Mr Chairman,
Your Excellencies
Honourable Ministers
Members of the Diplomatic Corps
Fellow Gambians
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
It is both a
pleasure and honour for me to be invited by Chatham House, an internationally
renowned institution, to speak on the topic “Shaping The Gambia’s future: how
to build a path to sustainable progress”.
Mr Chairman, the
socio-economic and political context of The Gambia has been characterised by
over two decades of dictatorship. The
country lost its friends and status in the community of nations and respect as
home of human rights in Africa.
The peace and
stability it nurtured since it attained independence in 1965 eroded in the 22
years of dictatorship. This affected the economy, and disintegrated the social
fabric of the society. Many of the youth
left in search of a better life; in most cases through dangerous means, to
reach Europe and other parts of the world.
The political environment was dangerous for freedom of expression and
respect for human rights. Thus, a
serious brain drain followed.
The business
environment was risky, because the rule of law was not respected. The
institutions have been destroyed, systems and procedures were not respected;
thus instilling care-free attitude in the public service.
This unfortunate
scenario forced Gambians to take a decision to define their destiny. In 2016, eight stakeholders in the political
arena came together to form a coalition and, on the 1st December
2016 Presidential election, Gambians went to the polls and voted me as
President.
Immediately after the
Coalition government came to office our first priority was to re-open The
Gambia to the world, promote human rights and restore freedom of
expression. We had to build confidence
amongst our partners and prepare a strategy to put The Gambia on the path of
sustainable development. In short, we had
to right the wrongs in our institutions, systems and procedures. We had to engage in institutional and legal
reforms to ensure efficiency in the public service, good governance and progress
in national development. My Government’s
strategy is now clearly outlined in the National Development Plan 2018-2021.
One of the first
steps undertaken was to establish the rule of law by releasing all political
prisoners, set up a review panel on wrongful dismissals and de-congest the
Office of the President. All the portfolios
were decentralised to their line ministries.
This was to allow the experts and technicians to deal with issues in a
professional manner and provide technical advice to the Office of the
President.
In the meantime,
my Government continues to build on its diplomacy to return The Gambia into its
rightful place in the community of nations and organisations. One of these is the Commonwealth and we are
delighted by the re-admission of The Gambia into the Commonwealth of
Nations.
Building the path
of sustainable progress in The Gambia cannot be isolated from the global trend
of events. It calls for working towards
a “Common future”, the theme for this year’s Commonwealth meeting. The spirit of togetherness is key for
effective change.
This has been
demonstrated when Gambians came together to change a dictatorship, which for
two decades, rubbed the country’s resources.
My Government inherited just over one month of import cover, thus its
dependence on international support to revitalise its economy. Therefore, developed countries should provide
improved access to their markets; introduce and promote measures to liberalise
trade, particularly in processed agricultural and manufactured goods.
The reality of
climate change has subjected our people to abject poverty and driven our youth
to illegal migration. To address this unfortunate situation, youth
employment is a key priority of my Government.
Particularly important is their participation in socio-economic
activities, training and entrepreneurship.
My government is
working to introduce and implement action-oriented measures designed to fight
poverty. These measures include effective
promotion trade and investment, given their importance and potential in
generating employment for the youth and economic growth. Modernised agri-business, processing and
packaging of products for the export market will all open The Gambia to
regional and global markets. It has the
land, water and human resource to curb hunger and ensure food security.
When we came to
office, we instantly faced formidable challenges because of domestic and
foreign debt and widespread economic mismanagement. Therefore, my government
has embarked on the effective implementation of macroeconomic policies that are
supportive of the sustainable development goals.
Priority will be
given to decentralise economic activities throughout the country. The rational use and allocation of resources have
so far been employed without sacrificing the quality and standards of services. Conscious efforts have also been made to
strengthen and improve institutional, technical and managerial capabilities of
public sector agencies, and the institutional framework for macroeconomic
planning and development is fully operational.
Sector programmes and projects have been aligned to the National
Development Plan 2018 – 2021.
Special focus is
also being given to improving the economic and social status of women. Policy
decisions and projects are designed to promote gender equality and women’s economic
empowerment.
Efforts are being
made towards diversifying The Gambia’s economy, through agriculture, tourism
and fisheries.
This requires
knowledge transfer and skills development for the youth and to improve the
livelihood of rural families. All these are meant to put Gambia on a sure path
to sustainable progress.
As part of the
effort to promote trade and enhance private sector initiatives designed to
increase employment and promote the diversification of the Gambian economy,
special focus is put on accelerating the growth of Small and Medium Enterprises. The enabling environment has been created to
attract both domestic and foreign direct investment.
The initiatives
include the improvement of the institutional credit support system for small
and medium enterprises, as well as improving the regulatory environment for
business.
Mr. Chairman, my
government’s strategy on education focuses on providing quality of basic
education, improving the qualification and quality of teachers, strengthening
science and technology in higher education and developing coherent and
sustainable systems for technological skills acquisition and development.
Also, improving
women’s level of education and literacy is part of gender responsive
development. Where necessary new
schools will be built and existing ones upgraded.
Given the
importance of ensuring quality health services, due emphasis is put one stablishing
an integrated primary health care system, reducing mortality rates, ascertaining
food security and the provision of safe
drinking water. Other activities promote
reproductive health rights and environmental sanitation. My government will also improve the
efficiency of hospitals and other health facilities.
Mr Chairman, to be
successful in all our endeavours, The Gambia would certainly need the continued
good will and special assistance of developed countries. In the same vein, I recommend that the
International Financial Institutions recognise the special circumstances of The
Gambia and significantly increase the amount of concessionary loans provided to
the country.
Mr Chairman, now
that The Gambia has been re-admitted into the Commonwealth of Nations, we can
look forward to a strong diversified support from the Commonwealth.
The Gambia cannot
build the right path to sustainable progress without ensuring that there is
peace, stability and justice. In this
regard, my Government has embarked on transitional justice for legal and
constitutional reforms to entrench human rights, peace, justice, freedom of
expression and the rule of law.
The political will
is to ensure that democracy thrives and citizens effectively take ownership of
the development process.
In conclusion, the
NEW GAMBIA is determined to overcome obstacles along the way in building a path
for sustainable progress. As President,
I feel humbled the delivering of good governance and accountability, social
cohesion, and a revitalised economy for the wellbeing of all Gambians, as
stated in our National Development Plan 2018-2021.
I thank you all for your
kind attention.
####
