By Makutu Manneh
National Assembly Members on Thursday 18th June 2020 referred the Gambia Women Enterprise Fund Bill 2020 and Persons with Disabilities Bill 2020 to the Assembly Business Committee to discus and allocate the bills to their relevant Committees.
NAMs have discussed the general merits and principles of the Bills and agreed to the importance of the two bills and even assured the Minister of their support on the implementation of the bills.
Minister Fatou Kinteh said the Women Enterprise Fund Bill is to lead the productivity potential of women entrepreneurs by providing the women access to finance through the establishment of the prospered initiative and as enshrined by the National Development Plan objectives.
“The aim of the fund is for the State to further empower existing women entrepreneurs as well as create and empower new ones so that increase economic opportunity and stronger social capacity to increase the community prosperity over the long term,” she told the Assembly.
She said the government growth economic objective is to achieve high wellbeing for the Gambia through productive, sustainable and inclusive economic growth.
The Minister also mentioned that there is need to have a legal framework to set up the fund and define its operations and modalities, saying this will give assurance to their various partners that the fund has a legal mandate from the government of the Gambia.
She said the Gambia Government has committed to contribute 6 Million Gambian Dalasis and that the European union has also pledged to contribute 3 million Euros for the period of two years pending the enactment of the women enterprise fund bill.
She said the bill for persons with disabilities has provisions for healthcare, social support, accessibility, rehabilitation, education, communication, employment, work protection and promotion of basic rights of persons with disabilities.
She went on to say that there is need for exclusive legislation to ensure that the rights of persons with disabilities are respected.
The Minister said there is need to support persons with disabilities and create conditions for their inclusion in society.
