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The Minister was accompanied by H. E. Mr. Omar Gibril Sallah, Ambassador of The Gambia to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Permanent Representative to the OIC, Ambassador Habib T. B. Jarra – Deputy Head of Mission and Deputy Permanent Representative to the OIC,  Ambassador Yankuba Dibba – Chief Executive Officer, Gambia OIC Secretariat and Honourable Mr. Momodou Sabally Presidential Adviser, Office of The President. The Summit was chaired by His Royal Highness Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud. The Summit was held to  discuss the ongoing crisis and Israeli aggression against Gaza and Palestinian territories, as well as the attacks on the Republic of Lebanon and the Islamic Republic of Iran,  including, in general the overall peace, security and humanitarian situation in the Middle East Region. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Gambians Abroad, His Excellency Dr. Mamadou Tangara had an audience with the Secretary General of the Muslim World League, His Excellency Sheikh Dr. Muhammad bin Abdul Karim Al-Issa, today, November 12, 2024, at the Headquarters of the Muslim World League in Riyadh. The two eminent dignitaries met following the just concluded Extraordinary Arab and Islamic Summit in Riyadh on 11th November 2024. Their discussions were centered on the excellent relations and cooperation between The Gambia and the Muslim World League, and the need for continued collaboration in promoting the mission of the Muslim World League for the benefit of the Islamic Ummah and humanity in general. His Excellency Secretary General Al – Issa commended and recognized The Gambia’s excellent and positive leadership efforts in promoting and championing the cause of Islam and the Muslim Ummah, under the guidance of His Excellency President Adama Barrow, Chairman of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. In this regard, the Secretary General made reference to the recent hosting of both the Islamic Ulema Conference and the 15th OIC Islamic Summit in Banjul, as well as The Gambia’s leadership in pursuing the cause and interests of the Rohingya Muslim Community in Myanmar, as clear manifestation of The Gambia’s dedication to the cause of Islam and commitment to the interest and aspirations of the Muslim Ummah.

The Minister expressed his gratitude to the UN Resident Coordinator, Heads of UN Agencies, and the entire UN staff for their contributions towards The Gambia’s development journey. Furthermore, Minister Tangara expressed that the UN Cooperation Framework should be in line with The Gambia’s Recovery-Focused National Development Plan (RF-NDP). Dr. Tangara asserted that there should be a collective aspiration among all development stakeholders to accelerate The Gambia’s transformation towards prosperity. For his part, UN Resident Coordinator Paul stated that the retreat should serve as a catalyst to strengthen the UN Country Team’s efforts to better serve the Gambian people. Finally, the Foreign Minister wished them fruitful deliberations ahead and continued strengthened partnerships with the overall outcome to provide better services to The Gambian people.  

Minister Tuggar, accompanied by his delegation, held a meeting with senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including Permanent Secretary I, Ambassador Lang Yabou; Director of African Affairs, Mr. Omar Baldeh; and other technical staff. During their discussions, both parties exchanged pleasantries and reflected on the enduring and strong bilateral relationship between The Gambia and Nigeria. They emphasized areas of shared interest, particularly the importance of enhancing collaboration in the education sector. Following a productive engagement, Minister Tuggar concluded his one-day visit to The Gambia and was bid farewell at Banjul International Airport by his Gambian counterpart.

Based in Geneva, the Human Rights Council is an intergovernmental body within the UN system, made up of 47 states elected by the General Assembly, which are responsible for the promotion and protection of all human rights around the world. The Gambia has played a significant role in advancing critical human rights issues at the UN Human Rights Council.   Over the past three years, The Gambia has played an active role in the Council’s work, by serving as Vice-President for two consecutive terms ( 2 years) and as Coordinator of the Africa Group for the year 2024. From advocating for peace, climate justice, digital inclusivity, anti-racial discrimination, and the rights of women, children, persons with disability and youths, The Gambia has remained steadfast in its dedication to advancing justice and protecting vulnerable groups and populations.   The Gambia’s role as vice president include:   Overseeing Council sessions   Coordinating the work of the Africa Group within the HRC, ensuring that the continent’s concerns are reflected in key human rights decisions .

During the meeting, the two ministers discussed key bilateral matters and explored potential areas for further collaboration between their countries. Minister Tangara emphasized the many similarities between The Gambia and Papua New Guinea, particularly in terms of the rich diversity of tribes and languages within their populations. In response, Minister Tkatchenko expressed gratitude for the meeting and extended his best wishes to Minister Tangara in his bid to become the next Secretary-General of the Commonwealth.  

With a mission to develop cooperative initiatives and actions and contribute to the development of an Atlantic community of interests, the AASP aims to promote integration, stability and prosperity in the region. The session was chaired by His Excellency, Nasser Bourita, Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates of The Kingdom of Morocco. The main outcomes of this meeting were the Joint Declaration by African Atlantic States Process and Atlantic Center and the New York Declaration II.

The Gambian delegation was led by Permanent Secretary I of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Lang Yabou who was accompanied by Ambassador Lamin Dibba,Permanent Representative of the Republic of The Gambia in New York. Also in attendance were the Foreign Minister’s campaign team from MOFA, the Gambia High Commission in The United Kingdom and Permanent Mission of The Gambia to the African Union in Addis Ababa. The objective of the CFAMM is to oblige Foreign Ministers to deliberate on shared challenges. It was also an opportunity to gather Commonwealth Members to review the activities of the Secretariat over the last year and highlight key objectives of the upcoming CHOGM meeting. The meeting was chaired by His Excellency, Olivier Nduhungirehe, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Rwanda, as per Commonwealth Chair-in-Office.

Heads of state are gathered to engage in discussions under the theme “Leaving no one behind: Acting together for the advancement of peace, sustainable development and human dignity for present and future generations.” President Barrow was accompanied by various cabinet ministers including the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Information, the Secretary General and other high level officials.

His Excellency Mr. Fafa Sanyang, Ambassador of the Republic of The Gambia to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and team attended the Women security and peacekeeping training graduation ceremony which was held at Khawla Bint Al-Azwar Military Academy for Women in Abu Dhabi on 28th August 2024.   The Gambia participated in this training alongside countries such as Egypt, Bahrain, Yemen, Tanzania, Liberia, Pakistan, Kosovo and Kyrgyz Republic.   This security and peacekeeping training programme is aimed to build and develop women’s capabilities in peace missions. It creates collaborative and supportive networks that increase women’s representation in peacekeeping forces, and improve their operational effectiveness. The Gambian military officers were commended for their remarkable performance.

On Tuesday 13th August 2024, Ambassador Lang Yabou, Permanent Secretary I, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Gambians Abroad received Mr. Hirose Shinichi, Counsellor and Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Japan to The Gambia based in Dakar, Senegal and his delegation at his office in Banjul. The purpose of the visit was to execute the signing of Exchange of Notes relating to the Annual Japanese Food Assistance to The Gambia for 2024 amounting to D150,000,000.00. Permanent Secretary Yabou, in his statement after the signing, pointed out that, The Government of The Gambia is au fait with the fact that the world is facing a global food security crisis which is driven by climate change and factors such as conflicts, etc, and as climate change and conflicts continue to exacerbate the situation, the number of people expected to be affected by food insecurity is expected to rise. Therefore, “it is essential that we work collectively to mitigate the adverse impacts of food insecurity, which has the potential to derail societies” posited Ambassador Yabou. Permanent Secretary Yabou informed Counsellor Shinichi that, the food assistance will be beneficial to The Gambia by assisting Government to establish through the Ministry of Agriculture, a flexible mechanism that would allow communities to have access to farm inputs and reap full benefits from this support. Ambassador Lang Yabou went further to recognized the strong bilateral relation between the two countries highlighting other forms of support that The Gambia continue to receive from Japan such as the provision of safe drinking water to rural communities through the “Rural Water Supply Project”, capacity building to enhance the productivity of The Gambia’s public service, scholarships and projects for the strengthening and modernization of The Gambia’s agriculture and fisheries sectors. On international platforms, ‘’the two countries shared commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights, democracy, rule of law, development, human security and mutual respect for each other’’ noted Ambassador Yabou. In addition, while thanking the Government and People of Japan for the support and solidarity, Ambassador Yabou conveyed the commitment of the Government of The Gambia to further strengthen and grow the excellent ties between the two countries for the mutual benefits of their people and to contribute positively to global peace and greater prosperity. Ambassador Yabou concluded by stating that, ‘’this is a timely visit ahead of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) Ministerial Meeting slated to take place in Tokyo, Japan later this month and The Gambia will join other stakeholders to participate’’. For his part, Counselor Mr. Hirose Shinichi expressed his gratitude to the Permanent Secretary for receiving him and asserted that, “Japan is very sensitive to the food shortage in African countries due to the impact of climate change, natural disasters and external shocks on the local food production.” Counsellor Hirose assured his host of the continuous commitment of Japan to support The Gambia’s development endeavours as well as working together to strengthen the relationship between the two friendly countries and concluded by thanking The Gambia for its partnership with Japan. The two sides agreed on the importance of regular engagements and the signing ceremony was witnessed by Mr. Sheick Omar Bittaye, Director and staff of the Directorate of Asian Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Banjul and the delegation that accompanied Counsellor Hirose from the Embassy of Japan in Dakar, Senegal.