#National News

German Embassy, GAMWORKS hand over Covid-19 equipment to Burfut community

Jul 13, 2020, 12:25 PM | Article By: Njie Baldeh

As part of its efforts prevent the spread of Covid-19 pandemic in The Gambia, Embassy of Germany, through KfW Development Bank and its implementing partner GAMWORKS, last Friday handed over sets of Covid-19 equipment to the community of Brufut.

The handing over ceremony, which was held at the Brufut fish landing site was attended by representatives from the German Embassy, senior government officials and the community elders of Brufut. The donated materials include hand sanitisers, face masks and wash hand basins.

The government of the Federal Republic of German through German Development Bank has recently committed a grant to ECOWAS for a regional stabilisation and development fund for financial cooperation in ECOWAS member states and intends to apply part of the proceeds to cover eligible payments under the project for works contracts.

Speaking at the handing over ceremony, Jarine Holscher, political attaché who represented the Charge de Affairs of the German Embassy in The Gambia, said the German government has taken strong interest in The Gambia and to support the fights against Covid-19 crisis pandemic.

She said the pandemic has showed the world the need to think of integrated health safety measures in projects like the Brufut landing site, saying the newly installed hand washbasins and other health safety equipment will make the landing site and others safe workplaces during this challenging time and beyond.

Madam Holscher said they will continue to play a crucial role in keeping the Brufut landing site and other sites hygienic for the purchase and processing of fish as fisheries in The Gambia is an important area.

She said the regional stabilisation and development fund in fragile regions within ECOWAS member states is been initiated by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development to provide ECOWAS with a stabilisation mechanism tool to react in a timely manner to crisis in its member states.

In the coming days, GAMWORKS will further handover such equipment to its pre-selected beneficiaries in LRR and URR. Gasworks is contracted by the German Development Bank (KfW) to serve as the programme executive agency of the Gambia Pilot Programme - a 10 million euro grant investment of the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Momodou Njie, principal fisheries officer at the Ministry of Fisheries said the equipment will help in the prevention of Covid-19 pandemic.