Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley has paid tribute to Chief Fisheries Officer Dr. Shelly-Ann Cox, describing her sudden passing as a profound loss for Barbados and the fisheries sector.
Dr. Cox died on Saturday afternoon after collapsing during an open day event at the Weston Fish Market in St. James.
In a statement, the Prime Minister said the news carried a level of pain that went beyond the “sting of death”, noting that Dr. Cox had dedicated her life and career to improving the lives of fisherfolk across the island.
Below is the full statement:
So often when we lose someone close to us, we speak of the sting of death. The sudden and absolutely unexpected passing of Chief Fisheries Officer, Dr. Shelly-Ann Cox, this afternoon carries pain that cannot be adequately described as a sting.
This young woman, just 37 years old, lived and worked with a singular purpose: to improve the lives of the men and women who make their living from the sea. A scholar by training and certification, yes — but every day of her professional life was devoted to ordinary fisherfolk, whose dignity, livelihood and future she guarded with uncommon passion. She did not simply work in the fishing industry; she lived for it and for them.
With unmatched dedication to the upliftment of the fishing sector in Barbados — and all of its practitioners — she left us literally while performing her duties, a mere three years and six months into the job. In that short time, she gave more of herself than many do in a lifetime.
Judged on paper, Dr. Cox was an academic of the highest order. Observed on the job, however, she was the consummate promoter and defender of a sector whose business excited her every passion. She went to work every day determined to uplift the lot of ordinary Barbadians who make their living from the sea — whether they operated in deep waters or from the shore — always insisting that their work be treated with the respect and seriousness it deserves.
She executed Government policies as they relate to fisheries, but she did far more than that. She was relentless in helping to shape an industry that could be resilient in the face of climate crisis and economic uncertainty, urging the adoption of modern techniques and best practices — not as abstract ideas, but as tools to secure the future of real people, with real families, in real communities. In every conversation, she treated fisherfolk and their livelihood with dignity, listening carefully, explaining patiently, and always seeking a way to marry science and scholarship with the lived experience on the jetty and at sea.
She was as comfortable meeting with consultants, researchers from near or far, or representative organisations, as she was engaging with fisherfolk at the Bridgetown Fisheries Complex or the Sand Pit. In truth, it was among the boats, on the wharf, and in the fish markets that she came most alive — translating technical language into practical solutions, standing shoulder to shoulder with those whose hands and hearts are in the water every day.
In the immediate aftermath of the devastation of our fishing industry by Hurricane Beryl, Dr. Cox was the face of Government’s response. She took on the challenge, including the robust language that’s synonymous with the fishing industry, with the quiet dignity, fierce commitment and deep empathy that defined her. She walked the markets, listened to the grievances, absorbed the pain, and still pushed forward to craft responses that were fair, practical and timely. Today, the immense progress that has been made is there for the world to see, and her fingerprints are on every element of that recovery.
Replacing her will not be an easy task, because the job is not just about a professional of great competence, but a soul who believes to the core, that the people of the fishing industry deserved the very best that scholarship, policy and compassion could offer. Shelly gave them all three.
On behalf of the Government and people of Barbados, particularly the thousands who directly and indirectly depend on the ocean for their livelihood, I extend deepest sympathy to her parents, sister, son Shae and the rest of her family. We mourn with them, and we give thanks for a life that, though far too short, was lived with purpose, integrity, and love for our people.
May her soul rest in peace and rise in glory.
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