Reema Harrysingh-Carmona (born 22 November 1970) is a Trinidadian and Tobagonian

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

who served as the

First Lady of Trinidad and Tobago The first lady of Trinidad and Tobago is the title attributed to the wife of the president of Trinidad and Tobago and the first gentleman of Trinidad and Tobago to the husband of the president of Trinidad and Tobago, a position created in 1976. Th ...

from 2013 until 2018. She is the wife of the fifth President of the Republic of

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

, Anthony Carmona.

Early life

Reema Harrysingh Carmona was born in

Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,690 i ...

. Her father, the late Cobee Harrysingh, was a retired engineering contractor and her mother is Savitri Seeteram-Harrysingh. She was the daughter of

Indo-Trinidadian Indo-Trinidadians and Tobagonians or Indian-Trinidadians and Tobagonians, are people of Indian origin who are nationals of Trinidad and Tobago whose ancestors came from India and the wider subcontinent beginning in 1845. Indo-Trinidadians and ...

parents, and attended St. Brigid's Girls' Roman Catholic and

Iere High School Iere High School is one of five Presbyterian secondary schools in Trinidad and Tobago, and it is notably the only coeducational of the five. Iere has gained over 50 academic scholarships over its establishment in 1955. The school is usually a Fir ...

, both in Siparia, Trinidad and Tobago. After passing ninth, she passed

'O' Level O' Level were a British punk and indie band, founded in 1976 by Ed Ball with friends John and Gerard Bennett. The group's name refers to the 'O'-Level of the British General Certificate of Education. History Along with the early Television ...

from the Caribbean Examinations Council. She migrated to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

where she attended Cairine Wilson High School in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

. She subsequently attended the University of Ottawa, from which she obtained a degree of

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

Economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

. She and the President Carmona have two children, Christian (b. 1999) and Anura (b. 2002). Her religious affiliation is

Sanātanī ''Sanātanī'' () is a term used to describe Hindu duties that incorporate teachings from The Vedas, The Upanishads, and other Hindu religious texts and scriptures such as ''The Ramayana'' and ''The Bhagavad Gita'', which itself is often described ...

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

, although her husband President Anthony Carmona is a Roman Catholic Christian of

Cocoa panyol The Panyols are a pardo (tri-racial) ethnic group in Trinidad and Tobago of Afro-Indigenous descent, primarily of mixed South American Amerindian, Trinidad and Tobago Amerindian, Afro-Trinidadian and Spanish descent. The name is a derivation ...

descent. Harrysingh-Carmona lived in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

before relocating to Trinidad.

Career

After 11 years in Canada, Harrysingh-Carmona returned to Trinidad and Tobago, where she worked both at the Point Lisas Industrial Port Development Corporation (PLIPDECO) and the Small Business Development Corporation.

First Lady

She is married to Anthony Carmona, who served as the fifth president of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago from 2013 to 2018. In 1997, they exchanged vows in the Catholic La Davina Pastora Church in south Trinidad. Her social work includes support for the Diabetes Association, Children Obesity prevention, and Autism Awareness, among others.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrysingh Carmona, Reema 1970 births First ladies of Trinidad and Tobago American people of Indian descent People from Hoboken, New Jersey Trinidad and Tobago economists Trinidad and Tobago people of Indian descent Living people