Suffolk University, on Monday, donated a case of valuable textbooks and journals on Social Work to the University of The Gambia.

The presentation was done by Mr Lloyd London Drakes, a social worker/consultant and associate lecturer at the University of Suffolk on behalf of his university. Presenting the books, Mr Drakes expressed happiness to be associated with the social work programme and went on to state that this small gesture was just a part of a wider envisioned extension programme with UTG.

Dr Momodou Jain, receiving the books on behalf of the Vice Chancellor, thanked Suffolk University through Mr Drakes for the laudable gesture stating that books and learning materials play a pivotal role in any learning environment and UTG is no exception to this premise. He assured the donors that the books will go a long way in providing the social work programme with the much needed learning resources.

Dr AA Senghore, the head of Department of Social Sciences, speaking at the occasion also joined Dr Jain to thank Suffolk University for their benevolence stating that a healthy library is the cornerstone of a healthy learning environment.

He posited that the social work programme in UTG though very young has emerged as a very popular programme and judging the interested being shown and the encouragement being given, there are plans to upgrade it to a degree programme in the near future. He thanked Mr Charles Ebere, a lecturer in UTG and Suzanna Pickering, a Social Worker and Lecturer University of Suffolk for the pivotal roles they played towards the whole donation of the books.

The vote of thanks was given by Momodou Lamin Tarro, deputy registrar (Administration) on behalf of the University Registrar. The programme was chaired by the principal assistant registrar and officer overseeing the International Affairs Office, Baboucarr Njie.

At least 19 medical doctors, nurses and health workers of the Cuban Medical Team in The Gambia, on Friday, graduated with master of sciences degrees, at a ceremony held at the University of The Gambia (UTG) School of Medicine, Banjul

The graduates underwent programmes in natural and bio-energetic medicine, women’s comprehensive care, children’s comprehensive care, infectious diseases, medical emergency, healthy longevity and dental emergency.

Speaking at the ceremony, Dr Suibrto Hechavarria, the head of the Cuban Medical Team in The Gambia, recalled that in February 2006, the Cuban Medical Team started the programme for masters degrees in The Gambia.

“It was a goal of our government, to ensure the development of an extensive strategy, to ensure post graduate studies for the professionals involved in the Cuban international medical missions,” he added.

Going back to history, Dr Hechavarria said that after five years into the triumph of the Cuban revolution, thousands of medical doctors, nurses and health workers graduated from the Cuban medical schools.

“The chief commander, Fidel Castro, was the one behind this idea. He proposed to increase the number of master of sciences and PhDs as a superior stage in the formation of human resources in Cuba,” Dr Hechavarria revealed.

“To this end, an academic committee was created in The Gambia. It was responsible for the planning, organisation, control and assessment of the whole process. Nowadays, there are 112 collaborators enrolled in the masters programme and there are 6 modalities for the master of sciences degrees,” he elaborated.

Dr Hechavarria told the gathering that the continuity of the masters programme is a great challenge, and that they will do their best to present new and better researches.
“Resulting from this graduation, the number of health professionals with masters degree in The Gambia rose from 15 to 39. This is a [source] of great pride, not only because of the opportunities and success that it represents to us all, but also the increase in quality regarding medical assistance to the Gambian people,” he added.

“Now, The Gambian health system can count on this task force to accomplish more complex commitments. We are in [the position] of going forward with the community-based doctors programme and supporting the post-graduate studies of our Gambian colleagues,” he noted.

Dr Hechavarria thanked the authorities of the UTG and the Department of State for Health and Social Welfare.

For his part, Dr Malick Njie, the secretary of state for Health and Social Welfare, said the results of the masters degrees’ first edition, are dedicated to the 45th anniversary of the Cuban International Medical Missions and the 10th anniversary of the comprehensive health programme.

SoS Njie said that the graduation is another contribution to the health of Africa, describing Cuba as a true friend of The Gambia.

He thanked the Cuban doctors for their contribution to the health sector.
The ceremony was also attended by secretaries of state, Dr Ousman Nyan, the provost of the School of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences, who also doubles as the deputy vice chancellor at the UTG, and the WHO representative, among other dignitaries.

The advent of the AFPRC, and then its progeny, the APRC, opened up astronomical development avenues with education capturing quite a share of attention.  

The idea, as has been emphasized from the beginning, is built on the premise that the root cause of the country’s stagnant growth cannot be detached from the conceptualized educational system our people had been exposed to since the colonial era.

To the new government of President Yahya Jammeh, a ‘responsive, relevant and quality education for all Gambians’ was a cornerstone for the development trend the ‘new Gambia’ was desperately yearning for.  And this it immediately set itself to achieving, cognizant of the price it was going to pay; both in terms of effort and physical resource.

Without any known natural resource base capable of attracting capital, The Gambia, under the leadership of a devoutly determined young soldier forged its way to where we are today.  How he did it can barely be explained; but it evidently took tremendous courage and stamina.

It is all based on what we can describe today as the APRC education plan, which did not only employ an all inclusive strategy, but was particularly sensitive to the needs of all children, catering especially for the girl child, women, the physically challenged, the youth as well as the poor.  The plan encompassed all categories - from early childhood education to university.

The idea of ‘education for all’ has already been pronounced, but first, the accessibility of schools was the focus.  A number of new schools soon cropped up, right across the country.  Inhabitants of the most remote areas of the country were given their fair share of the national cake. For the first time, parents were freed of the burden of having to travel kilometers in search of wardens for their children, a problem that had hitherto forced hundreds if not thousands of children to stay out of the classroom.  Within a very short period of time, there seemed to be more schools than children of school going age. But more was set to come.

A means of convincing parents, whose apathy towards western education had been aided by their constraint with regards to affordability, was soon to be on the offing.  This would coincide with the government’s expanded vision of basic education for all, which guarantees that every Gambian between the ages of 7 and 16 must have a 9-year uninterrupted basic education. This eventually recorded great improvement in URR, CRR, LRR, and NBR, regions that had traditionally registered low level of participation in Western education.

The education master plan of the APRC government was by no means limited to the basic and secondary level.  Vocational and technical education and training, as well as tertiary and university education, were top on the agenda.

Due to the enormity of the successes registered so far in the sector, one can hardly have enough time to convey a detailed report. But if there is any thing that we must single out, it is the progress made on the aspect of enrollment of girls. This is seen as a landmark given the repercussions gender disparity had had on all sectors of our development agenda, which was clearly owing to neglect of the female folks.

The overall success story is largely attributable to a mixed bag of actions; policy development; capacity building; service delivery; advocacy and social mobilization, community empowerment, as well as partnership and alliance building.

However, two most important areas are worth mentioning; the revolutionization of girls’ education, and the turn around evident in the tertiary and higher education sector.  

President Yahya Jammeh himself, through personal involvement, has consistently endeavored to open up endless avenues for scholarship for Gambians, especially for the girl child and women.  

This covers the Lower Basic, right up to the University of The Gambia, and abroad. There is the Jammeh Foundation for Peace (JFP), which has provided and continues to provide scholarships for deserving candidates; there is also the President’s Empowerment for Girls’ Education Project (PEGEP); and also a scholarship trust fund which caters exclusively for those in the provinces, etc.  There have also been countless personal sponsorship of Gambians by the Gambian leader, which have not been accounted for. And just recently, the 22nd July Scholarship Pageant, an idea conceived by the Gambian leader himself set impetus to the spree of development.

Tertiary education, which received a lot of attention in the last 5 years, has seen tremendous growth along the way, serving, as envisaged, as a center piece in the transformation of The Gambia into a center for learning in the sub-region.

More skills and vocational training centers have been established with the GTTI gradually fulfilling its envisioned mission as a center of technological excellence.

The idea of the National Training Authority, alongside the governing councils of The Gambia College and the University of The Gambia, have ensured the steady growth in the successes registered in vocational and technical training and education, and tertiary and higher education.  A prudent restructuring of The Gambia College has gone a long way in guaranteeing a continuous supply of teachers to fill the gap at all levels.

The establishment of the University of The Gambia is arguably one of the most successful of projects anywhere in Africa in the course of the last millennium. Four years since it commenced graduating its products, UTG has produced 661 scholars, scattered throughout the country. Some are already pursuing further studies abroad.  

But like all other projects sanctioned by the APRC administration, the University of The Gambia attracted severe criticism when it was first conceived by its chief architect, President Yahya Jammeh.  

After what must have been serious thinking by the Gambian leader, a number of Gambians, for the first time in the history of the country, earned degrees in various courses on Gambian soil, thanks to a partnership between government and Saint Mary’s University - Canada.  It was called the University Extension Program.

Subsequently, the government of The Gambia saw the need for the establishment of the University of The Gambia.  The Act was finally passed in 1999.  The School of Medicine happened to be the pioneer institution of what was to become a national symbol. Today, that group of pioneering students that commenced the UTG have since been serving the nation after about seven years of hard work, with excellent results. This was in line with government’s long-standing concern about the status of the health sector of the country, and the need to train Gambian doctors on home soil.  As at this moment, The Gambia can boast of 23 homegrown doctors, after the graduation of the medical students earlier this year.  One can imagine how much it would have cost the country to educate half of that number outside The Gambia. This is a point President Jammeh had consistently put forward.

On other subject areas, success stories have also been registered.  A substantial number of the university graduates are serving in the education system, with a number of them contributing their quota in the private sector. They are especially predominant in the commercial sector, the banking industry, to be precise.

In line with its desire to ensure opportunities to access higher education for its citizens, the government of The Gambia, under President Jammeh’s guidance, continues to look for scholarship, both within and outside the country.  A good number of Gambians leave for further studies on a yearly basis, and priority has of late been given to UTG graduates. Taiwan has been playing host to a greater number of these students, with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and, recently, Malaysia, following suit.  A small number of them find their way into universities in the US, Russia, Cuba and the UK. Perhaps the most celebrated graduate of the UTG is Babucarr Bah, who is pursuing a Masters degree in the prestigious Oxford University, in the UK. A development, according to some officials at the University of The Gambia, which indicates that “what we are offering has quality and that we can compete everywhere”.

If information coming from the department of state responsible for tertiary and higher education is anything to go by, the much talked about integration process, aimed at bringing together all the tertiary institutions in the country under one entity – the University of The Gambia – would soon be a reality and the favorite catchphrase of His Excellency that for education, the sky is the limit, will finally come to pass.

Muslim Senior Secondary School (MSSS),  held, last Friday, its 28th graduation ceremony, at the school ground in Banjul. After 3 years of intensive academic studies, 679 graduated, among them 8 are  from the Arabic section.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony, Mr Lamin K. Marong, principal, Muslim Senior Secondary School expressed  delight for having succeeded in training these students in both morals and learning attitude. He also manifested great hopes about the graduands’ capability to live up with expectations.  

Mr Marong seized the opportunity to commend Momodou Lamin Kujabi a graduand, who he said, is one of the best athlete in the country as he has already represented the country in Sierra Leone, Guinea Bissau, Algeria and most recently in Senega. According to him, Momodou Lamin Kujabi will be travelling to Togo this week for another moment of defending the Gambian flag.  

He further indicate that the graduands have gone through a long period of life, but he noted that it is just the beginning of another longer journey where they will be exposed to so many obstacles. “it is certainly not an easy encounter. To succeed in life, you must be able to rock through all odds”, he said.Mr Marong finally concluded by extoling the parents to whom he said, their efforts were instrumental inproviding the necessary support to their children.

For his part, Dr Ebrima Malick Samba,  chairman of the board of governors, MSSS, urged parents to create a conducive environment for their children to perform successfully in schools. Considering that girls constitute the most vulnerable, he outlined the necessity to put new synergy in helping them to succeed.

Dr Omar Jah Jnr, Guest speaker of the occasion and a Senior Lecturer at the University of The Gambia(UTG) and an ex-student of MSSS, advised graduand to make good use of the knowledge and expressed hope that they should open their mind to the sense of duty and responsibility. As a university lecturer, he finally advised the graduands to explore new avenues by enrolling to the University of The Gambia. According to him, the entry requirements are based on 5 credits including English and Mathematics.

A piece of advice and the vote of thanks were respectively delivered by the out-going headboy Alieu Jallow and Musukebba Jammeh, the out-going headgirl.The graduation ceremony was attended by dignitaries including Alhagie Modou Joof, assistant director general GRTS who is an ex-student of MSSS and a big crowd comprisng parents, teachers and students.Certificates were awarded to graduands and prizes were issued to deserving students.

Name: Ousman Badjie

Date of birth: 03/03/78

Organization : Department of state for health and social welfare (DOSH), now university of the Gambia (UTG)

Position : Assistant public health officer (DOSH); Divisional Drug Inspector (CRR,DOSH); Head Boy, Fatima Senior Secondary School; Secretary General, Gambia College Students’ UNION; President, School of Public Health, Gambia College; Director of Technical Services, University of The Gambia Students’ Union (UTGSU); Departmental Representative, UTG; and currently, President of the National Union of Gambian Students (NUGS), and President of the University of the Gambia Students’ Union.

Educational background : Fatima Junior and Senior Secondary School, 1993 – 1999

Gambia College, School of Public Health, from 2000 – 2003

University of the Gambia, 2006 – date

Qualification : WASSSC, Higher National Diploma (HND) Public and Environmental Health, Prospective BSc in Public and Environmental Health

Gambian personality : The late Sannah Jammeh, elder brother of the President of the Republic of the Gambia

Ambition : To be an Environmental scientist

Hobbies: Reading, Watching TV programs and movies

Advice to youth: Travelling to Europe or America is not synonymous to success. Since the beginning of the second republic, the president of the republic has made a pledge that the sky remains the limit for education.

This has been proven beyond reasonable doubt, following the establishment of schools at all levels of education. It is now our chance, Gambian youngstars, to grab the opportunity of becoming home grown graduates at very neglible cost, and sometimes free of charge. Outside senior secondary school, UTG is a golden opportunity that offers carrier and employment prospect. So don’t stop at senior secondary school. Choose to climb up the academic ladder rather than going to Europe through perilous journey.

Dislikes: Dishonesty and laziness

Reasons behind success: Hard work and perseverance.

Delight Heritage, a US based education consultancy firm, last  Saturday May 24,  organised  a one day  forum on education and development in the Gambia, at a ceremony  held in the conference hall of the Gambia YMCA, along the MDI road in Kanifing.

The forum, attended by some visiting students and lecturers from the colleges of Washington & Jefferson, Juniata and Bloommsburg University of Pennsylvania, was also graced by students and lecturers from the University of the Gambia (UTG),The Gambia College, and other tertiary institutions as well as a cross section of the community, was characterised by presentations of educative and development oriented papers on a number of tropical issues.

Mrs Isatou Ndow, director of education at the Gambia College, touched on the role of the College as a teacher training institute, while Mr Joseph T. Peacock of the National Council of the Gambia YMCA, delivered a paper  on life skills & enterprise development. Dr Buba Misawa from Washington & Jefferson College dwelt on the future of higher education in African political development, while his Juniata College counterpart, Dr Emil Nagengast, spoke on the role of education in promoting good Governance. The role of ICT in the school curriculum as well as policy recommendations for girl child education and teacher training in the Gambia were other topics treated at the conference.

A question and answer session featured an extensive and interactive discussion on the need for Africans in the diaspora to invest back in the development of the continent as well as the need to reverse the current trend of brain drain and replace it with brain circulation.

Other speakers at the conference included Dr Saidou Jallow, permanent Secretary, who deputised for his SoS, Department of State for Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology, Crispin-Grey Johnson,  and Alagie Jobe, a representative of the Department of State for Lower Basic and Secondary Education.

The occasion was co-chaired by Mr Cherno Barry, a lecturer at the University of the Gambia and Ebrima Jaw Manneh, Deputy-Editor-In-Chief of the Daily Observer.

Twelve distinctions have been registered by a number of students at the University of The Gambia’s (UTG) Economics and Management Sciences Department in the external examination in diploma nd higher diploma in sales and marketing, administered by the London Centre of Marketing (LCM).

Reports reaching the Daily Observer indicated that three students obtained distinction or pass in all the modular courses for the diploma and higher diploma in sales and marketing. The trio - who were awarded individual modular certificates as well as an overall certificate for full pass at the level, are Bakary Sanneh and Kemo Khan and Amadou Jarju.

Other students, who obtained distinctions at the diploma level are Alhagie K Cham, Binta Khan and Zubaida Alturky and Mamadi Sowe. Mboru Drammeh and Hamadi Sowe obtained distinction at the high diploma level.

According to reports from the London Office of LCM, the UTG presented a total of 28 students or 77 modules out of which 12 distinctions were registered. “The students took 8 modular courses for the diploma and higher levels together and there was no modular course that a distinction was not registered by the UTG’s students, which was indeed an impressive performance, thanks to the excellent coordinators and lecturers.”

“These results are an indication that the UTG is not only offering relevant, quality and affordable academic education, but also it has developed capacity to offer outreach programs as well as professional and skills qualifications to satisfy the national needs and demands,” said the UTG Economics and Management Sciences Department in a dispatch sent to the Daily Observer.

“Regrettably, there were 4 and 2 students who failed to secure passes in the modular courses that they have registered for at the diploma and higher diploma in sales and marketing levels respectively for the March 2008 LCM external examination.

Meanwhile, the university also recently registered 15 students for the upcoming June 2008 LCM Exam. All the papers for such examination are set and marked in London, United Kingdom. The UTG will be having its next intakes in June/July for the diploma, higher diploma and professional diploma in sales and marketing which would run for six months,” the reports concluded.

The University of The Gambia Medical Students  Association has expressed its  appreciation of the support they have been getting from His Excellency, the president of the Republic, Alh. Dr Yahya Jammeh. This they manifested in the form of an award of a certificate in appreciation and recognition of his tireless effort, during the recent swearing in ceremony of their fourth executive council. This was held on Saturday, at the auditorium of the School of Nursing, Gambia College, Banjul Campus.

It could be recalled that one of the longest standing problems of the medical school had been a chronic constraint in the transportation of the students to and from lectures halls as well as to undertake postings, outings and other exercises. Recently, the presidents came to the aid of the students with a donation of a brand new 49-seater bus.

"We really appreciate all the support he has been giving us through our difficult times", posited Bully Camara, the outgoing president of UniGAMSA.

The Associatuion also awarded cerificates to a host of other personalities for their support to the medical school, these included proessor Andreas Stiegen, vice chancellor UTG, Lamin Sam Jaiteh, registrar, Carlos Salsa Mendy Cuban Ambassador, Who representative. Dr Nestu Chivute, Dr Omar Jagne of Afrimed, as well as deserving and out standing students for their efforts in the unions activities.

History tells us that academics, through revolutionary university education, has always been at the forefront of the development of our murdern-day world. Governments that are alive to this fact have always made sure of the provision of space for peaceful co-existence with their country’s academic fraternity.

The advocates of our dear UTG, it seems (from the chief architect, President jammeh, down to the facilitators and the experts), have not lost sight of this fact. By all indications, they have been keen on toeing a similar line. This is demonstrable in the achievement registered within this short period of its inception.

Having overseen the graduation of close to a thousand well tuned students, in less than 10 years of operation, those at the helm of the country’s highest institution of learning have all the reasons to boast of their effort.  

Almost on a yearly basis a new thing is introduced. This year’s convocation was unique by nature, as it saw the introduction of two new things; the chancellor’s lecture series and the chancellor’s banquet.

Held last Monday, the maiden chancellor lecture succeeded the dinner, traditionally thrown on behalf of the graduating students. And as usual, the post convocation ceremonies were held at the Paradise Suits Hotel. In attendance were high profile dignitaries, from the honorable SOS for Higher and Tertiary Education, to the core of the private sector.

The presence of the first ever chaiman of the university governing council, Dr Lamin Marena, added a mood of uniqueness on the occasion. And the graduating class of 2008, in addition to all this, would certainly relish the memories of their post graduation treatment, as they and their loved ones were unusually treated to a delightful performance of a star artist during the dinner, in the person of Sambou Suso, courtesy of the host hotel, paradise Suits, in addition to the delicious meal that was served. But before all this, we had to go through a marathon lecture that lasted for close to four hours. Nonetheless, it was a stunning revelation - the knowledge that small Gambia was endowed with such a mesmerizing Gambia luminary in the academic field.

The distinguished professor Kah ( We must give him the credit for coining the term ‘brain circulation’, as opposed to drain drain’), absolutely defended the worth of his title, and this was in fact plainly expressed in the seemingly never ending line of achievement detailed by the University Registrar, as the master of ceremony, Lamin Sam Jaiteh, when he introduecd the audience to the guest speaker, professor Kah. The work of the Gambia-born Nigeria based academic takes him across the length and breadth of the globe; from Africa to the Americas,  as well as Asia.

The Chancellor’s lecture series

The idea behind this is to create a platform for the discourse of contemporary burning issues. The topic at hand on Monday was indeed quite timely, considering the level of readiness demonstrated by government in the promotion of science and technology. This, Professor Kah believes, is fundamental in the development process of every nation, “and the Gambia,” he said, “was no exception”. His lecture centered around three very important sub-topics: the importance of University in the development of a country, a discourse on the silicon value initiative and knowledge economy.

Telecommunications, said the erudite professor, is a dispensable guideline in the Gambia’s development aspiration, as it offers enhancement of economic development. The private sector, he went on, needs to partner with government to build the country. He described the silicon valley initiative as a giant move towards information and knowledge base economy, and he hailed the Gambia leader for his foresight. “The Kanilai academy, sponsorship of deserving students to study in Taiwan and Venezuela can be help in propelling the development course of this country,” he posited.

Perhaps, the thing that moved the professor most was the establishment of the university of the Gambia. This he expressed in the following statement: “I am quite sure that if the president were asked to point at one of the greatest achievement of his government, he would say the University.”

However, the professor said stressed the need for a campus in order for us to realize the goals of establishing the institution. He said that there was no great institution with out a campus, citing Oxford, Harvard, Al Azhar, among others, as examples. History, he said, will record UTG as one of the greatest achievement of this country. Therefore, it should be a national priority.

He said that denying students a campus is an unforgivable wrong. He however recognized the effort by the government ensuring the provision of a campus. “History, he went on still, will not forgive those that advice government against building a campus.

The trust bank sponsored lecture was succeeded by the much awaited dinner, which was said to have been sponsored exclusively by the Gambian leader, who is in fact the chancellor of the university of the Gambia.  

watch out for a comprehensive report on the lecture on next week’s society.

Editor,

Pease, allow me space to express my delight about the good work of an individual that has been contributing immensely in the development efforts of this country of ours. What makes it so special is that this person is not Gambian. I am talking about one Dr Anya of the School of Medicine, University of the Gambia (UTG).

As part of a team of Doctors serving in the various sectors of the Gambia’s social and infrastructural development, Dr Anya has demonstrated an unrelenting level of passion to his duty.

I choose to refer to this man because his attitude sharply contrasts those of many people in this country. Many of whom are, in fact, bonafide Gambians. It makes me wonder how somebody like Dr Anya could demonstrate such a loyalty that not even some Gambians can. I therefore want to take this opportunity to appeal to Gambians to change their attitude. It does not matter what your qualification is in serving your country to the maximum. What matters is your loyalty, patriotism and concern.

Alhajie Jabbi

Driver