IOI | President addresses the CAROA webinar on how to be effective as a small Ombuds institution

Chris Field, President of the International Ombudsman Institute, addressed the Caribbean Ombudsman Association webinar How to be effective as a small Ombuds institution, on 25 November 2021.

“I am sincerely grateful to Dr Rosemary Husbands-Mathurin, Parliamentary Commissioner for Saint Lucia and President of the Caribbean Ombudsman Association, and Reinier van Zutphen, National Ombudsman of the Netherlands, for inviting me to address this very important event” said President Field.

President Field told webinar participants that: “I recognise and respect the powerful nature of small Ombuds offices in the services they provide.  No matter the size of an Ombuds institution, it is, in its national or subnational context, a bulwark against the misuse of the power of the state against its citizens, a protector of the basic dignities and fundamental human rights of our most vulnerable citizens, a promoter of the rule of law and democracy and a proactive agent for change so that governments continue to serve its citizens in the most fair, just and effective way. Where the significant powers of the institution of the Ombudsman are used with vision, with purpose and with passion, small Ombuds institutions can be transformative in terms of their impact on government administration and service delivery, and ultimately, the lives of citizens.”