Aja Dr Isatou Njie-Saidy, the Vice President and Secretary of State for Women’s Affairs, yesterday morning, received in her office a delegation from the Mano River Union countries.

Led to the State House by Madam Hannah Forster, the executive director of the African Centre for Democracy and Human Rights Studies, the delegation comprised participants from the three Mano River Union countries; Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Speaking to a group of waiting newsmen, shortly after their audience with the vice president, Mrs Hannah Forster said that their mission to State House was to inform Vice President Njie-Saidy about a three-day consultative meeting held in the country for Mano River Union countries, on the Protocol on the Rights of  Women in Africa.

According to her, they also informed the vice president that the meeting accorded them the opportunity to review the progress being made in the promotion and projection of women’s rights in Africa. "We also told her that at the end of the meeting we were expected to come up with an action plan that would pave the way forward for the cause of the protocol in various countries," the ACDHRS executive director said, noting that the vice president, in reaction, was very much appreciative of the move.

According to her, the delegation was very much impressed with the work of the vice president, and that they expressed their appreciation of the support she isgiving to Gambian women locally as well as those in other parts of Africa.

She informed reporters that the consultative meeting was supported by the Solidarity of the African Women’s Rights, which is a coalition of about 30 NGOs working on Women’s Rights.  She noted that the objective of the meeting was to strategise for the acceleration of the ratification of the African Union protocol in the rights of women in Africa for Mano River Union countries.

One of the reasons why The Gambia hosted the meeting, according to Madam Foster, was to enable the member countries to see how far The Gambia had gone in terms of domesticating the protocol.

For her part, Honourable Regina Sokan, one of the delegates and a member of the Liberian House of Representatives, said it was good for them to come and see how the first country that had ratified the protocol was implementing it, in the quest to map out the way for other countries. She concluded by saying that the ratification of the protocol was good since it stands to promote the interest of African women.

Dr Aja Isatou Njie-Saidy, Vice President and secretary of State for women affairs yesterday received at her office Mr Gideon Behar, Israel ambassador in Dakar and Mr Adama Guindo, out-going UNDP Chargé d’affaires in The Gambia.

Speaking to journalists soon after his audience with Vice-President Njie-Saidy, Mr Gideon Behar, Israel ambassador in Dakar said his discussion with the Vice President centred on the result of his visit to the Gambia, four days of touring in the north and south banks of the country to know better about the Gambia, its people and geographical condition.

“We have also discussed the possibilities of cooperation between the two countries in the areas of agriculture, health, education and commerce. I hope that this visit will bear fruit and we will see concrete actions on the ground and cooperation between the two friendly states of The Gambia and Israel” he said.

He added that the Gambia will greatly benefit in the field of education in its cooperation with Israel noting that this year, people from the Ministry of education of The Gambia went to Israel for training and hope that in the coming years other people from the ministries of agriculture and environment will follow suit.

He noted that they have also discussed the possibility of Israel doctors coming to The Gambia for operations and expressed hope that this idea will materialise and concrete actions will be taken as soon as possible.

For his part, Mr Adama Guindo, out-going UNDP Chargé d’affaires in The Gambia said his visit to Vice President Njie-Saidy was to bid farewell and to brief her on stance of the cooperation between the UNDP and the government of The Gambia today. “We have reviewed the project we signed two months back and the implementation stages of those projects are on course. We are also in the process of finalising the recruitment of the project staff and today we will hand over equipment for the project to ease the job” he said.

He expressed delight at the project which was signed two months back noting that it is running smoothly and that they have also reviewed the state of the round table conference paper preparation.

He commended the government of the Gambia for successfully completing its poverty reduction programme (PRSP II) which will be tabled before the donor conference for policy dialogue and resource mobilisation. “I am also happy to say that the technical documentation for the PRSP in the round table is completed and is uploaded in the website to be seen my all interested partners. The quality of the documentation is highly appreciative” he noted.

The out-going UNDP Chargé d’affaires in The Gambia is heading to DR Congo, Kinshaha to pick up another appointment.

A judgement date in a forgery case involving Abdoulie Sosseh, former Vice President of Gambia National Transport, Agricultural and Workers Union, was on Friday, given a seven-day extension.

Mr Sosseh has been standing trial for forging the membership cards and letter heads of union, at the Brikama Magistrates’ Court.

When the case resumed last week, the court was told that presiding Magistrate John Njie is recuperating from an illness that rendered him indisposable.

During the previous sitting, Mr Sosseh told the court that the change of the union’s   membership card and letter head was agreed upon by the general membership.

Aja Dr Isatou Njie-Saidy, Vice- President and Secretary of State for Women's Affairs, yesterday morning returned to Banjul after attending the first-ever Taiwan-Africa Summit in the Taiwanese capital of Taipei.
The Vice-President, who represented President Yahya Jammeh was accompanied to the summit by a high-powered delegation, notably Ousman Jammeh, Secretary-General and Head of the Civil Service, and Musa Bala Gaye, Secretary of State for Finance and Economic Affairs.

James CF Huang, Taiwan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, saw off the Vice-President and her delegation at Cheong Kai Shek International Airport. Officials of the Taiwanese government and Dr Patrick Chang, Taiwan's Ambassador to The Gambia, enjoined Minister Huang in seeing- off the Gambian delegation.

During her stay in Taiwan, the Vice-President and her delegation, alongside four other African leaders and their delegations, participated in the summit that erected a platform for a renewed cooperation, as well as intensify efforts to vigorously explore other areas, such as information technology. At the close of the summit, the leaders from The Gambia, Burkina Faso, Sao Tome and Principe, Malawi and Taiwan, signed a declaration called the Taipei Declaration, which outlined specific areas of cooperation.

The Gambian delegation also participated in the opening of the Taiwan-Africa Progressive Partnership Forum at the Grand Hotel in Taipei, before the Gambian private sector group, led by Bai Matarr Drammeh, President of the Gambia Chamber of Commerce and Industry, keenly participated in the proceedings of the forum. Many African politicians, journalists, business leaders, think tanks, scholars, as well as representatives of the various sectors of the Taiwanese economy, also took part in the forum.

The Vice-President and her delegation also held meetings with Gambian students pursuing their degree programmes at the National Taipei University of Technology. The Vice -President was also taken on a tour visit to several important places, including agricultural stations, museum, and Taipei 101.

Dr Aja Isatou Njie-Saidy, Vice-President and Secretary of State for Women’s Affairs, yesterday received at her office, Serign Nyang, APRC Atlanta branch Secretary and the Board of Directors of the Special Olympics, The Gambia, led by Beatrice Allen, Chairperson of the Special Olympic, The Gambia.

Speaking to reporters soon after his audience with Vice President Njie-Saidy, Serign Nyang, said he was delegated by the APRC Atlanta Chapter to visit Vice President Njie-Saidy to reiterate their support and stands for the government of The Gambia in the United States of America.

According to him, in the United States, they have tried to establish APRC chapters within other states that don’t have such a chapter before, by talking to the people to promote the APRC government and the development achievements of President Jammeh’s government.

He then highlighted some of their achievements in the campaign, saying “we are so far excited and pleased because lots of people who were coming into the country and did not believe the government, have now seen the major achievements of the present government and are now convinced by our words of the new Gambia we were telling them. Now if they come, they see for themselves the positive changes that took effect in their absence and return with the excitement”.

He then commended the Jammeh government for making their work in the USA very easy as everyone has seen the major developments they have been telling them. He then announced that, through this development they are able to gain more support from Gambians in the USA.

For her part, Beatrice Allen, Chairperson of the Special Olympic, The Gambia told reporters that her call on the Vice-President Njie Saidy was to meet her, together with formidable athletes prepared to attend the Special Olympic Games in Shanghai, China in October 2007.

According to her, they have done all ground works and sometimes in February this year, they had national games with the objective of ensuring that they select four of the best from the lots that will represent The Gambia at the Olympic Games. “All has been done and we are now mobilising resources to be able to go and attend the games successfully. So, we came to meet Vice-President Njie-Saidy to pass our request, through her to President Jammeh because he has been a personal supporter of the special Olympic Games. She noted that they have already selected the identified companies and institutions for support.