The Gambia government and European Union officials have held a maiden political summit to discuss development partnership on democracy and human rights. 

The dialogue provided an opportunity to review recent developments in the EU and The Gambia, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on public health and the support provided by the EU response amounting to more than €35 million for the country.

“The EU and The Gambia discussed developments in the area of transition to a full democratic country supported by the three key reforms envisaged: Constitutional, Transitional Justice / Rule of Law and Security Sector. 

“They also discussed Human Rights and the policies related to addressing gender equality and gender-based violence, as well as The Gambia’s priorities as member of the UN Human Rights Council.

“The EU and The Gambia highlighted their commitment to further strengthen their political partnership and continue joint efforts towards the full implementation of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and promotion of the rules based international order and effective multilateralism with the UN at its core. 

“The Gambia and the EU agreed on the need to improve how progress is tracked on the implementation of joint projects in the interest of building and maintaining trust amongst the parties,” the government said. 

Reporting by Adama Makasuba