Our aims are to...
- To give something back to the people of The Gambia, helping future generations
- To support local communities to help themselves through education
- To raise enough funds to help as many school projects as possible
- To support charitable projects in The Gambia, wherever possible, assisting both UK and Gambian based charities in addition to our own ongoing charity projects.
Why help is needed?
Although The Gambia is one of the most politically stable countries in Africa it is also one of the poorest with little in the way of natural resources, industry or commerce. Despite the presence of the Gambia River, which runs through the middle of the country, only one-sixth of the land is arable and poor soil quality has led to the predominance of only one crop, peanuts.
To put things into perspective, the Gross National Income (GNI) in The Gambia is only £271.30 per person compared to a GNI of £28,887.09 in the UK. (World Bank, 2009)
The tourism industry does form a large part of the countries economy, however with mainly the coastal areas near to Banjul airport being promoted, this has little impact on the majority of the population.
Currently the Gambian government supports schools for children over the age of seven years by paying teachers salaries and by supplying some basic schooling equipment, such text books etc. Funds however are limited and it is up to the local community to build and maintain the school buildings, which is not an easy task when most people are struggling to feed their families and to keep a roof over their heads. Schools are built on a very tight budget and have to withstand varying seasonal weather conditions.
Comments & Feedback
Some feedback and comments from people we have worked with or helped over the years...
"We have been doing this (supporting schools) for the past 20 years by giving out funds to help schools develop. We believe that without education, there will be no better future"
Lamin Manneh
Resort Office Colleague, The Gambia Experience 2008
"The Gambia Experience is one that is out not only to make money but also contribute meaningfully towards nation building."
Dr. Pap Sey
Representative from the State Department for Education - 2008
"We were fortunate to have the opportunity to make a film about the work of the School's Development Fund. During the shoot in The Gambia we were taken to the schools they help through their various different projects and we were so impressed by the difference people can make by supporting the Fund."
Lou Hamilton
