About the Event

The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), in collaboration with the Ministry of Education Transformation, Barbados and other partners will hold the 2025 Regional Symposium and Policy Dialogue on Transforming Education from September 30 - Oct 2, in Barbados. The theme of this year’s event is “Stronger Together: Empowering Parents as Partners in Caribbean Education”.  

Building on the success of the inaugural symposium, which brought together key stakeholders to determine methods for transforming the delivery of education across the region, the 2025 staging will underscore the vital role of parents and guardians as partners in education. It aims to strengthen the impact of this critical group through targeted capacity building, dialogue with policymakers, and the establishment of a sustainable regional framework.

The Symposium will target parents and guardians from across the Bank’s Borrowing Member Countries and beyond, with representation reflecting the socio-economic, geographic, and ethnic diversity of the region’s student population with due regard for gender balance, wide inclusion, and representation from vulnerable groups.  

The agenda will focus on four areas of engagement:

• Capacity building for Parent/Teacher Associations (PTAs) intended to strengthen the internal structures and operational effectiveness  
• Policy dialogue with Ministers to enhance collaboration between PTAs and Ministries of Education to align efforts and policy priorities
• Exploring issues for parental involvement in education, by identifying challenges and best practices related to parental engagement
• Formalising the regional PTA as a stakeholder group, with the establishment of the Caribbean Parent Teacher Association, along with the adoption of an organisational Charter.  

Through plenary, capacity-building workshops, and panel discussions, approximately 150 participants will have the opportunity to engage Ministers and other key policymakers in meaningful dialogue, targeted capacity-building, and other initiatives that will dovetail into a charter that marks a historic milestone in fostering sustained collaboration and regional impact.