His Excellency Momodou Lamin Bah, Ambassador of The Gambia to the United States of America, recently received in his office the Executive Director of Zakat Foundation of America, Mr. Halil Demir. They discussed a range of topics bothering on investment in transportation, health and agricultural sectors of The Gambia.
Zakat Foundation is a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) based in Chicago. It provides emergency relief, post-disaster rehabilitation, sustainable development, education, healthcare, orphan sponsorship, and seasonal programmes such as Ramadan iftars and Udhiya.
During the meeting, Ambassador Bah emphasised that at the core of any development is the provision of primary healthcare services. He spoke at length on the need to jointly look into the healthcare infrastructure of the country with a view to improving it to meet the healthcare needs of Gambians. He recalled the January 2024 Medical Mission embarked upon by US medical doctors, through Sunu Reew organisation as an example of contribution to the healthcare needs.
The Ambassador pointed out the limited dialysis services in the country and the constrain in maintaining the effective functioning of the available equipment. He used the opportunity to urge the Foundation to support Gambian women in economic activities such as animal husbandry, vegetable gardening and in other areas.
For his part, Mr. Halil Demir, Executive Director of Zakat Foundation of America, thanked His Excellency the Ambassador for the warm reception. He introduced the Zakat Foundation of America and disclosed that it is a charitable organisation that operates in various countries across the globe. He said the Foundation has supported few projects in The Gambia, including sponsoring The Gambia Academy owned by a Gambian female kora musician, Dr. Sona Jobarteh. Mr. Demir said the Foundation is interested in making the Ports of Banjul its preferred destination by using it as a regional distribution hub for food aid and other goods for the sub-region.
