Her Excellency Ramzia Diab Ghanim, the Gambian Ambassador to Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam and Indonesia has met with Gambians in Jakarta on 7th April, 2018.
In his remarks, Mr Musa Drammeh a representative of Gambian businessmen in Indonesia, expressed delight with the ambassador’s visit and disclosed that an Association of Gambians in Indonesia is in existence with the objectives of fostering unity, mutual cooperation and togetherness.
He lamented about the difficulties encountered by Gambians in renewing their expired passports while in Indonesia and called on the ambassador to facilitate the easy access for the renewal of passports.
Mr. Drammeh also brought to the ambassador’s notice that other nationalities hold Gambian passports and urged ambassador Diab to take concrete steps to prevent a reoccurrence of such menace. He requested for a consular to be designated in Indonesia for ease of communications and transactions.
On his part, Mr. Sulayman Colley, representative of the Gambian students, dilated on the diverse fields of study among the students and reported that the number of Gambian students is increasing compared to previous years. He noted that some of the students are on full and partial scholarships. He commended the Indonesian government and Universities for granting scholarships to Gambians and creating the conducive academic environment for students and urges the Gambian government to do the same.
Mr. Colley requested for an open channel of communication between the embassy and the Gambian Community in Indonesia.
In her keynote statement, Ambassador Diab expressed delight with the number of students in Indonesia and pledged her full support in ensuring that the number of Gambian students is increased. Ambassador Diab informed the meeting that she held discussions with Brunei government and a Memorandum of Understanding is expected to be signed soon related to the provisions of scholarships to deserving Gambian students to study Brunei. She disclosed that University of Putra, Malaysia (UPM) has promised to provide scholarships to Gambian students and that she would initiate similar initiatives in Indonesia.
On the issue of communication, Ambassador Diab revealed that the embassy has a website and a Facebook page (embassyofthegambiamalaysia.com) and therefore urged Gambians to visit and register their names.
Speaking further, Ambassador Diab informed the meeting of the steady progress registered by the Government of the Republic of The Gambia and the steps taken by government in addressing the electricity crisis and providing vital services thus meeting the needs and aspiration of the citizenry.
In conclusion, she reiterated the importance of having a consular in Indonesia and that the unanimous selection should be done in earnest and implored on Gambians in Indonesia to continue to be good ambassador s of Gambia and law abiding. She also assured the total commitment of the embassy to be at service to the Gambian community in countries within her jurisdiction.
