The Environmental Education Unit, a sub-project under the Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Project, at the weekend concluded a three-day capacity building training for school-going children on environmental conservation techniques and importance of protecting forest resources held in Sambel kunda.
The week was the turn of Kudang Upper Basic School, who were the latest to be trained on the basic conservation techniques and the benefits from the forest resources.
Mathew Selinske, project manager of the Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Project (CRP) at Sambel Kunda in the Niamina East District, Central River Region South, said the training of schoolchildren on environmental conservation techniques is an ongoing programme.
The unit has been established to train young people and school-going children to build a culture of conserving the remaining natural resources in the country.
According to him, the principal objective of the training is to prepare the young children to have a clear picture of what is all about conservation and how are they are going to protect and conserve the flora and fauna in The Gambia.
The communities around the national park are directing benefits to sub-projects from the Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Project as part of their commitment to the Government of The Gambia.
Every month the unit trains 450 students, he said, adding that among the schools that have benefited from the training are Sinchu Gundo LBS, Kuntaur LBS and UBS, Kundang LBS, Barajally LBS, Pallang LBS, Medina Basic Cycle and Niani Senior Secondary School.
This unit has been established by the CRP 3 years ago and it bears all the cost including lodging and feeding of the children during the course of the training, and the unit has also visited all the participating schools established, as well as revived environmental clubs to expose the children on some of the issues about the environment.
He revealed that come 22 April there will be a writing contest on environment in a form of essay and poem competition among the participated schools.
According to him, the Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Project is one of Africa’s longest running and perhaps the most successful animal project in the sub-region, which has a long history about this endangered species dating back centuries ago.
The programme manager, Mathew Selinske, said the new management of CRP is supported by the Government of The Gambia and the Foundation for the Promotion of West African chimpanzees.
On their new interventions, Mr Selinske revealed that the project has recently provided four vegetable gardens and clean drinking water for four communities, namely Karantaba, Banni, Wellingara and Yidda, all are communities surrounding the national park.
He said there are more plans in the offing to bring about more development in the area and these, among others, includes the provision of a fish pond and a re-plant of more ‘bamboo’ trees for the benefit of the community.
Mr Selinske called on all stakeholders to work with the new management for the socio-economic development of the area, while commending the Government of The Gambia and other institutions for their cooperation and support.
He noted that the project has started bringing about series of developments to some parts of Niamina and plans are underway to bring more for the communities in the areas.
The manager of the Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Project, Mathew Selinske, thanked the MoBSE through the regional educational directorate and the Department of Forestry, and the River Gambia National Parks for their cooperation.
Managing the forest resources, he said, would encourage ecotourism in the area, which he noted would bring many benefits for the local communities.
Mathew further dilated on the significance of protecting the forest and the chimpanzees, noting that if protected it would bring direct benefit for the local communities in the area, and challenged all and sundry to become protectors of the environment.
For his part, Samba Kandeh, a teacher at Kudang Upper Basic School, underscored the significance of the training, adding that environmental matters are part of the Social Environmental Studies subject of the school syllabus.
“Bringing the students down to the national park and learn some of the basic techniques of conservation,” he added. This will avail the students the opportunity of comparing the reality on the ground and that which is written on books.
Alpha Njie, lead trainer, said some of the topics covered include the ecosystem and the interdependent between flora and fauna, medicinal aspect of the tree plants and moral lesson, such as storytelling and a trial work within the Njassang Forest and River Gambia National Park.
He said that some of the great expectations from the children include student participation in conserving the natural resources.
Speaking on behalf of the students, Mariama Baldeh said the three-day training course was very successful and educative.
“We have learnt a lot and we can now able to relate the reality on the ground and the abstracts in class,” she said.
Ms Baldeh assured the organizers that all what has been learnt will be put into good use, while commending the school administration and the Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Project for their foresight in conserving the forest resources.