“We congratulate members and management for this achievement,” Mr Njai said wile presenting the chairman’s report at the agency’s 10th Annual General Meeting held yesterday at its headquarters in Kanifing.
Various government officials, NGOs, civil society organizations and local government authorities attended the AGM.
Both the reports of the chairman and the Director General of Gamworks were adopted. The chairman, DG and managers of the agency were also commended for their outstanding performance in the management of government funds.
At the end of the AGM, the annual report and financial statement for the year ended 31December 2013 were adopted.
In his report, Mustapha Njai, chairman of the GAMWORKS Board, expressed delight at the agency’s annual report and financial statement for the year ended 31st December 2013.
He said 2013 was another good year in terms of board governance, performance of its oversight functions, and management achievements in delivering successfully completed projects and delegated management contracts.
According to Mr Njai, GAMWORKs management, with the support of the board, has also been successful in bringing new projects and contracts into the agency, such as the US$30 million GGC Groundnut Project and the US$23 million Sukuta-to-Jambanjelly road project.
Mr Njai stated that as they celebrate 20 years of GAMWORKS’ existence, they noted with pride and satisfaction that the agency has so far implemented US$180 million worth of development projects and programmes, from 1994 to date.
“We congratulate members and management on this achievement,” he declared.
He said some of his report topics covered the operating environment, corporate strategy, major developments and governance.
Mr Njai further stated that the Gambia government continues to support GAMWORKS, as witnessed by the inflow of numerous projects and delegated management contracts given to the agency.
On behalf of the board of directors and management of GAMWORKS, he expressed gratitude to the President and his government for their continued confidence in the agency.
GAMWORKS would continue to support the President’s aspirations for the Gambian people and his government’s development agenda, Mr Njai added.
Mr Njai thanked all their partners, especially the Islamic Development Bank, for their collaboration with the agency.
GAMWORKS Director General Ebrima Cham said despite the many challenges and constraints, he was happy to report that the agency was able to register significant achievements.
“A number of projects and contracts were completed to the satisfaction of our clients and beneficiaries,” said DG Cham.
During the period under review, he added, the project funds received amounted to D190 milion.
Payments to contractors during the period totalled D92 million, of which D1.6 million was paid to consultants and the D8 million went to other service providers, he said. Mr Cham said the day-to-day management of GAMWORKS is entrusted to the Director General by the board of directors.
It was, therefore, his privilege to report on the activities of the agency since the last AGM.
The report covered areas such as operations review, human resources, partners, challenges, risks and constraints, and future prospects, he added.
On operations review, Mr Cham said the main objective of GAMWORKS is to implement development projects, especially in infrastructure on behalf of the Gambia government and their development partners.
The agency’s interventions could be classified into two categories, he said.
In the first category, whole projects in their entirety are implemented by the agency on behalf of the government and development partners.
In the second category, GAMWORKS acts as a delegated management contractor and implements component of projects, notably in the area of civil works and infrastructure on behalf of the sectors.
He also stated that during the year under review, three major projects and eight delegated management contracts (DMGs) were under implementation at the agency.
The progress made in the execution of these projects and contracts was discussed, he added.
