The Gambia’s ambassador to Sierra Leone, Alieu K Jammeh has been conferred with the seal of the African Achievers Award for Excellence in Public Office.
A citation from the award organisers said Mr Jammeh is being awarded for his selfless service and outstanding innovative strive towards the promotion of the African agenda.
A former youth and sport minister Jammeh was awarded alongside 17 other Africans. His award was collected in the UK on his behalf by his siblings.
The African Achievers Awards is one of Africa’s most prestigious awarding bodies which honors great African Achievers – including African leaders, young achievers, community builders to captains of industries -whose works have had a meaningful impact on building the Africa of our dream.
The awards were presented to the various recipients at a reception in Kensington Palace, England, on the 10th of December. The theme for this year’s award is “mobilizing investment for sustainable development in Africa”.
The award over the years has become established as one of the biggest gatherings of influential and global African Achievers on the continent and it’s rated by Forbes Magazine as one of the most prestigious awards on the African continent.
In his accepting statement shared with The Standard ambassador Jammeh said: “Allow me to begin by extending sincere gratitude and thanks to the chairperson and the CEO of the African Achievers Awards and through them, to the entire membership of the African Achievers Awards for the honor bestowed on me to be a recipient of this distinguished Award under “Excellence in Public Office’ category for the year 2021”.
“I am not only thrilled by this recognition but most importantly more motivated and inspired to work harder and harder in delivering to the expectations of being privileged to serve the public interest. The public office brings huge opportunities to positively impact lives and livelihoods. I have tried and still continue to do the same for close to two decades to contribute my quota in providing safe space and utilizing resources entrusted in my care for the advancement of public interest,” he said.
Jammeh added: “To serve in public office is one of the noblest for those who understand that life is worth living when it is lived sharing and caring to promote the welfare of the public. Unfortunately, the biggest challenge of development in Africa is the abuse of public office.
“Therefore, as I proudly receive this award today, I also wish to call upon all occupants of the privileged positions of public office to strive harder to deliver for the benefit of all people. I thank you for your kind attention and congratulations to all other recipients of the different categories of awards on this auspicious occasion,” he said.
