By Aminata Kuyateh
In its quest for promoting and creating a conducive environment for knowledge and learning in the country, the Gambia National Library Tuesday inaugurated a new digital center for school going children, old ages and the visually impaired at a ceremony held at its complex in Banjul.
With over 50 computers, internet connection, and furniture, the digital centre will offer the following services: coding classes for kids, information centre for the visually impaired, job hunting and career guidance for the youths, senior citizen tech education and chess and scrabble clubs and tournaments to name a few.
Highlighting the importance of the initiative, the Minister of Basic and Secondary Education, Kaddijatou Sey, said the libraries have been the cornerstone of education and research, serving as gateways to a vast treasure trove to knowledge and culture.
“With the establishment of this state-of-the-art digital centre, we are not merely embracing change but also reaffirming our commitment to making information more accessible and inclusive for all,” he said.
Minister Sey added that in this digital era, where information is constantly evolving and expanding at an unprecedented rate, the national library digital centre stands as a beacon of digital literacy and empowerment.
“We aim to bridge the gap between the past and the future, in ensuring that our rich literary heritage is preserved for generations to come,” she said.
Minister Sey stressed that it is heartening to see the dedication and hard work of all those involved in bringing this vision to life from the architects and engineers who crafted this architectural marvel to the librarians and information specialists who will curate and manage its digital resources with care and expertise.
Minister Sey urged all citizens to embrace this digital revolution in education and research and to utilise the resources of the national library digital center to further their intellectual pursuits and creativity.
Director General of the Gambia National Library, Bakary Sanyang, said ICT and library play pivotal roles, adding that there is a lot of revolution in the ICT industry and the library cannot be left out.
“So the rest of the occasion is a testament to collaboration and partnership and there is more that needs to be done to bring more opportunities for the betterment of the library,” he added.
Director Sanyang expressed gratitude to the board members for their extreme support and tremendous effort for the inauguration of the digital centre.
The initiator of the project, Amran Gaye, said. There is no savior coming, no visionary leader coming to lead The Gambia into a promised land, the only way to rebuild our communities is to directly help those around us.”
He narrated how the library became a safe haven for him growing up in the capital and introduced him to reading and exploring the world.
Mr Gaye said he wanted to give back to the same institution but targeting a different category of people.
“I wanted to create the same type of opportunity the library gave me but for a new generation, a generation that is digitally native, a generation that lives on their devices,” Mr Gaye said.
