From Law Offices to Public Service

Her journey into public life did not begin in Parliament or on a political platform, but in law offices and communities, quietly offering free legal services to citizens who needed help.

That path would soon draw her into politics. From Minister of Public Service, to Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Sonia Parag was entrusted after the last elections with one of the most demanding portfolios in government - education.

This year, she will oversee the second-largest allocation in the national budget. In times past, she would freeze whenver she recognised a camera was on her, but she is now steadily finding her footing in the spotlight, navigating heightened scrutiny, rising expectations, and a sector central to Guyana’s future.

This is Sonia Parag, speaking with the News Room’s Neil Marks - on the priorities shaping her work, and on decisions she says may not be immediately accepted by all, but which she believes are necessary.