Barrow’s strategic visit to Europe

Within two months since he took office on 30 January, President Adama Barrow is making a vital move to Europe.

It is really good for him to travel to Europe to strengthen the bilateral relations between France and The Gambia, and The Gambia and EU. 

The nations and comity of nations are our partners in development; we need their cooperation and assistance in all areas, be it trade, tourism, telecommunications and energy, and infrastructure. 

With lucrative cooperation, all parties can benefit even as the relations continue to help Gambia improve some of her basic needs.

We should open a new page with the new Gambia to explore all means to meet the present challenges of our economy, which is rotten at the moment because of abuse of human rights, bad governance, and financial mismanagement during Jammeh’s regime. 

Since The Gambia is now a real democratic country, we should nurture the peace with also the help of Europe to boost our security, and we should make known to the European Union our urgent needs, especially in trying to solve the erratic electricity problem of our country and improve the telecommunications services.

We should explore the opportunity the new friendship would bring through the European Union and other friendly European countries.

The Gambia as a tourist country should take this opportunity to sell more of her image, and attract more investment into the country.

With more foreign exchange flowing into the country, it is certain that costs or prices of commodities and other services should be managed well as much as possible, to enjoy the climate and other facilities they can only fine in Africa.

Tourism is also playing a key role in our economy. We should, therefore, build more cordial ties with our good friends.

With strategic support and cooperation from our friends, we should try to boost our economy to help the nation, particularly the youths, to develop and enhance their human resource.

As a good percentage of them work in the tourism industry, such improvement and line of direction would help the government to achieve the goal of all-year-round tourism.

President Barrow should encourage and invite well-placed investors to visit The Gambia to utilise her potentials, and to establish factories to create more employment.

All Gambians travelling to Europe with genuine documents should be accorded a visa; this will help reduce the back-way syndrome. 

“Global actions require local and national participation. International cooperation and action requires community perspectives and legitimacy if it is to be effective." 
Ian Goldin