BRUSUBI-
The head of the visiting delegation from the Saudi Fund for Development,
Special Adviser Eng. Yousef I. Al-Bassam has expressed delight at the state of
progress of the ongoing project implementation works for the 2022 OIC Heads of
State and Government Summit in The Gambia.
Special
adviser Yousef I. Al-Bassam made the remarks on Tuesday during a courtesy call
on the management of the Secretariat in Brusubi to acquire first-hand
information on the ongoing infrastructural works for the Summit.
The
Saudi Fund for Development is one of The Gambia’s foremost partners for the OIC
projects providing financing for the building of a VIP Lounge at the Banjul
International Airport, the construction of the 20 secondary urban roads, and
the Electricity Network Enhancement Project and Rehabilitation of Water and
Sanitation Networks Project – all of which are overseen by NAWEC.
Heads
of the implementing agencies of the various OIC projects like the National Road
Authority, Gambia Civil Aviation Authority, and NAWEC were present to give a
detailed presentation on the status of projects being supported by the Saudi
development agency.
Chief
Executive Officer of the Secretariat, Mr. Yankuba Dibba warmly welcomed the
delegation and thanked the Saudi Fund for their immense support to the
country’s bid to hosting a successful Summit. “We cannot thank you enough for
all you have done for us for the summit. We are quite grateful,’’ he said.
Director
of Water Services at NAWEC also thanked the Saudi Fund for coming to their aid
in supporting the improvement of their generation and distribution capacities
in both the water and electricity components. He said the projects could not
have come at a better time and will go a long way in improving the living
conditions of the Gambian people. The
shortlisting of consulting firms has been completed and soon the responsive
bidder will be selected, and works will begin for the design phase.
Similar
comments were made by the Managing Director of the National Roads Authority,
Momodou Senghore, as well as the OIC Project Manager of GCCA, who stressed that
they are on course to complete the building of the Presidential Lounge in time
for the 2022 Summit.
CEO
Dibba later led the delegation on a conducted tour of the facilities of the
newly commissioned Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference
Center.
The
Saudi Fund delegation is in the country to sign a $12 million grant for the
Airport Expansion Project.
