The Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Dr Omar Sey, and the founder of Pierre Njie Foundation based in the United States of America alongside the deputy director of health promotion and education, as well as the regional health director for West Coast Region, Saturday visited the ongoing construction of a health clinic project site in Jambur village, Kombo South, West Coast Region.
The project was funded by an American-based foundation called Pierre Njie Foundation through the founder, Ida Sillah Njie, a Gambian-based in the United States of America.
The visit was undertaken for the minister of health and social welfare and the founder of the foundation to see for themselves progress made on the construction of the clinic and to discuss with the communities of Jambur challenges and constraints to look at possible means of putting strategies in place to fast-track the completion of the project.
Speaking at the site, the Health and Social Welfare Minister, Dr Omar Sey, expressed delight and appreciation to be associated with the project, noting that the project started since he was the deputy permanent secretary at the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.
According to the minister, the idea was conceived by the then Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Fatim Badjie, and since then, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the ministry of health and the said foundation for the implementation of the project in Jambur village through the help of the regional health team to ensure that the MoU is implemented as agreed.
Minister Sey further said the Government of The Gambia under the leadership of President Yahya Jammeh attached great importance to having access to health facility in the country and ensuring effective health service delivery system.
The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare deemed it very fitting to support the health facility in Jambur village for the benefit of not only the communities of Jambur Village but also the entire Gambian population.
He urged the community of Jambur to identify two young people who have graduated from Grade 12 with good results for them to be sent for training at Mansakonko, to serve their communities after the training.
He assured them that the two young people would be absorbed into the government services and would be sent back to their communities.
He thanked the sponsors of the project, saying the doors of the Gambia government are open to every person who would like to contribute their quota to national development.
He also challenged the community of Jambur to take ownership of the project.
The founder of the Pierre Njie Foundation, Ida Sillah Njie, expressed great joy to be back home in her beautiful country to see that the health clinic project was advancing successfully and making progress.
“This project is so dear to her heart in the sense that it represents a legacy for her grandfather, P.S. Njie,” she said.
She added that placing her life back in America, she thought it was necessary for her to fulfil her dream of helping others back in her land of birth.
According to her, the aim and objective of the project was to support the ordinary people of The Gambia by identifying specific needs that could be supported to improve their lives.
