By Awa B.Bah
Guaranty Trust Bank, Gambia Limited, one of the leading Banks in the country, gave over D400,000 to the SOS Children’s Village and the Bundung Maternal and Child Health facility (BMCH), as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility intervention.
The presentation of the Cheque was done on Thursday 3rd May 2018, at a local hotel in the Senegambia area.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony, the Managing Director of the Bank, Adesina Adebesin, expressed appreciation to the Management of the beneficiary organizations, for the opportunity to partner with them in serving humanity; that their belief is every child should live in a proper home, have access to decent education and enjoy health care services; that this prompted them to complement the efforts of organization’s like SOS The Gambia and Bundung Maternal and Child Health Hospital, to provide children with food, shelter and maternal health care delivery; that the token of appreciation would go a long way in providing hope for so many disadvantaged children supported by these two organisations.
Mariatou Sallah, the MD of SOS on behalf of the board and management, applauded GT Bank for their generous gesture in supporting their organization and children; that the Bank has been sponsoring the SOS for the past seven years. Sallah said the financial support provided by the Bank, has covered the children’s feeding, clothing, tuition fees, medical support as well as support for the mothers who care for them. She thanked the Bank for their tireless effort in providing better and loving homes for needy and vulnerable children in the country.
Commenting on the work of the Village, Sallah said the SOS is in existence for thirty-six years now and takes care of children without parental care and those that are at risk of losing it; that they are taking care of two hundred and fifty two children who have lost complete parental care. He added that the other programmes of the Village includes providing direct care and protection for vulnerable children, food and nutrition and shelter.
Therese Drammeh, Vice Chairperson at BMCH said the gesture will go a long way in helping the health facility to do more for mothers and children, in providing adequate health care; that the health sector has lots of challenges which Government cannot address alone; that such gestures from Corporate Institutions like GT Bank, needs commendation.
The GTBank has adopted a house at SOS Bakoteh Village for a four-year period which started in 2015. The House which is named GTBank House, was renovated by the Bank in 2015 for D600, 000. The money given today is meant for the upkeep of the house and the children as indicated by the SOS country Director Mrs Mariatou Sallah, in her speech. The house adoption was the second time for the Bank at SOS, following an earlier one.
At the Bundung Maternal and Child Health Facility, the Bank has adopted the paediatric Ward for four years now. The Ward is furnished and provided with fridges, mattresses, furniture, television and satellite television, branded bed sheets, and a host of playing materials for children. The Bank gives D200,000 annually to the health facility, for the upkeep of the ward.
