By Olimatou Coker
The minister of higher education has disclosed that the Gambia government invested over D120 million to enhance the quality of education across the country. This funding, according to Minister Pierre Gomes, will primarily support the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education (MoBSE) in its efforts to provide free and quality education. The initiative aims to improve educational infrastructure, increase access to learning materials, and enhance teacher training programs. By focussing on these areas, Minister Gomes added, the government seeks to address challenges in the education sector and ensure that all children receive a robust educational foundation essential for their future success.
Recently, the GPPC provided 213,000 textbooks of various subjects to MoBSE, ranging from English language, mathematics, civic education, physics, chemistry, and biology, among others.
The initiative is said to be one of its kind in the history of education, as previous textbooks used by Gambian schools were printed outside the country.
Momodou Ceesay, the managing director of the Gambia Printing and Publishing Corporation (GPPC), said the books are meant for senior secondary schools. “Sometime in April this year, the minister of basic and secondary education contracted GPPC to print and publish textbooks for use in Gambian schools, and the total amount of books is about 213,000 textbooks. It covers all the core subjects as well,” he said.
He said the total project amounts to D120 million.
The minister of higher education said the initiative is unprecedented.
He acknowledged the unprecedented support President Adama Barrow is rendering to the uplifting of education in The Gambia.
