Minister of Social Care, Constituency Empowerment and Urban Development Dr Dennis Lowe (left) presents retired stalwart of the social work profession, former Chief Handicraft Development Officer Marjorie Blackman with her plaque of honour. (Pictures by Risee Chaderton-Ames.)

SOCIAL WORKERS will play a key role in the functioning of constituency councils which the Government proposes to set up across Barbados.

Outlining the council's objectives, Minister of Social Care, Constituency Empowerment and Urban Development Dr Dennis Lowe told a gathering of social workers they were best equipped by virtue of their training to assist clients in making changes needed to turn their lives and communities around.

He therefore suggested they would be an important link, given their particular area of community work.

"Through advocacy, the social workers can bring attention to the problems faced by our senior citizens, persons with disabilities and persons living with HIV/AIDS.

"They can conduct focus groups through which residents can vent and share concerning the issues affecting their communities," Lowe said.

The minister said more attention ought to be paid to research, and that social workers were in a unique position to point out trends and significant changes taking place at different levels of the society, which could be dealt with before they reached crisis proportions.

Lowe was speaking on Tuesday night at a function to honour two retired stalwarts of the social work profession, 91-year-old former Chief Handicraft Development Officer Marjorie Blackman and 85-year-old former Chief Community Development Officer Gordon Walters at The Verandah, University of the West indies, Cave Hill Campus, on World Social Workers' Day.

The Barbados Association of Professional Social Workers recognised the sterling contribution of the two who, with a small team of officers, laid the foundation for community development more than three decades ago.

President Karen Ring saw the ceremony as one way to acknowledge the contributions of social workers trying
to make a difference in the lives of Barbadians.

Lowe said his ministry had been given a mandate to provide for improvement in the quality of life of the vulnerable in society. (GC)