But today, the question isn’t about the past it’s about the present. It’s about tomorrow.
So, let me ask you, what happened to that tomorrow?
Once upon a time, schools like St. Augustine’s, St. Joseph’s, and St. Peter’s weren’t just places to learn. They were sanctuaries of transformation, where discipline met vision, and vision turned into action. These were the crucibles of leaders the men and women who shaped this nation.
Yet, here we are in 2025, asking Are we still forging leaders? Are we still investing in humans? Or have we forgotten how?
The need to look back
Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character that is the goal of true education."
Where is that goal today?
Yes, more children are in classrooms than ever before. But what is the quality of that education? What are we teaching them how to build a future, or how to drift into despair? Are today’s classrooms producing tomorrow’s thinkers, builders, and leaders, or are they creating a lost generation drowning in mediocrity?
It’s not too late. But we must act now.
The bridge between the old and the new
We don’t need to live in the past but we cannot ignore its lessons. The values based education of the old system discipline, moral grounding, leadership must not be lost. Instead, we must blend these virtues with today’s innovations technology, inclusivity, and opportunity.
This isn’t about nostalgia. It’s about survival. It’s about ensuring The Gambia doesn’t just survive youth unemployment, migration, and globalization it thrives.
Practical steps for today’s Gambia
- Skills Over Degrees We don’t need more empty certificates. We need training colleges and vocational schools that teach carpentry, agriculture, ICT, and engineering skills that create livelihoods.
- Education with Integrity Teach not just math and science, but character and empathy. Let children learn the power of respect, the strength of teamwork, and the courage of leadership.
- Smaller Classrooms, Bigger Futures Overcrowded classrooms can’t inspire; they suffocate. Build more schools. Train more teachers. Invest in education infrastructure not tomorrow, but today.
- Community Ownership Education isn’t just a government responsibility. It’s a collective mission. Parents, elders, businesses step up. Volunteer. Mentor. Invest.
- Dream Big, Start Small We don’t need a nationwide overhaul in one day. Start with five schools. Transform them into models of excellence. Then scale up. Show the nation what’s possible.
A Call to Action
"We need to take risks to make a better world."
The Irish missionaries came here with nothing but faith and hope. They built something extraordinary. Now, the baton is in your hands.
What kind of Gambia will you leave behind? Will it be a nation of disillusioned youth? Or will it be a nation of dreamers, builders, and leaders?
I believe in this country. I believe The Gambia can rise not by looking back, but by carrying forward the best of its history.
But this will take courage. It will take investment. And it will take belief.
Martin Luther King Jr. also said, "Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase."
So, take that step. Build. Dream. Fight for education that doesn’t just fill minds, but frees souls.
The clock is ticking. But it’s not too late. Not yet.
Let’s work together to create a future worth believing in.
