No fewer than ten people in CRR South recently ended a two-day sensitisation workshop on beneficiaries’ community management training. The project workshop was held at the Governor’s Bantaba in Janjangbureh and was arranged by the Community Skills Improvement Project (CSIP).

Speaking earlier, the community development officer, Mr. Lamin Badjie, disclosed that the rational behind the training is to equip the participants with the necessary knowledge and skills to sustain the project as it is about to phase out in December.

The Gambia’s favourite do-gooders the VSO volunteers are at it again. A group, from the over forty strong contingent currently working the country, have organised the third annual Big Curry Night. But this is not simply another party this is a fundraiser in aid of the Disabled People’s Organisations of The Gambia. VSO has been working with the Disabled Peoples’ Organisations of The Gambia since 2003. There are nine of them all in all and while they vary in size and in the number of years they’ve been in operation but they all suffer from a lack of resources. Many depend heavily on unpaid staff and have no running costs budget. Some have been successful in finding funding to support projects but all of them find it difficult to actually run their offices.

The Big Curry Night aims to raise money to do just that: to help ensure the survival of these tremendously worthy organisations, who campaign for and represent some of the most disadvantaged people in The Gambia. The evening itself promises to be a night of hi-jinks and good food with many prizes generously donated by a variety of local businesses who, a source has informed Entertainment, were only too delighted to help out when they realised it was in aid of such a worthy and deserving cause. Patrons of the fundraiser are promised an array of gastronomic delights as the event is being catered by The Clay Oven and Safari Gardens, both among the top purveyors of exquisite culinary indulgences in The Gambia.

Other businesses have not been found wanting with The Ngala Lodge chipping in with some mouth-watering spot prizes for the raffle and our very own Julbrew rising to the occasion by donating a significant amount of beer to the bar. This donation means that all takings can go directly towards the cause of empowering some of the most vulnerable people in our community. The Big Curry Night will be held tomorrow Saturday 28th June 2008 between 7pm and 11pm at the British High Commission which, Entertainment has been informed, has once again provided incredible support to the volunteers. All are welcome and encouraged to support the volunteers in their worthy efforts.

The 14th Edition of the U-17 league fitness football tournament, organised by the Kambeng Kafoo Sports Committee and Brikama Divisional Sports Committee, featuring 20 participating teams has seen interesting matches in the group stages.

In the upcoming matches, Amase FC will meet African Light FC, while SV Emporer Furt FC will clash with Fresh Start United all in Friday matches.

On Saturday, 11 stranger will take on YS Flickers FC. Jacky Rose will lock horns with Foreign Demand on Sunday. 

In Preparation for the assembly of the Diocese of Banjul 2008, the, Parish Council Task Force for the Diocesan assembly will hold its meetings at the Church from Tuesday, February 12th to Saturday, February 16th.

The aim of the meetings are to develop a Pastoral plan for St Kizito’s Parish and to draw up a submission that will be presented to the Diocesan Assembly Task Force.

According to a press release from the St Kizito’s Catholic Parish in Bakoteh, the Parishioners who’s field of expertise includes the following areas: Education, Finance, Health, Sport, Development, Social Service, Security Services, Media and Communication, Justic, Administration, Business, Vocational and Skill Training, and Tourism will hold their meeting on Tuesday 11th February 2008 in the Church Compound at 6:30 pm.

The release added “members of the Religious Communities in the Parish, The Parish Catechists, Ministers of the Eucharist and Lectors, Representatives of the various parish groups and associations will also hold their meeting on Wednesday 12th February 2008 in the Church Compoud at 6:30pm.

Representatives of the Small Christian Communities and members of parish community who do not belong to any of the above categories will meet on Thurday 14th February 2008 in the Church at 6:00pm to be followed by the meeting of the  Parish Council and members of Assembly Task Force set up by the parish Council on Saturday 16th February 2008 in the Church compound at 6:30pm to discuss briefly the consolidates input of the above teams in preparation for our first cut draft of our strategic pastoral plan”.

The task force set up by the parish council to oversee the preparations for the Diocesan assembly urges all parishioners to fully participate in the week-long parish consultation meetings.

Wallidan is among the teams that have succeeded in booking their ticket to the semi finals of the Eda Carr Pre-season Tournament organized annually by the Banjul Sports Committee. They advanced to the Semis after topping group B with 12 clear points in four matches.

Wallidan who won all their matches will meet group A Runners-Up Armed Forces on Sunday at the KG5 mini-stadium.

Real who topped group A, the toughest of the groups, with six points will meet GPA on Saturday.

This has been the third edition of this particular tournament. 

The two armed rebel groups active in Darfur when the region erupted into major conflict in 2003 – the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) –  have since splintered into a bewildering array of often warring factions.

Darfur means "home of the Fur" - the largest African-descended community in the region. The second biggest ethnic group is the Masalit, followed by the Zaghawa. The other major community consists of Arab tribes, known as Darfuris of Arab descent.

One major split took place in November 2005, when SLM military leader Minni Minnawi, an ethnic Zaghawa, broke with political leader Abdul Wahid Mohamed el-Nur, an ethnic Fur. In 2006, Minnawi’s faction was the only armed group to sign the Darfur Peace Agreement. He subsequently took up an advisory post with the government in Khartoum.

There are now at least a dozen, and perhaps as many as 16, armed groups with origins in either JEM or SLM.

Mediators of the current peace process face major difficulties due to the proliferation of groups and their disunity. Key players did not attend the opening of the talks in Sirte, Libya, including Minnawi and Abdul Wahid.

The groups at the Sirte talks included:

The Justice and Equality Movement-Azraq (JEM-Azraq) - led by Mohamed Idriss Azraq. This faction broke away from the original SLM (see below), which was led by Khalil Ibrahim. It is also known as the Darfur Liberation Movement.

The delegation in Sirte was led by Ibrahim Abdallah. The group represents Darfuris of African descent and calls for "self-determination".

The Justice and Equality Movement-Collective Leadership (JEM-Collective Leadership) - led by Bahar Idriss Aboard, who did not come to Sirte. It represents Darfuris of African descent. Tadjedin Niam has spoken at the talks on the group’s behalf.

The National Movement for Reformation and Development (NMRD) - led by Jibril Abdel Karim, a Zaghawa, but represented in Sirte by Khalil Abdullah. The group broke away from JEM in 2004.

The Revolutionary Democratic Forces Front (RDFF) - led by Salaa Abdurahman Abussra, who attended the Sirte talks. The group represents Arab communities. Abussra says his group has been in existence for "many" years but only took on the RDFF name in 2006.

Regarding the Janjawid militia (see below), Abussra said his group has been absorbing some of these men to weaken the government's strength in the region. He claimed the government had been using the Janjawid to fight its opponents.

The Revolutionary United Movement (RUM) aka URFF - led by Alhadi Agabeldour, who was the head of its delegation. The group represents Arab communities.

RDFF and RUM had previously been regarded as pro-government but have been at the talks as resistance movements.

The Sudan Federal Democratic Alliance (SFDA) - led by Ahmed Ibrahim Diraige, who was also the delegation’s leader. Unlike most others, this group is not a breakaway faction of either JEM or SLA. Diraige, according to Sudanese sources, is somebody to watch in the absence of Abdul Wahid Mohamed el-Nur, who boycotted the talks and enjoys grassroots support. The group represents Darfuris of African descent.

The Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) - led by Khamis Abdallah Abakar and headed at Sirte by Mohammed Ali Nasser, who is the group's deputy for political affairs. The group represents Darfuris of African descent.

The Sudan Liberation Movement-Unity (SLM-Unity) - led by Abdallah Yahya. Initially part of the Group of 19 under the original SLM, Adam Bakhiet led the group in Sirte. It represents Darfuris of African descent.

Among those absent from the initial Sirte talks were:

A Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) faction led by Khalil Ibrahim, who is a member of the Zaghawa. JEM has shunned the Sirte talks to protest the presence of resistance movements it alleges have no influence or presence on the ground in Darfur.

Factions of the Sudan Liberation Army/Movement (SLA/M) led by:

- Abdul Wahid Mohamed el-Nur, who comes from the Fur community and is widely regarded as the most popular of the rebel leaders in Darfur. He has been in Paris and has refused to join the peace process until the UN/African Union Hybrid Mission (UNAMID) deploys in Darfur.

- Ahmed Abdel Shafi, who later wrote to the AU-UN mediation team seeking participation. Shafi is a member of the Fur ethnic group and split from Wahid's SLA/M. He attended the Juba talks that were aimed at unifying and reconciling the movements ahead of the Sirte talks. Sudanese sources said he was still in Juba and the mediation team would meet him in Darfur to bring the group into the process.

The Sudan Liberation Army/Movement-Unity (SLA/M-Unity) - an alliance of several leaders of resistance movements, only one SLM-Unity faction has been attending the Sirte talks (see above).

The Janjawid – Musa Hilal, has publicly associated himself with the Janjawid, and is sometimes seen as its leader. Widely accused of committing atrocities in Darfur, the pro-government militia has fought alongside Sudanese government forces against the Darfur rebels since the conflict began. Reports of inter-Arab conflict however suggest that a single Arab militia under central command is unlikely.

The Cor-ordinator of Ndewen Basal Appex Group Momodou Keita recently called on the Governor of Central River Region (CRR) Ganyie Touray to brief him on the group’s activities in the region.

He informed the Governor that the group was established in 2000 and was since then operating in six villages in Niani district, CRR North.

He pointed out that the aim of the group is to empower women in poverty reduction. He said the group is assisting in the areas of agriculture, trade, health, education, forestry and fishing. Mr Keita asserted that he’s received funding from Action-Aid, Social Development Fund and NAS. The Governor of CRR Ganjie Touray, on his part, commended Mr Keita for his hardwork and dedication to the rural pople. Governor Touray described Mr Keita as a patriotic citizen.

He said the group is complementing government’s efforts in empowering women in the areas of agriculture, health and education. He said women empowerment is part of President Jammeh’s priority and the women are the main producers of the food for local consumption.

He spoke at length on the importance of the group’s intervention, which he described as key to any socio-economic development of a nation. He then called on the people of the area to make the best use of the group and cooperate with them. He finally urged other groups to form appex groups in order to help the needy.