The Association of Ba’lal Foundation, the parent body of Silicon Institute of Technology and Professional Studies has launched a multi-subject public library, at its headquarters in Jarra Soma on Thursday 14th March.
The foundation team, which has installed in the library bookshelves over three hundred and eighty books of a wide range of subjects and fields, including language and literature, science and technology, humanities and history, health and the environment, would make them available to the public.
The creation of the library, according to Amadou Bah, the Programme Officer of Ba’lal Foundation cum Executive Director of Silicon Institute is along the status core of his foundation.
He recalled that Ba’lal Foundation was encouraged to launch Silicon Institute of Technology and Professional Studies in June 2012, in response to the growing need of knowledge on basic information technology among the rural people.
“We aim to overturn the eighty-seven per cent illiteracy record in the area of information technology for these people as highlighted by the United States Peace Corps, supported survey by Ba’lal Foundation in Lower River Region in 2009-2010,” he said.
He described the library as a complementary project which intends to dictate a permanent culture of reading and research for people, especially students. “We have gone far in our plans to collaborate with schools in the creation of reading and research clubs for schools across LRR. It is also our wish to develop Information technology programmes in these schools,” Mr. Bah said.
Abubacarr Nyabally, Principal of Tahir Ahmadiyya Muslim Senior Secondary School said the launch of a new library in the Lower River Regional Town would help to emancipate the people from the illiteracy age. “Education has been far away from us for quite a long time and as a result, everybody keeps saying that LRR is the most backward region,” he said.
Mr. Nyabally urged the youth to enroll to the library clubs with confidence and trust on its resourcefulness.
Lamin Saidy, Lower River Regional Disaster Coordinator, who represented the Regional Governor at the meeting hailed the project. He observed that with the kind of team work and focus by the Association of Ba’lal Foundation, both the citizens of the regions and those posted there can better their lives at a convenient pace. He assured them of the full support of the administrative unit of the LRR regional authority.
Thomas Stable, grandson of Sally Reader, the Chief Administrator and Donor of Friends of Gambian Schools (FROGS), expressed pleasure for receiving the honour to cut the ribbon key to the library with scissors. He said the library is hoped to add value to the work of Ba’lal Foundation in the region.
