Banjul - 17 December 2015: The United Nation System  in the Gambia  joined the rest of the world in commemorating UN Day 2015 which was  observed on 24th October 2015. This year’s commemoration coincided with UN’s 70th anniversary under a global theme: Strong UN-Better World”.  The ceremony was hosted at the Kairaba Beach Hotel and was graced by the Diplomatic Mission, Senior government officials, civil society organizations and other partners, UN Staff and students.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Guest speaker to  the occasion, Hon. Neneh Macdouall Gaye, in her keynote address paid tribute to the founding fathers of the United Nations and the staff for the continuous service they continue to render to the world.  She said the day is an occasion for them to assess the gains made over the years, the challenges confronting the organization and to map out strategies and a way of expediting the successful implementation of the UN development framework.

She dilated on the just concluded MDGs which saw reduction in t extreme poverty  by half in developing countries, decline in maternal and child mortality to  50 percent since 1999, and significance progress has also been made in  the campaign against malaria and HIV/AIDs In the Gambia. 

According to her, the Gambia has also made major strides in the areas of immunization against most of the childhood killer diseases including measles, polio; he proportion of people who suffer from hunger has been reduced by half;  malnutrition fell  from 13.3 percent to 6 percent and gender  parity has also been achieved at lower and upper basic schools as well as 100 percent gross enrolment at primary level she noted. 

She commended The Gambia Government for its commitment to improving health, agriculture and education which was made possible due to the fruitful cooperation between the Gambia Government and the UN Agencies.  Though much has been achieved, more  remained to be done, she said reiterated..

She also cited the conflicts and increasing threats fueled by  wars natural calamities happening  around the world which are impacting negatively on our development efforts. She said it is imperative that no matter how ambitious we are, development cannot take place if peaceful coexistence cannot prevail.  She urged the UN to invest more on peace by laying emphasis on conflict prevention.

She also highlighted some of the achievement of the government towards the protection of children such as the enactment laws and re-assured government’s stance in the reduction or elimination of FGM and early marriages.

Meanwhile, in a televised broadcast to the nation the WHO Representative and acting Resident Coordinator (RC) – Dr. Charles Sagoe-Moses conveyed the UN Secretary  General’s statement on Friday 23rd October 2015, eve of UN Day 2015 wishing  all a Happy 70th United Nations Day.

The UN Resident Coordinator in the Gambia, Mrs. Ade Mamonyane Lekoetje in her statement has called on government to urgently enact laws to address issues on FGM and child marriage in the country. She highlighted that the elimination of child marriage and FGM is also in line with the Post 2015 Agenda and that similar proposal to The Gambia government were made in the July 2015 report of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the AU African Charter (ACWRC) and the Protocol to the African and People’s Right.

She highlighted that the two lingering challenges, child marriage and the prevalence of FGM which need our urgent attention. She quoted the  Demographic Health Survey report 2013 of The Gambia as showing t 16 per cent of women aged 20 – 49 years were married before their 15th birthday.  This  denies many young girls the opportunity of post –primary education, which is critical in poverty alleviation and economic transformation, she remarked.

She went on to say that the 70th anniversary of the UN is a day to highlight, celebrate and reflect  the work of the UN and its family of specialized agencies and described the day as a historic moment. She stated that at global level, member States of the United Nations adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at its core.

Madame Ade noted that at national level the government of The Gambia is currently reviewing its priorities for the next national development plan, 2o17 – 2030. She said at the same time, the UN system in the Gambia is in the process of formulating the next United Nations Development Assistant Framework (UNDAF 2017 - 2021). This year’s theme she highlighted captures multilaterism, an essential role of the United Nations.

The national theme selected in The Gambia  “Building Tomorrow’s UN Today”, highlights renewed commitment to child protection in The Gambia and demonstrates the relevance of children as the emerging leaders and force for change for a better, more developed and peaceful world.   

She made a renewed commitment of the UN’s Support to the government of The Gambia and thanked partners for the enabling environment UN is operating in the country.

As part of the programme, students from Kanifing East and St. Therese’s Upper Basic Schools were selected to serve as representatives of the different UN agencies. They all spoke on the work of their different agencies and were awarded with prizes and certificates. A drama on African hopes was performed by the Blaque Magiquee Crew.

__________________________________________________

For more information, please contact:

Mr. Momodou Gassama, Health Promotion Officer, Email:  gassamam [at] who.int, (220) 4462286;

Mr. George. Williams, Health Information Assistant, Email: williamsg [at] who.int, (220) 4462284