AUTHOR ANGELA KNIGHT (right) and Francine McDonald review a project plan near a major construction site. Her research has been captured in a new book to be released by month-end.

A NEW BODY of research on women in construction in Barbados has been produced by attorney-at-law Angela Knight.

By month-end, the data and analysis will be released in her first book, entitled The Role Of Women In The Construction Sector In Barbados.

The research covers the period 1990 to 2003 and Knight told BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY the book was targeted at labour market analysts, statisticians, school leavers, educators, guidance counsellors and women interested in working in construction.

One of the most important findings of the research, the author said, centred on the entry of women into several professional areas of the sector.

"Many of these women chose to enter construction and they prepared themselves academically because this was something they wanted to do. On the other hand, women at the lower level, such as general workers and labourers, came to work almost by accident," she explained.

Knight said the book is the culmination of a dream to carve a niche for herself. Having fulfilled her dream to pursue an MSc in construction management at the University of the West Indies' St Augustine Campus, the lawyer turned the findings from her thesis into a new book.

An attorney in the Land Adjudication Unit of the Ministry of Housing and Lands, Knight has taught part-time at the Insurance Institute of Barbados and the UWI School of Continuing Studies.

Distribution of the book, which is being printed by Panagraphix Inc., will be done mainly through direct sales. (GE)