Belize's First Lady Bio Booklet

BIOG R A PH Y Mrs. Kim Simplis Barrow is the wife of Prime Minister of Belize, Honorable Dean Barrow and mother to her only child, Salima Barrow. Mrs. Kim Simplis Barrow is Belize’s Special Envoy for Women and Children and the founder and director of one of Belize’s most acclaimed charity organisations, the Lifeline Foundation, which strives to improve the quality of life for the children of Belize. She started the Foundation after transitioning from a distinguished career in both the domestic and international tourism industry.

In the vitally important role as Executive Director for the Belize Tourism Industry, she made numerous invaluable contributions to the strategic development as well as the implementation of the long term roadmap for Belize’s tourism industry. Using her international contacts and experience, she facilitated valuable partnerships that have greatly enhanced and benefited the growth and development of the tourism industry.

She was the first to coordinate national communications among the various stakeholders in the tourism industry by launching a magazine called “Tourism Voice.” Prior to this position, she served as Marketing Director for the popular Fiesta Inn Hotel properties in Mazatlan, Cozumel and Belize.

In September of 2008, Mrs. Kim Simplis Barrow was appointed by Special Olympics International as a Global Ambassador for the Special Olympics movement, joining the ranks of well known international personalities like Nelson Mandela, Bono and Arnold Schwarzenegger: This is the first such honour accorded to a Belizean. That same year she was designated by the government as Belize’s Special Envoy for Women and Children.

Being appointed as the Global Ambassador for Special Olympics and Special Envoy for Children and Women were natural fits for Mrs. Kim Simplis Barrow, who has worked tirelessly and passionately for many years as a community activist and advocate for the rights of children. Her passion is exemplified by her strong commitment and dedication to these special platforms and to Lifeline Foundation, which in a small economy, still raises tens of thousands of dollars annually to aid disenfranchised children. Her Foundation has championed many causes, but her primary focuses have been on children living with HIV/ AIDS, support to children outside of familial care settings, building classrooms and bathroom facilities in rural areas of Belize and nutrition programs for children.

As Special Envoy for Women and Children, Mrs. Kim Simplis Barrow is the Belizean champion for children, undertaking projects big and small and working primarily in collaboration with the Ministries