Tabitha Sarabo Halley was first sworn in as a Member of Parliament in 2019, she lectured in the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Guyana, served as a Regional Democratic Counsellor for Region 4 and the Chairperson of the Public Relations and Research Sub-Committee at the regional level, and served as Director of the Guyana National Newspaper Limited Board. She went on to serve as Political Officer under the then Minister of State, Mr. Joseph Harmon, and was later sworn in as the Minister of the Public Service in the Ministry of the Presidency. Tabitha also served as the Minister of Public Service in 2019 and 2020.

In 2020, Tabitha was sworn in again as a Member of Parliament for the opposition coalition APNU+AFC where she is currently the Shadow Minister of the Public Service and a member of the Committee on Appointments and the Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Foreign Relations.

IVLP Impact Award Project: The Importance of Transparency, Accountability and Inclusivity to Democracy

Tabitha's project held seminars with 25 members of civil society groups as well as journalists to discuss transparency, accountability and inclusivity and what these ideals mean for the day-to-day running of a democracy. Statements and phrases discussed during the seminars helped to inform the creation of Public Service Announcements (PSAs) which were posted on social media thereby reaching an even wider audience than the people involved in the seminars. These PSAs focused on corruption, authoritarian styled leadership and the role of civil society in holding governments accountable. They reached a combined total of 63,206 people by the end of the project, thereby engaging the broader public in the discussion about the importance of transparency and accountability in government. This project started the very necessary conversation that is required to help the key stakeholders understand their role in ensuring that Guyanese society recognizes and perpetuate the tenets of democracy as the key political ideology and praxis.

"It is my hope that at the end of this project, Guyanese will be knowledgeable about the importance of transparency and accountability to an inclusive and equitable society. "- Tabitha Sarabo-Halley

IVLP Exchange Experience 

Tabitha was a participant in the IVLP Project The Problem We All Live With: Dismantling Racial and Social Injustice, organized by the U.S. Department of State and the Institute of International Education.

Tabitha's exchange experience led to the development of her IVLP Impact Award project. "Lauren Burdette's position as Equity Advisor in the Office of the Mayor of Chicago and her ability to use the data available to guide budgeting agencies, helped me to appreciate how transparency and accountability can positively affect the push for a more inclusive society."

US Communities Visited

Montgomery, AL, Washington, DC; Chicago, IL; Tulsa, OK

Country: Guyana 

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