The National Union of Gambia Students (NUGS) has granted the Man of the Students Year Award to President Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh, in recognition and appreciation of his tireless efforts in assisting students of The Gambia and for pushing The Gambia's academic and professional education to higher heights.

The award giving ceremony, which should have been held at the weekend, was rescheduled due to the recent state visit of President Sidi Ould Abdallahi of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania.

In the same vein, the National Training Authority and the Department of State for Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology has also been awarded by NUGS with certificates of excellence for its support towards raising the standard and quality of education in The Gambia.

In his keynote address at the occasion, marking the students congress and award giving ceremony, the SoS for Higher Education, Abdoulie Sallah, said President Jammeh has demonstrated the importance he attaches to education after creating opportunities for Gambian students to attain higher and quality education.

He added that his department is also aware of some of the constraints that tertiary institutions in the country are currently facing, but expressed confidence that with the efforts of the government, most of the hitches would be solved.

The awards came in the wake of the build up of plans and proposals to integrate all recognised tertiary institutions into the University of The Gambia.