As the advent of the forth biennial National Youths Conference and Festival (NAYCONF), swiftly approaches, an evaluation team from the Department of Sports, that included the National Youth Council, recently explored the length and breath of the country to asses the state of preparedness of this years event.

Foremost among the issues discussed during the tour, with keystone partners such as the Governors and the local organising communities, was the transportation and feeding of participants from the various regions. It has now been decided, that the regions themselves will be responsible for these costs and not the National Youth Council.

The visiting team also uncovered to the press the venues expected to host events such as the conference, football, basketball, volleyball and wrestling. The intent of this is to gauge the state of preparedness of the venues to successfully host the event.

In all the regions, as expected, the local organising communities heavily vilified the national organising committee for such a determined decision taking into consideration the closeness to the event and the plight involved in rising fund at the eleventh hour. On a more serious note, some Chairman’s of certain Area Councils bitterly argued with these developments. They noted that many cumulative burdens are on the shoulders of their councils and further responsibilities will prove strange. In the same vein, in Basse, some members of the local organising committees scolded the N.O.C for what they called a break of communications during past NAYCONF.

They therefore called for a proper work plan for a successful Nayconf.

However, with all these balks, the meeting stumbled to agreement in the name of national duties.

Speaking at Farafenni, The SOS for Youths and Sports, Hon. Sheriff Gomez, elucidated that it was pleasing to see what is on the ground. Hon. Gomez said what has been manifested is commitment but yet there is still major work to be done. In line with this reality Hon. Gomez called for commitment from both stakeholders to make the event a success. The date for Nayconf is slated for 18th December 2008. At Farafenni and the theme is “invest in youths for sustainable development”.

Dr Jacques Diouf, the Director General of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) arrived in the country yesterday for a two-day working visit.

Dr Diouf, who will be meeting the President of the Republic Dr Alhagie Yahya Jammeh today, said his visit would focus on discussions aimed at strengthening the already existing bilateral relations between The Gambia and the FAO.

Speaking to journalists shortly after his arrival at the Banjul International Airport, the FAO boss said he would also hold talks aimed at reviewing the situation of agriculture not only in The Gambia, but also in Africa and the entire world.

“We will also discuss key areas on the global food crisis, animal production, fishing among others. The food crisis has affected Africa because we do not have the elasticity to supply food in response to the growing food crisis compared to developed countries in other parts of the world,” Dr Diouf said.

According to the FAO boss, Africa deserves a special attention and special support to avert the global food crisis. He commended President Jammeh for what he described as his leading role in the development of agriculture.

Lower Basic Schools throughout the country are facing serious teacher shortage since the commencement of the 2008/2009 school academic year, a situation described by many as disturbing.

Investigation carried out by this reporter revealed that many teachers in the lower basic school have resigned from the teaching profession this academic year for one reason or another.

Investigations revealed that the office of the Regional Directorate in Kanifing is asking for certain qualifications from unqualified teachers, some have been in the field for even more than five years and those who did not have the specified qualifications received their marching orders.

Meanwhile some of the affected teachers who spoke to this reporter called on the authorities concerned to revise their decision for the sake of addressing teachers’ shortage in schools and ensure better delivery of quality education.

Many teachers who spoke to this reporter upheld that, for teachers to be maintained in the Government schools, the condition of their services need to be appealing.

Another teacher, who spoke to this reporter on cell phone from Region Six, URR, said, “Quality education cannot be achieved in the absence of good working conditions for teachers.”

He said that it is Region Six that is mostly affected by the teacher shortage, adding that the FTI hard to reach and double-shift allowances are not the solutions to keep the teachers in the teaching field.

In the view of another teacher from Region One, who did not want to be named, head teachers rejecting some teachers in their schools, denying them double-shift teaching and treating them unfairly also has a grave impact on teachers. This can lead some to quit Government schools for private schools or other fields of their choice.

“These conditions highlighted do not in the least help the situations, but rather contribute to a greater percentage of young people losing quality education in our education sector,” the teacher said.

The Gambia Senior Secondary School in Banjul will, on Sunday July 27, host an Islamic Conference for the young people of the country.

The event, initiated and solely sponsored by one Mr. Alieu Jawara a young Gambian engineer based in Canada, aims to discuss the problems faced by youths and how to come up with practical Islamic solutions to those problems.

Issues pertaining to illegal migration, how youth can help themselves settle when they travel abroad without losing their faith and how to assist them in attaining a university degree on the Internet will be discussed. Also on the agenda will be the issues of sectarianism in Islam as well as how to vary all these sects and come up with the one that will get one to Paradise in the here after. The problem of youth unemployment and consequences of migrating to the West will take centre stage in the conference.

The theme for the programme is “Islam for the Youth”. This theme, Mr. Jawara believes, is very pertinent especially to this generation. The entrance for the conference is free, breakfast, lunch and snacks will also be provided at no cost on participants. 

Speaking to the Youth Forum yesterday, the organiser, Alieu Jawara said, “we just want to help our youths know where they can get help when they need it.”

“Having looked at a series of problems facing the youths of this country, I decided to say let me do something and share my experience with them on how to help themselves,” he stated.

Mr. Jawara further revealed that he also has the idea of opening a centre (Dawa Centre) where youths can go and get information on issues relating to Islam that he believes will help them a lot. “I always feel embarrassed whenever I watch TV in Canada with my friends only to see my fellow African youths, sometimes including Gambians, dying and being maltreated. This is a cause for concern for me,” he stressed.  He said that the Spanish are turning into racists against blacks. He advised youths to stay here at home and have dignity rather than risking their lives for a journey he believes isn’t worth it.  He said that as young people there is a need for them to have a focus, being the purpose of coming into this world. “ I deal a lot with the youth and I know where their interests lie.” He added that if they can give the youth the foundation to have a proper focus it will help them a lot. “We definitely have to give some thing back to our country,” he said.

According to Mr. Jawara, apart from his own presentation, the Ansar brotherhood and the Federation of The Gambia Muslim Students Organisation (FEGAMSO) will also make presentations at the youth gathering.

With the calibre of people invited to make presentation on the occasion and the vast experience of Mr. Jawara, it’s indisputable that one will not regret attending the conference.

Success, he said, is built upon a solid foundation of beliefs and this of course cannot be achieved without solidly putting it into practical use.

Born in Barajally and nurtured in Banjul as a Muslim staying in Canada did not make Alieu Jawara to turn his back on Islam. For him, staying outside one’s country with people of different faiths should not make one forgo your religion simply because of wealth or pleasure. Despite being based in Canada, Alieu travels to different parts of Europe and was the less than happy with the conditions in which some Africans, including Gambians, are living.

He is extending his invitation to Gambian young people to come out in large numbers to attend and participate in this conference.

The opening ceremony of the conference is expected to be attended by Sir. Dawda Kairaba Jawara the former Gambian president.

The National Youth Conference and Festival known as NAYCONF is a biannual event that brings together over 500 young people from across the country.

However, this year, according to the organisers, the event will attract about two thousand young people and stakeholders from The Gambia and the sub region.

Reports reaching the Youth Forum state that preparations are on the higher gear at both at the local, regional and national levels to make the event a success and a memorable one.

This year the host region is North Bank Region, to be held in Farafenni later this year.

The theme for the year is “Invest in Youths for Sustainable Development.”

The objectives of the event are to create a platform for young people have a greater understanding of the issues affecting them, accept each other and explore means through which they can contribute towards national development. The event will also look into key issues on the role of youths in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The main component of the event includes: The conference, cultural shows, performances and carnival, award ceremony, sporting activities and beauty contest.

Conference Outline

This will include a pre-recorded case study for youth role models on their successful stories as entrepreneurs.

The sub themes of the week-long national event are; reports on the progress made on the review of the National Youth Policy.

∑  Experience in policy issues

∑Identify the gaps and recommendations

∑Possible suggestions to fill the gaps

∑Gender perspective

Youth PRSP !! Strategies and the MDG’s

∑The role of youths in attaining the MDG’s by 2015

∑Structures that promote youth participation and advocates for the attainment of the MDG’s by 2015

∑Gender perspective

Employment creation and sustainable livelihoods

∑Support youth empowerment and sustainable development

∑Review employment market and recommend ways of creating employment

∑Case study on successful youth entrepreneurs

Youth and HIV/AIDs

∑Framework for young people in preventing them from contracting HIV/Aids

∑Co-ordination mechanism for young people’s intervention in the fight against HIV/AIDs

Youth Migration

∑Why youth migrates (internal and external)

∑Identify gaps and recommend measures to reduce migration

∑Live case studies

Child rights, Promotion and Protection

∑The concept of child rights and protection. Why is it important?

∑National and international instruments

∑Child protection issues in The Gambia

∑Collaboration, action and the way forward

Girls Empowerment for Nation Building

∑Female youth participation in nation building(challenges and achievements)

∑Social benefit of female and male youth

∑Case studies

To Be Continued

The two alleged Spanish homosexuals who were arrested last Friday and released on Tuesday left the country on the night of the same day, this paper can reveal.

Pere Joan and Juan Monpserratrusau left the country following their release on Tuesday, contrary to media reports that they are being charged with an attempt to commit “unnatural offence” and were to appear in court yesterday.

They were arrested and detained for nearly four days without charge.

Mrs Min Whee Kang, the UNICEF Country Representative in The Gambia, has bemoaned that some 121 million children in the world today never see the inside of a classroom; they are deprived of their fundamental right to education; they are deprived of having wonderful teachers and mentors, and the vast majority of these out-of-school children are girls.

Mrs Whee Kang made these remarks at the13th annual Speech and Prize Giving ceremony of Gambia Methodist Academy held on 16th May, 2008. Here in the Gambia,” she said, “at primary school level, although gender parity or the ratio of girls to boys in primary education has been attained with 109 girls, attending primary school for every 100 boys. Net enrolment rate at primary school is 78% while net attendance rate is 61%. At the secondary school level, net enrolment rate is 45% and net attendance rate is 37%,” she disclosed.

Ranging the numbers of children attending Lower Basic, Upper Basic, and Senior Schools, the UNICEF Representative said 185, 651 children are registered in 425 Lower Basic schools, 63,182, children in 145 Upper Basic schools, and 31, 946 children in 55 Senior Schools, all totalling to 280,779. At current rate, NER is projected to be of 80% by 2015. According to her, UNICEF promotes education for all children with a special focus on girl’s education because there are so many crises and calamities facing children from wars and conflicts, hunger and disease, poverty and the pandemic of HIV/AIDS. She stated that it is precisely to deal with such pressing issues of the world in an effective and sustainable manner that UNICEF believes that the world needed to focus on girls’ education.

She made reference to a forward to the State of the World’s Children Report in 2004 by the then United Nations Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan, which partly reads: “…to educate a girl is to educate the whole family. And what is true of families is also true of communities and ultimately, whole countries.” She went on to advance the view that if poverty eradication is the primary challenge of sustainable development, then basic education, particularly of girls, is unquestionably the surest and fastest way to reach the objective.

The UNICEF Representative acknowledged that while there is commitment to education for all children, girls’ face much greater obstacles and discrimination in getting educated than boys. “Indeed, girls from poor families face a double jeopardy, the deprivation caused by poverty and the disadvantage of being treated as a less valued child,” she observed, adding that that was why Kofi Anna reminded world leaders at the Millennium Summit in 2000 that there could be no significant or sustainable transformation in societies and no lasting reduction in global poverty until girls receive the basic quality education they deserve and take their rightful place as equal partners in development.

Mrs Whee Kang emphasised the right to education as “a key factor to reducing poverty and child labour and promoting democracy, peace, tolerance and development.”

The United States Government has granted The Gambia a textile visa, which allows the country to export textile and garment products to the U.S. duty free and quota free under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). News of the much-awaited textile visa was contained in a letter sent to the Secretary of State for Trade, Industry and Employment, Honourable Abdou Colley, from the United States Trade Representative, Ambassador Susan C. Schwab, on April 28th a press release from the United States Banjul Embassy stated.

In her letter, Ambassador Schwab said her office has determined that The Gambia has adopted an effective visa system and related procedures to prevent unlawful transshipment and the use of counterfeit documents in connection with shipments of textile and apparel articles to the United States. Therefore, she said, imports of eligible products from The Gambia qualify for the textile and apparel benefits provided under AGOA.

Implementation of the textile visa is guided by the bilateral visa arrangement agreed by the two governments which, among other things, requires producers and exporters of textile and garment products to retain appropriate records and provide such records on request by the government of The Gambia.

The Gambia has now become one of 26 out of the 37 AGOA eligible countries that have qualified for the textile visa, which allows eligible countries to export manufactured apparel to the U.S. The country now needs to acquire a Category 9 certificate to export hand-woven textiles and ethnic printed fabrics.

In a May 2nd meeting with the Secretary of State for Finance, Musa Bala Gaye, who is currently overseeing the Department of State for Trade, Ambassador Barry L. Wells congratulated the Government and the people of The Gambia on the acquisition of the textile visa. Ambassador Wells expressed his hope that the country’s talented fashion designers and other apparel producers would try to make the best use of this great opportunity and assured the Gambian government that the U.S. Embassy would continue to work with the relevant government departments to ensure that the country proceeds rapidly to acquire Category 9 certification.

The Gambia became an AGOA-eligible country in December 2002. The AGOA law was passed by the U.S. Congress in May 2000 as a new approach to U.S. trade and investment policy towards Africa. The program enables eligible African countries to export more than 6,400 products to the United States duty free and quota free.

The School of Matravass in Westbury, Wiltshire County in the UK, has contributed to satisfying the water need of Gunjur Upper Basic School.

The school recently gained access to potable water when their counterpart in the UK installed taps there.

The Principal of the school, Mr Lamin Jatta, asserted that the availability of clean and safe drinking water in his school would reduce the incidence of water-borne diseases as well as enhance agricultural activities in the school. He added that the project would allow students and teachers to easily access water.

For her part, the Coordinator of Matravass School and Gunjur Upper Basic School link, Rachael Edwards, enthused that it ‘is a pleasure’ for her school to provide water to their sister school in The Gambia. She added that water is life and urged the beneficiaries to take greater care of the taps.

The Chief Executive of the country yesterday crossed over to the other side of the River Gambia to the North Bank Region as he began his Dialogue With the People tour. We are told that President Jammeh will today hold a mass rally in Kerewan to be followed by other engagements.

We needn’t belabour the fact that Dialogue With People tour is a significant constitutional requirement but there’s a crying need to hammer home some issues which we should not lose sight of during this overwhelmingly significant constitutional engagement. The tour, apart from the euphoria that it will generate in our villages and towns, will also give the people the rare opportunity to come face to face with their no. 1 servant. Talking of no. 1 servant, one is made to believe that this tour will serve as an extremely important platform for those who elect the President to ask him whether he had made good or is making good his promises before they elected him into office. The tour should not be all about dishing out money or merry-making. Rather it should provide the opportunity for poor, hungry farmers to ask the President as to what his Government is doing about the groundnut trade problem. It should allow the farmers to ask him why they still continue to suffer from government’s inability to create the enabling conditions for the sale of their nuts. The tour should give an opportunity for people to ask the President why their loved ones should continue to die on horse and donkey carts for lack of ambulances. The tour should give the chance to people, few though they may be, to ask the President as to why they still live in their villages and hamlets without access to safe drinking water. The tour should be used as a platform for the President to explain to the people the reason(s) for the astronomic rise in the price of rice and what his administration is doing about it.

With claims of the health sector recording significant gains on the other hand, the President should explain to the people about his administration’s position, vis-à-vis the rise in the rate of people referred to private pharmacies by our hospitals and health centres to buy life-saving drugs. How about the unavoidable deaths in our hospitals and health centres?

The issue of people sent to Mile II without any recourse to court; the issues of the crater-like potholes on our roads, the power problems are some of the issues that need to be talked about during this important engagement of the President. Indeed, this tour should allow people to sincerely express their concerns and problems affecting them. No praise singing! No flattery!