires, Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Martha Gabriela Ortega Peraza.
They stressed that discipline and practising the language were key to the students’ success. The programme will focus on learning the Spanish language and Venezuelan culture. The IVCC was founded on September 7, 1978.