The vice president, Her Excellency Aja Dr Isatou Njie-Saidy, yesterday, on behalf of His Excellency the president, Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh, presided over the opening of the 22nd All Africa Public Relations conference, at the Sheraton Gambia Hotel Resort and Spa in Brufut.

The formation of African Public Relations Associations followed a meeting on 10th July 1975 by the International Public Relations Association (IPRA), held in Nairobi, Kenya, during which discussions were held on how to strengthen Public Relations Associations in Africa. It was then that the Federation of African Public Relations Associations (FAPRA) was formed. But at its meeting held in Kumasi, Ghana, in 2008, it was decided by the membership of the association that its name be changed from FAPRA to APRA.

The objectives of the association, among others, include setting standards for the practice of Public Relations in Africa, to encourage the teaching of Public Relations in African tertiary institutions and to encourage the establishment of national and sub-regional Public Relations associations in Africa with a view to promoting the practice of public relations on the continent.

Speaking at the occasion, Vice-President Njie-Saidy welcomed the delegates attending the conference to The Gambia, saying it is a pride to government that the country has been chosen to host this conference. "To those who are coming to The Gambia for the first time, we welcome you to the Smiling Coast and urge you to find time off the margins of the conference to explore the beautiful attractions that the Smiling Coast has to offer to visitors," she further highlighted.

She said The Gambia is proud to be associated with the theme of the conference on Climate Change. "Climate change constitutes a real threat to the abilities of nations to achieve long term sustainable development and, for this reason, highlighting it as a subject of discussion in this conference is a very smart and laudable choice," she observed.

Speaking further, Dr Njie Saidy maintained that studies have shown that despite the increased publicity around climate change issues, there still exists a mismatch between the levels of awareness created so far, and the expected response and action required in confronting and winning over the climate change threat. "APRA has a big role to play in driving the point of the need for concerted efforts and positive action now before it is too late. By your discipline, I urge you not to relent in your engagement of Public Relations skills in keeping alive the climate change agenda before governments, businesses, the media and other stakeholders," she added.

She further said that it is high time the call for accelerated switch from rhetoric to practice was heightened, noting that until this is done millions of lives will be lost to environmental degradation, degenerated bio-diversity, low agricultural output and acute food shortages, among other fatal consequences. Although resolving or reversing the impacts of climate change may not be achieved so quickly, the urgency for a planned and sustained effort to create awareness and mobilize action for change cannot be over emphasized," she said.

She concluded by calling on APRA and all its constituent chapters across Africa, including PRAG (The Gambian chapter) to come up with effective PR communication strategies towards addressing climate change, and to also help in building the capacities of its affiliates in PR practices and standards. Speaking earlier, president of APRA, Madam Kate Bapela, noted that The Gambia is the first country to host APRA conference under its new name as well as hosting the continental Public Relations conference for the first time.

She thanked PRAG, the government and the people of The Gambia for agreeing to host the 22nd All African Public Relations Association conference. "The Gambia has lived up to its name of The Smiling Coast of Africa," she said, further wishing the president a happy birthday. For his part, Raymond AK Njie, president of PRAG, welcomed the delegates to The Gambia. "Many of the distinguished delegates travelled long distances to attend APRA 2009. We are indeed aware of the constraints you encountered in travelling to the Smiling Coast," he said.

He thanked the sponsors of the programme for their benevolence, and particularly the president of the Republic of The Gambia, Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh, for his support in ensuring that The Gambia hosts the rest of Africa in this conference.
Other speakers at the occasion included Hon. Momodou Kotu Cham, secretary of state for Forestry and the Environment as well as other eminent APRA personalities from across Africa. The opening ceremony was chaired by Alex da Costa, secretary-general, PRAG.

The event was graced by a cross-section of people from Gambian institutions as well as their counterparts from around the continent. The conference will end on Friday 28th May, 2009.