Gambia parliamentarian elected ACP President

This was disclosed by Hon. Netty Baldeh on Monday before deputies, while adopting the report of the 39th Session of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, held from 22 to 25 September 2015 in Brussels, Belgium.

Presenting the report before the National Assembly members, Hon. Baldeh, who was the head of the Gambian delegation to the session, said the report is divided into seven key areas, six of which are appearing as appendices as indicted in the ACP-West Africa Caucus Communique.

The Tumana National Assembly Member further told fellow deputies that the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly convened its 39th Session in Brussels, Belgium, from 22 to 25 September 2015.

During the event, he added, the ACP-West Africa Caucus considered nominations to fill vacancies of ACP President and Co-President offered to the West Africa Region, which was supposed to hold the next presidency, as per the formula used by the ACP.

“Following consultations and negotiation among the nominees in the persons of Hon. Ben Oumar Mohamed of Niger, Hon. Netty Baldeh of The Gambia and Hon. Bouniface of Benin, the two Honourable members of Niger and Benin agreed and stepped down for Hon. Baldeh to lead,” he said.

According to Hon. Baldeh, the ACP-West Africa Caucus finally agreed and unanimously elected him from The Gambia to become the next ACP President and ACP-EU JPA Co-President for a period of two years - from November 2015 to November 2017.

Hon. Baldeh informed deputies that appendix 2 is a document for the partnership agreement of the 11th European Development Fund (EDF) on National Indicative Programme (NIP) for the period 2014-2020, between the Government of The Gambia and the European Union.

“The European Union is envisaged to make available to The Gambia, a sum of 33 million pounds for the period 2015-2016 (phase one), to finance and focus on some of the National Indicative Programmes spelt out in the policy vision of PAGE 2012-2016 (Programme for Accelerated Growth and Employment),” he stated.

The 11th EDF First Phase 2015-2016 shall focus on two programmes namely, agriculture for economic growth and food security/nutrition, and the exit strategy to the transport sector, he said.

For the period 2017-2020, the NIP would be synchronised with the future national development strategy, according to the agreement, he added.