Editor,

Kindly allow the NTA space in your widely read paper, the Daily Observer, to clarify issues pertaining to a letter on page 4 of your 30th September edition, 2008, captioned: 'NTA and the schools' by Kebba  Foon.

Your circulation and indeed the general public would readily attest to the fact that numerous press releases and public notices have been published within the past 15 months inviting all skills training institutions/providers to apply for registration license and accreditation for trainers, assessors and verifiers licenses with the resultant consequences for failure/refusal to adhere to them.

The NTA has, overtime, equally explained what its mandate is under the NTA Act 2002, which primarily is, regulatory, supervisory and monitoring functions over all public and private skills training institutions in The Gambia.  It may interest the writer and the public at large to know that, prior to the new processes and procedures for registration and accreditation being introduced in May 2007, as part of a general system review which training institutions validated, there were 108 known operators.

In the course of time and by the end of the 1st quarter of 2008, 77 were in operation; the rest either closed through written notification from the NTA or simply did not meet the new standards to function as institutions and therefore closed voluntarily.

As a matter of normal routine, quality audit visits are conducted to monitor the activities of providers and to ensure quality service delivery (QSD) are sustained.  Any institution with deficiencies not having a direct impact on the QSD are given a time line to put those things rightly in place and  work to ensure  that those  of adverse nature e.g. appointments of unqualified and unlicensed personnel to teach ortrain are addressed immediately.

The frequent publications of warnings, flexible short and medium time lines for adjustments to be made by operators who falter are all within the NTA's assistance package in encouraging institutions to perform well and grow rather than clamping on them with closures which is the last resort.

In as much as previous closures were not published, the recent actions taken are deemed necessary in the face of some defiance.

The NTA has always and will continue to take into account of students or trainees plight and as in previous  decisions, the institutions concerned were called upon to refund fees already paid by the students or trainees.  It is further advised that students or trainees   accompanied by their parents or sponsors visit the institution and demand for a refund of fees.

We thank the writer and other concerned citizens who called our office for further clarification and in recognition of the NTA's mandate and stance on these issues and to the general public for their understanding.

Edmond Shonubi
For NTA Management