Statement By His Excellency, Mr. Adama Barrow, President of the Republic of The Gambia

Statement By His Excellency, Mr. Adama Barrow, President of the Republic of The Gambia

Statement By His Excellency, Mr. Adama Barrow, President of the Republic of The Gambia

Event: National Launch of the

Recovery-Focused National Development Plan

(RF-NDP) 2023-2027

Venue: Grand Tent, State House

Date:  9th February 2024

Your Excellency, the Vice President,

Honourable Cabinet Ministers,

Secretary General and Head of the Civil Service,

Members of the Diplomatic and Consular Corps,

Permanent Secretaries,

Service Chiefs,

Managing Directors and other Senior Government Officials,

Regional Governors,

Venerable Religious Leaders,

Paramount Chief, Seyfolu and Alkalolu,

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is an honour to welcome you to this momentous occasion, marking the national launch of the Recovery Focused National Development Plan (RF-NDP) 2023-2027, branded as “YIRIWAA.” This Plan succeeds the last Development Plan, 2018-2021, and is the second National Plan during my Presidency.

YIRIWAA marks a transformative journey towards sustainable and resilient development. Its successful implementation will not only fulfil our medium-term development aspirations, but also contribute significantly towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Agenda 2063.

While implementing the previous Plan, my government employed numerous measures to stabilise the economy, restore public confidence, and strengthen democratic institutions. Despite this, we recognise the urgency to do more, especially in terms of resilience building, thus the formulation of the Recovery-Focused National Development Plan to foster sustainable and resilient development.

The goal of the YIRWAA Plan is to consolidate gains in democratic governance, accelerate green economic and social transformation, and build resilience to shocks and crises. Implementing it will be organised around seven pillars. Each pillar represents a critical facet of our national development, with green recovery integrated into every aspect of the framework.  

Through these pillars, my government aims to lay the foundations for resilient communities, while addressing the most pressing economic and social challenges that confront us.

With its robust accountability framework, the Plan is designed to respond to the Government’s commitment to focusing on tangible results, implementing strong monitoring and evaluation processes, and strengthening engagement with the Gambian citizens in the country and the Diaspora.

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Recognising the persistent global and regional economic challenges, we are mindful of their adverse impact on our country.

Economic contractions, inflation, and tightening monetary policies in advanced economies present challenges that demand fortifying our institutions and resilience against all uncertainties.

The YIRIWAA Plan is accompanied by a financing strategy that presents an optimistic funding scenario of US$3.5 billion and a conservative scenario of US$2.8 billion.

The optimistic scenario assumes that resources will be available to implement all the priority areas in the Plan. On the contrary, the other scenario assumes that resources would be available to implement only the top priorities in the Plan. To address the funding requirements, my government will explore a three-pronged financing strategy: domestic resource mobilisation, innovative financing, and concessionary financing. All of them are geared towards promoting green investments and sustainable development.

The Government will enhance domestic resource mobilisation to harness the strength of our internal financial capacity and ensure that our developmental journey is anchored on self-reliance.

With the required collaboration and support, I am optimistic that my government will successfully raise the needed resources to effectively implement all the priorities in the Plan. In particular, as we advocate an all-hands-on-deck approach throughout the implementation phase, and without leaving any stone unturned in our search for resources to fund the process, we are designing an Integrated National Financing Framework (INFF) under the leadership of the Ministry of Finance.

Our objective is to optimise management of development financing and, in the short to medium term, meet the financing gap of the RF-NDP.

This is calculated to accelerate achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), both of which are closely aligned.

Other expected benefits include a more holistic development financing strategy. This is based on an integrated view of the entire development financing landscape to promote more strategic decision-making processes on greater mobilisation and use of different financing resources.

 We will use the INFF to explore innovative sources of finance, such as new instruments for climate finance. The strategy is to allow us to leverage public and private financing to build a wider constituency for reform.

The governance and coordination framework for implementing and financing the YIRAWAA RF-NDP, through the INFF, will have a unified structure, reaching Cabinet level for overall guidance and supervision.

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, I acknowledge the tireless efforts of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs and all stakeholders for the collective and inclusive approach used to formulate this comprehensive Plan. I also extend my heartfelt gratitude to all the friends of The Gambia who continue to steadfastly stand by us, especially during these challenging times.

I immensely thank our bilateral and multilateral partners, whose unwavering support has been instrumental in shaping our nation’s resilience and progress.

As we transition from the formulation process to the implementation phase of this Plan, my government will continue to strengthen collaboration and partnership with all stakeholders.

Recognising the importance of resilience, I call upon all Gambians to embrace the Plan as theirs. Together, let us translate our shared vision into action to realise all the YIRIWAA goals and targets.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I now declare the Recovery-Focused National Development Plan (RF-NDP) 2023- 2027, YIRIWAA, officially launched.

I thank you for your attention.

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