The outreach was being funded by the United Nations Development Funds (UNDEF).
The training, which ended in the Upper River Region (URR),brought together stakeholders from different regions and community groups, including decision-makers and other implementing partners.
In an interview, Samba Jallow, governor of the Upper River Region, applauded the efforts of TANGO in reaching out to his region to facilitate such important training to the community.
The training, he added, is a follow-up training conducted between 2019-2021 and organised by TANGO on good governance and respect for rule of law.
“TANGO is here to monitor and assess the impact that the previous training had on the region. There is a level playing field in the country with regards to good governance and democracy. The rule of law is also been respected and TANGO assessment training will impact in the concept of good governance.”
Jallow expressed optimism that participants would share the knowledge gained with their various communities, saying they have gathered diverse stakeholders.
He outlined that having training on gender-related issues, good governance, and rule of law, would significantly enhance the capacity and understanding of participants on various topics.
On the challenges faced in the area of policies, he acknowledged that in anything there must be challenges, but that doesn’t mean the challenges should overcome the positive aspect of it.
“Not long ago, the public service had a community engagement that was held in URR, and that activity was centered on policies and programs of government and how it will be implemented.”
Ousainou Mahanera, Ward Councilor of Gambissara expressed similar sentiment, saying this was TANGO’s second engagement in the region to advocate for good governance and rule of law.
“This time they came to engage with the stakeholders on whether the strength of human rights, good governance, and rule of law are practiced and adopted by the community.”
He continued that they expect to learn more from TANGO advocacy, noting that they will share the knowledge gained with Alkalolu, VDC, youth, and women groups.
Haddy Kanteh of Rural Support Organisation for the Disabled (RSOD), while expressing delight, thanked TANGO for involving them in such training designed to know their responsibilities as community leaders.
She promised to share the knowledge gained with her organisation, pointing out that they’d never been involved in such an important training since the inception of their organisation.
“We the Differently-Abled in URR are faced with a lot of difficulties and the reason why we cannot attend gatherings at the community level is the lack of mobility because many can’t afford to buy a wheelchair. We therefore need assistant especially from the government and NGOs.”
