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Momodou
Denmark
11826 Posts |
 Posted - 21 Apr 2008 : 18:07:29
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15 New Peace Corps Volunteers Sworn In
By Amie Sanneh & Abdoulie G. Dibba
Fifteen new Peace Corps Volunteers were, on Friday, sworn in to serve the people of The Gambia for two years, in the areas of Health and Community Development within the villages.
The swearing in ceremony was held at the American Ambassador’s resident in Fajara. Addressing the gathering, the Director of Peace Corps, Ron Tschether said that President John F. Kennedy created Peace Corps for three goals.
- To help the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women.
- To help promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the people served and
- To help promote a better understating of other people on the part of Americans.
He said the volunteers are not paid and that they will not live in air conditioned homes. Wherever their location permits, he said, they will live with Gambian families as part of those families. Mr Tschetter explained that Peace Corps have more that 100 volunteers in the country working on Education, ICT, Environment, Agriculture, Health and Community Development.
Also speaking at the ceremony was the country Director of Peace Corps, Mike McConnell, who said that the new volunteers will leave this week for their job sites to work shoulder to shoulder with Gambian families.
According to him, these people came from one of the richest countries in history and they are not here to take people’s jobs, but to serve as volunteers. They set aside their career goals to work to build a better world, he said.
Mr. McConnell quoted President Kennedy of saying that “Life in Peace Corp will not be easy. There will be no salary and allowance will be at level sufficient only to maintain health and meet basic needs”. The country Directory added that the volunteers graduated with degrees in Political Science, Neurobiology, Psychology, Biology, International Affair and many others.
The Country Director advised the newly sworn in volunteers saying “Volunteers, you represent all that is good and generous in our country. You are here to train people, to let them meet and understand Americans, and to tell people in America about the lives of the people of The Gambia. For the next two years, you are on duty every minute. Do your jobs as I know you can, don’t give up even when it’s hard and make us all proud.”
In his keynote address, the Permanent Secretary at the Department of State for Health, Mr. Sulayman Samba, said the Peace Corps’ Health and Community Development Project seeks to improve personal hygiene and environmental sanitation practices in order to reduce the incident of malaria and diarrhea diseases. PS Samba added that it also promotes sexual and reproductive heath and supports community development through micro enterprise development and organizational management training. With effect from this November, based on the experience with a few Registered Nurses, he said, the project will be bringing in various health professionals to be called volunteer Health Trainers for deployment to health training institutions. This project, he noted, is relevant to the attainment of the Millennium Development goals 1, 4, 5 and 6.
In The Gambia, Ps Sambou went on to say, morbidity and mortality rates are unacceptably high, with the majority of the health problems related to low awareness about health issues, poverty and poor environmental conditions. “Infants, children and women continue to bear the brunt of malaria, diarrhoea, acute respiratory infections, malnutrition and problem associated with pregnancy and child birth,” he reminded. The Health P.S maintained that at the level of his department, they are implementing a comprehensive essential health care package that integrates the management of childhood illnesses and promotes reproductive and child health.
Source: Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issues
Issue No. 46/208, 21 – 22 April 2008
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