The 3-week summer school, organised by the Nova-Scotia Gambia Association (NSGA), has ended recently in Basse, URR, at a graduation ceremony held at the assembly hall of Nasir Ahmadiyya Senior Secondary School in Basse Mansajang.

Students selected from various schools in the CRR and URR were awarded prizes and certificates for undergoing the three- week intensive lectures on academic subjects and health related issues.

In his welcoming remarks, the chairman of the occasion, Mr Micheal Hamadi Secka, the Principal of Janjanbureh Upper Basic School and a prominent writer, said the three-week summer school was sponsored by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).  He further noted that the programme was intensive and had broaden the horizons of the students, saying that it has also complemented the efforts of teachers at school, who always look up to the excellee of students.  

Principal Secka however revealed that the Peer Health Education Programme of the NSGA is indeed a learning and teaching institution. He pointed out that the students are expected to go back to their various schools and teach their peers what they have learnt from the summer school.

In his report on the summer school, the NSGA Peer Health Education project manager Muhammed Ngallan, said the NSGA has been operating in The Gambia as a partnership NGO for over a period of two decades, supporting community health initiatives and moulding young Gambians to become more productive in their efforts to building a better Gambia for all.  He further revealed that in July 2008, the NSGA secured funding from the Canadian International Development Agency to implement a three-year project in 75 upper basic and senior secondary schools across the country.  

This project, he said, is aimed at promoting gender equity and youth leadership through health and human rights education in The Gambia. "An important component of this project is to organise annual summer school programmes that will avail us the opportunity to consolidate the work done by Peer Health Educators and teacher coordinators during the academic year, strengthen identified weaknesses as well as develop work plans for the coming academic year.  123 students and 50 teacher coordinators were brought together for a period of three weeks.  

These students were divided into six classes between Grades 7,8,10 and 11 and the teacher coordinators in two classes of 25 teachers in each class.  The students were taught on English language, communication skills, public speaking skills, reproductive health, STIs HIV/Aids, gender and health relationships by professional Canadian teachers and student nurses," Ngallan explained.

He also thanked the Canadian volunteers, describing them as people with great minds. Speaking on behalf of the governor of URR, the deputy Governor Momodou S Kah, thanked the NSGA for organising the summer class. He hailed the association for preparing what he termed the future generation. Deputy Governor Kah however noted that education is a leading priority in President Jammeh's administration.

He further expressed profound gratitude to the Canadian International Development Agency, for funding the NSGA to organise such an important forum. He finally urged the students to make best use of the invaluable knowledge gained from the summer school and share it with their colleagues at school. The head boy of Nasir Ahmadiyya Senior Secondary School delivered the vote of thanks.