Khafra Kambon is set to step down as the chairman of the Emancipation Support Committee of Trinidad and Tobago (ESCTT). The ESCTT made the announcement on the 50^th anniversary of the 1970 Black Power Revolution. His retirement will become effective on February 26, 2020. He will be replaced by Zakiya Uzoma-Wadada. She is the holder of an MSc in Agriculture and Rural Development.

Take a look at the full statement below:

“ESCTT Announces Changes for 2020 as it Commemorates the 50th Anniversary of the 1970 Black Power Revolution.

The Emancipation Support Committee of Trinidad and Tobago (ESCTT) wishes to announce that its beloved Chairman, Bro Khafra Kambon, will retire from the post of Chair of the organisation, a position he has held since its inception in 1992. His retirement will become effective on February 26th, 2020. His experience and wisdom will not be lost to the Board, however. In addition to performing any required tasks, he has accepted the appointment of Senior Advisor on Pan African Affairs to continue strengthening the links between Trinidad and Tobago, the African Diaspora and the African continent. He will also continue to lead the organisation’s work on racial justice and Human Rights, with the human rights of undocumented migrants, particularly those from the African continent, Haiti and other Caribbean countries as a special point of focus.

Sister Zakiya Uzoma-Wadada, holder of an MSc in Agriculture and Rural Development (2012), has been appointed Executive Chair. Sister Zakiya brings to the task a wealth of experience, having held the position of Executive Director of the Organisation over the past 15 years. In addition, Sister Zakiya has demonstrated her expertise through her previous work with a number of other development-oriented Civil Society Organisations, particularly The Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI) and the Caribbean Network for Integrated Rural Development (CNIRD).

The ESCTT looks forward to an exciting 2020 as we mark the 50th anniversary of the Black Power Revolution, which had a major transformative impact on the social and economic lives of the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago and by extension the development of the society. Indeed, the restoration of a popular commemoration of Emancipation Day was one of the direct outcomes of this period.

The major activities of the ESCTT will be shaped within the context of the 50th anniversary. Through educational fora, visual and performance arts, mass media and every available means of projecting information we will increase public awareness about the positive messages and impacts of 1970 and encourage national reconnection and recommitment to the noble ideals of the revolution.

As 2020 is also the beginning of the second half of the United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent, the national community can expect that in celebrating the Black Power Revolution of 1970, the ESCTT will seek to strengthen the implementation of actions in support of the aims and objectives of the Decade at both the level of civil society and government, nationally and regionally.

We thank the national community for its past trust and good will and look forward to continued support as we embark on this new phase in the life of the Organisation.”