The
Minister of Information and Communication Infrastructure, Demba Ali Jawo, has
said the government of President Adama Barrow has set eyes on culture as one of
its key priorities.
He
made this statement in a two-day National Stakeholders Forum on a new cultural
policy for the Gambia, which wrapped up at the Paradise Suites Hotel on Saturday
8 July 2017.
The
National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC) received assistance from UNESCO
under the participation Programme (2016-2017) adopted in 1988 to initiate a
process to review and reposition The Gambia’s Cultural Policy which is dire
need of introspection and update.
‘’Culture
is a priority of the Government of His Excellency President Adama Barrow,’’
Minister Jawo said.
In
all the plans of the government such as job creation, sustained economic growth
and national reconciliation, culture has a limitless and central role, he
emphasised.
Minister
Jawo, who spoke at the function on behalf of the Tourism and Culture Minister,
said the forum was held to develop a new and more proactive cultural policy for
The Gambia.
He
encouraged all stakeholders to partake in and contribute meaningfully to the
process.
‘’I
should urge all of you to give this meeting its due consideration and partake
in it to the fullest so that the contribution of each and every sub-sector of
culture and arts you represent will have its ideas reflected,’’ he said.
“Of
course,” he went on, “we as a government will also have our input into the
draft, as government is a major stakeholder, but be rest assured that the
interest of all players in the sector will be respected and upheld.”
Mr
Jawo thanked UNESCO and commended the Director General of NCAC and his team for
their proactive stance on having a new policy for the sector.
‘’My
sincere thanks go to UNESCO through its national commission in Banjul for the
funding and to all the stakeholders who have in one way or another responded to
our call for contributions,’’ he said, adding that it was not the first time
that UNESCO had intervened in the quest to review and renew The Gambia’s
cultural policy.
‘’In
2009,UNESCO through its National Commission supported a similar gathering which
produced a lot of ideas towards enunciating a new policy but the lack of
political will at the time made sure that the recommendations did not see the
light of the day,’’ the information Minister noted.
In
his remarks on the occasion, the Chairman of NCAC board, Mr Oreme Joiner, said
he has always prioritised action plans to regenerate and reposition the
cultural policy of The Gambia.
‘’Since
I assumed duties as chairman of the NCAC, I have always prioritised, planned or
strategised action plans for cultural regeneration and repositioning,’’ he
said, adding that a robust cultural policy together with an up-to-date legal
framework and strengthened NCAC will form the bedrock for the rise of the
sector to higher heights and also put the cultural sector on a sound footing.
Mr
Joiner paid special homage to Dr George Abungu, the consultant from Kenya who
is in The Gambia to work with the NCAC and all of the stakeholders towards
framing a new policy which will guide the activities, plans and proposals in
this sector for the coming decades.
The
project approved by UNESCO is titled ‘’Strengthening the Legal and Policy
Framework for Realizing the Potentials of Culture and the Cultural Industries
in National Development”.
The two-day National Stakeholder Forum brought
together representatives of the various stakeholder groupings in a working
session to provide direction for the new policy.
The
project was implemented through a consultative process with the participation of
government agencies and stakeholders outside government, including local
communities, civil society and actors in the arts, culture and tourism
industries.