Gambia Gov't Recognised PAG's Peace Making Efforts

The Government of The Gambia has recognised the important role the Peace Ambassadors The Gambia (PAG) is playing in ensuring durable peace, security, and youth development," said the Gambian Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr. Sheriff M.L Gomez. The statement was delivered on his behalf by the deputy director of Youth and Sports, Mr. Sutay Jawo during the weeken at the official opening of a two days training for youths at the Regional Education Office in Kanifing. The two days training focuses on Peace Education and Non-Violence and is aimed at "Broaden the knowledge, skills and awareness of young people to enable them promote peace and to deal with violence in the communities as youths". Deputy Director said that PAG has been in the forefront in youth development, peace and security, at which, he recalled, various training and international camps PAG has rendered to the country and the region.

ACHPR RELEASE ON HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATION

BELOW IS THE  PRESS RELEASE ON RECENT HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS OF IN COTE 

D’IVOIRE ISSUED BY THE AFRICAN COMMISSION on Human and Peoples Rights.

The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Commission) expresses 

its grave concern about the massive human rights violations that have occurred in Cote d’Ivoire 

in the aftermath of the Presidential elections of 28 November 2010. 

The African Commission regrets that these massive violations of human rights increased from 

15 December 2010 following the announcement of popular demonstrations by the 

Rassemblement Houphouetistes pour la Democratie et la Paix (RHDP), aimed at taking control of the 

National Television. 

Reconciliation And Homecoming

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA (MB)- One of the more fascinating accounts of Sir Dawda's story is his reconciliation with president Yahya Jammeh and his return from exile. Here in his own words, the News and Report Weekly Magazine brings you a narration of how it happened, based on excerpts taken from Sir Dawda's autobiography Kairaba.  

     On Thursday 29 August 2001, my niece Mina Alami-Njie arrived at 15 Birchen Lane in the company of two of her elder sisters, Mariam and Fatma. It was certainly a happy family reunion....

Mariam opened the conversation and said the visitors from Banjul had something to say. Mina explained that she had come to London with a message from President Jammeh. The president had ask her to consult with Mariam and Fatma to see if they could convince me to come home. She said the main point President Jammeh wanted to emphasise in the message was that he did not think it proper or of any advantage to the image of the Gambia that I should continue to live in exile. The president was therefore asking me to consider returning home as an elder statesman, in dignified retirement befitting a former head of state.

On Sir Dawda Jawara, Gambian's First President

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA (MB)- Sir Dawda Jawara, The Gambia first President, led The Gambia to independence on February 18, 1965 and held on as Prime Minister until 1970 when the country became a Republic.

Sir Dawda Jawara  gave an account  post= independence  Gambia under his rule  in an interview  with Gambia News and Report Magazine at his residence on Atlantic Road in Fajara on  Tuesday 11^th January 2011.

 He said his party the People Progressive Party (PPP) came from the  Protectorate Peoples Party. When he was selected to the lead the party,  the party first launched its campaign in  the rural  parts of the country.   He later  urged  that  the  party name should be changed to the Peoples Progressive Party (PPP) and in  the electionx,  the PPP won a majority of  the seats.

Peace Ambassadors Camp Youth

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA (MB)- Peace Ambassadors The Gambia from the 23rd to 29th December 2010, gathered a good number of youths from all works of lives for recruitment camp at Sanyang Lower Basic School. The name of the recruitment camp is “The Art of Living in Peace”, which according to the Executive Secretary Peace Ambassadors The Gambia Fabakary Kalleh, "to live in peace is a creative process, understanding human behavior, attitude, values and to be able to adopt it". 
According to him, peace starts from our own hearts while conflict also start from our own hearts too. He told youths that peace can be divided into two categories that is negative and positive peace. The negative peace, he explained the focus on destruction of the state while the positive peace the restruction after negative peace.
He also stated that conflict on the other hand is inevitable stating that out of conflict one can have the following; it can leads to developments, growth, emotion relief and knowledge. Peace, he said is a state of inner consciousness arising from personal from quality, social accord and harmony with nature. 

With The International Roots Festival 2011 in Banjul

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA(MB)-The 10th Edition of the bi-annial International Roots Festival was stated for 4th-10th February 2011, with a weeklong programme. 

“The 10th Edition of the Roots festival was expected to bring together positive thinking Africans who share the same common objectives, origins and heritage, who collectively focus on all positive key aspects that may contribute to the social, cultural /and economic growth of the continent as we move forwards the next century”. 

UN System Urged To Increase Budgetary, Ensure Timely Release of Funds

 NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA(MB)- The Gambian Vice President  and Minister of Women Affairs Dr. Isatou Njie-Saidy has on 12 January 2010 at the Kairaba Beach Hotel at the official Launching of the 2010Human Development Report urged the UN system to increase budgetary allocation and ensure timely released of funds is the first mouth of the year.

“Poverty Has A Woman Face” says Women’s Right Activist – Madam Sillah

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA(MB)- A well known women’s right activist who render her service in promotion of women in business and skills, has disclosed poverty as ‘having a woman face’. Mrs. Amie Sillah Executive Director of Women for Democracy and Development who has recently launched her book entitle

“ Silent Voice”, has revealed in her interview that lots of  challenges and problems are confronting women’s in our  today’s society . 

Forestry Policy Recognised Alarming Degrradation of Forest Resources

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA (MB)- According to the new Forest Policy of the Republic of The Gambia, the government has recognised the alarming rate of degradation of forest resources, and commissioned an institutional review and an update of the proceeding policy. The forestry sub-sector policy corners the period 2010-2019. The said policy was made available to journalists at a recent high level popularization meeting organized by the Ministry of Forestry.

UNDP 2010 GLOBAL REPORT RANKED GAMBIA 151

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) report on the Human Development 2010 was official launched on 12 January 2011, at the Kairaba Beach Hotel in Banjul. The annual global Human Development Report (HRD) has been published by UNDP since 1990 as intellectually independent and empiricially founded analyses of development issues, trends, progress and policies. According to Halen Clark administrator of the UNDP that the "UNDP can take apporopriates pride in its backing of this intellectually independent and innovative report for the past two decades, that the HDPs have never been a UNDP product alone.

UNESCO Director- General deplores killing of Chinese journalist

10-01-2011 (Paris) The Director General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, has urged Chinese authorities to fully investigate the beating and subsequent death of Chinese journalist Sun Hongjie. He died in a hospital in Kuitun, a city in the northwestern province ofXinjiang, on 28 December 2010, 10 days after being beaten by several men at a construction site.

Local Journalists At Work In Southern Sudan

Sudan Referendum: Local Media Help Citizens Understand Voting Issues and Cope with Health Concerns

On January 9, southern Sudanese citizens will vote either to form an independent nation or to remain part of a united Sudan.
Because over 120,000 people have arrived in Southern Sudan since the beginning of November 2010 to participate in the referendum, there are fears of a widespread humanitarian crisis in the region.
Community station Radio Miraya in Southern Sudan took the initiative to increase its humanitarian messaging and reports to help affected population in the event of a new emergency, with the support of two humanitarian media specialists from Internews.

UDP on Vigorous Campaign for 2011

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA (MB)- "2011 Jammeh is Going: Change is Inevitable. Development is indiscriminately for Tax Payers: Gambians remain Loyal to UDP. Poverty, Hardship and Dictatorship is enough for Gambians. And Femi Peters is a True Hero" were the major tagged campaign slogans onto three large tents when the United Democratic Party (UDP) held a mass political rally in the heart of Brikama in Western Coast Region.

“MDGS A Powerful Force To Reduce Poverty.” Dr. Sukwa

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA (MB)- The Who Representative  (The Gambia) Dr. Thomas Sukwa has said that the MDGs has been a powerful force in fight to reduce poverty and inequity.
  Dr Sukwa delivered this statement on Friday 10 December at a press briefing on the progress towards the health” Related implications in its target to meet the MDGs. He added that the need to reduce maternal and newborn deaths emerges as the most urgent and obvious priority adding that there is urgent need for government to increase investment in health of women and children.

GPU’s Ndey Tapha Sosseh; Deyda’s Assassins Has Failed Miserably

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA (MB)- The president of the Gambia Press Union Ndey Tapha Sosseh in a statement read on her behalf, on the sixth anniversary of the assassination of  Deyda Hydara. Thursday 16th December 2010, at the TANGO conference hall, organised by the GPU with the funding from Media Agenda.
 The secretary general of the Gambia press union, Emil Touray said that when they think about the heinous way in which Deyda was murdered, they are sad and their spirit dampened but they find solace in the fact that the intentions of those who brutally murdered Deyda Hydara has failed miserably in their evil design to silence the voice of truth.

2011 Budget on Tax Measures and Increment

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA(MB)- According to the Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs, Honorable Abdou Kolley, much of the growth in revenues in the past years has been on account of increases in duty and tax rates. He added that since the establishment of the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA), there has been lot of emphasis on strengthening tax administration and improving tax collections.
Kolley explained that reform at the GRA are continuing with emphasis on improving its tax database, developing better internal controls, strengthening enforcement- capacity and improving the utilization of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) systems. Their statement, he stated, were made during the budget statements and economic policy financial year 2011, presented to the National Assembly on the 17/12/10 by himself. According to the finance minister measures to be implemented by GRA in 2011 include the following:

O J Expressed Disappointment

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA (MB)- Omar Jallow, more popularly known as OJ a politician-cum friend of the media has expressed disappointment and shock over the poor turn out of Gambian’s at a public lecture commerating the 6th anniversary of the assassination of the late Deyda Hydara on Thursday  16 December 2010. At the Tango conference hall, in Kanifing the theme for this year was impact of the internet on the future of the newspapers, this year anniversary was made possible with funding from media agenda. It could be recalled that Deyda Hydara was gun-down by unknown assassins in December 16 004, since then no paper probe has been done to figure out the culprit.

Report on Gambian Youth Participation in the CPO 16th sessions

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA (MB)- Mr. Ebrima Dem an official youth participant at the Conference of Parties from the 29th to 10 December 2010 at Cacum, Mexico, gives an account of his report. Below is the full text of his report.

Introduction

From the 29 November to the 10 December 2010, stakeholders in the climate change, including young people met in Cancun to discuss the future of planet earth in relation to risk to survival posed by the changing climate. The conference which was the 16^th session of the conference of parties to the Kyoto protocol brought together young climate activists, politicians, policy makers and other development partners to negotiate for a fair climate treaty that will shape future engagement of both developed and developing countries in the struggle to avert the projected disaster of climate change.

U.S. EMBASSY LIGHTS COMMUNITIES WITH SOLAR LAMPS

US EMBASSY OFFICIALS

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA(MB)- A lighting ceremony was held at the museum in Juffereh on December 28, 2010 to hand over 175 solar lamps purchased via the U.S. Embassy’s Self Help Project.  The ComAfrique lamps, valued at D117,600, will provide low-cost lighting to families in the villages of Juffereh and Albreda.

Former Gambian President Awarded "Man of the Year 2010"

Gambia Communication Agency And Baroueli Enterprises

Where Media Professionals Are At Work For You      

PERSON OF THE YEAR 2010 PRESS RELEASE,

Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara, former President of the Republic of The Gambia, has been designated "Man of the Year 2010" by the Gambia News and Report weekly magazine, following the publication of his autobiography giving a graphic account of his time.                 

UNESCO to host International Symposium on Freedom of Expression

© iStockphoto 08-12-2010 (Paris) An International Symposium on Freedom of Expression, sponsored by the Swedish National Commission, will be organized by UNESCO at its Headquarters on 26 January 2011. Based on the premises that freedom of expression is a cornerstone of the human rights edifice, and that open and participatory communication is vital for successful development, the debates will focus on the status of press freedom worldwide, the safety of media professionals as well as the changes of the media landscape in the digital age.

UNESCO Director General Condemned Killing of Three Journalists

16-12-2010 (Paris) UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova condemned the murder of three Pakistani journalists in two separate incidents on 6 December. Altaf Chandio was shot dead inSindh Province, Pakistan. Abdul Wahab and Pervez Khan were killed during a suicide bombing in the north-west tribal area.

Director-General condemns murder of Pakistani journalist Muhammad Khan Sasoli in Balochistan

21-12-2010 (Paris)- The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, has called on Pakistani authorities to investigate the murder of journalist Muhammad Khan Sasoli. He was gunned down outside his home on 14 December in Khuzdhar, town in the southwestern province of Balochistan.

Presentation By Mansabanko Blogger

Presentation By Mamadou Edrisa Njie Second Vice President Young Journalists Association of The Gambia (YJAG), Senior Staff Writer  of  The Gambia News and Report Magazine Weekly at a day-long Training on Journalism for St Joseph Senior Secondary School in Banjul  18 December 2010.