APS Swift visits the gambia
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Left to right: Lt. Commander Christopher Simmons,
Commodore Sarjo Fofana, Ambassador Barry Wells,
Brigadier Yankuba Drammeh and Commander Paul
Gomes. |
Africa Partnership's High Speed Vessel Swift (HSV 2) arrived in Banjul, The Gambia, September 17, 2009. Mr. Ousman Jammeh, the Gambia's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Barry L. Wells, U.S. Ambassador to The Gambia, as well as high ranking Gambian military officials including the Chief of Army Staff BG Yankuba Drammeh and the Gambia Navy Chief Commodore Sarjo Fofana, welcomed the ship at Pier 1 in Banjul.
In his remarks, Ambassador Wells spoke on the importance of the visit by the U.S. Navy and APS Swift.
"Visits like this are important because they help reinforce the strong ties that already exist between our two countries. The last Navy ship visit of this magnitude was in 1994," said Wells. "The United States Navy is committed to many humanitarian assistance projects around the globe, and has, with this visit, transported donated items from an NGO 'Gambia Help' started by former Peace Corps volunteer, Shelby Tarutis, based in Seattle, Wash., and medical supplies from Project Handclasp, which will be donated to the Ministry of Health."
APS Swift delivered 16 pallets of Project Handclasp supplies to The Gambia.
Touching on the first such visit in 15 years, Brigadier General Yankuba Drammeh and Commodore Sarjo Fofana welcomed the ship to Banjul. (full text...)
US Embassy Banjul Recast President Obama’s Speech to the Muslim World
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Muslim leaders listening to President Obama's Speech
to Muslims. |
On Thursday 4 June, 2009, U.S Embassy in Banjul showed the recast of President Obama’s Speech to over 30 religious leaders, civil society members, and journalists at the embassy. The Immediate reaction of the audience was very positive and audience members were clapping and audibly agreeing through out the speech. The President of the Supreme Islamic Council commented that “it was not a only a speech, but a sermon, that will change the relationship America has with the entire world. “ Other Government officials and local Imams all commented on the “supremacy” of the speech. All agreed that President Obama has high hopes and they pray that the points he made can be executed. One journalist highlighted President Obama’s bravery to go to a Muslim school and deliver such a speech. Other comments included the appreciation of the president’s reference to the Koran.
The speech demonstrated America’s commitment to engaging the Muslim world with new approaches based on mutual interest and mutual respect. The media coverage was very impressive, reaching over 600,000 Gambians. Some of the newspapers published the entire speech verbatim and made editorial comments. (view photo)
Embassy and Gambian Media Conduct a working visit to James Island
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James Island showing defense wall being built from
locally available tree stumps with high resistance to
water erosion. |
On Wednesday 3 June, 2009, Embassy Staff, the Peace Corp and The National Council for Art and Culture (NCAC) accompanied by representatives from all media houses, visited James Island to see work in progress on the restoration of James Island in Jufereh. Robert Hymn, visiting Consular Officer at the US embassy in The Gambia, noted that, the Embassy had decided to use the Ambassador’s Cultural Preservation Fund to prevent the Island from further deterioration. Baba Ceesay, director of Cultural Heritage at NCAC, the implementing agency of the project, described that once the restoration work is complete, it will minimize the affect of sea waves on the structures, which is one of the contributing factors to its deteriorating situation.
The interview demonstrated the USG’s support for both environmental and cultural preservation of historic sites. The interview received extensive coverage on all the major newspapers and GRTS TV evening news. The Pro government National newspaper did an editorial on it. (view photo)
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