The Gambia’s Vice President, Muhhamed BS Jallow has said that the Gambia has spent D6.4 billion in 2021 on Poverty Alleviation Related Programme.
Vice President Jallow said this on Wednesday 13th September 2023, while responding to the question put to him by the Member for Serrekunda Constituency, Hon. Musa Cham. or alternativly: Vice President Jallow made this statement on Wednesday, September 13th, 2023, while responding to a question posed by the Member for Serrekunda Constituency, Hon. Musa Cham
Hon. Cham also asked he Vice President to update the assembly as to how far the government has reached its poverty alleviation programme for the citizens. or alternatively: Hon. Cham also inquired about the progress of the government’s poverty alleviation program for the citizens.
Vice President Jallow replied that the government of the Gambia, as part of its microeconomic program, monitors poverty reduction spending on a quarterly and annual basis.
“I wish to report that in 2021 the total spending on Poverty Alleviation Related Programmes stood at D6.4 Billion, and rose to D10.4 billion by end of 2022 fiscal, representing a 59 percent growth”, said Vice President Jallow.
Similarly, he mentioned that ongoing efforts are being made by government to register the most vulnerable households in the country in order to develop a framework for targeted social protection interventions.
Hon. Cham further inquired “How many families have your poverty alleviation programme helped lift out of poverty?
Vice President Jallow clarified that there used to be a poverty alleviation programme, but what the Finance Minister does now is to identify items that reduce the cost of living for families, and that currently, it is only the social protection programme through which they intend to target families.
“That is why the registration is being done, and as of now about 80,000 households have been captured in the register. The idea is to capture the whole population of this country to identify vulnerable people and then target them directly. Until that time we cannot tell you how many households are supported directly”, Vice President stated.
The Member for Sami Constituency asked the Vice President whether he is aware of the challenges faced by the residents of Sami Suruwa Kunda catchment area in trying to access health center and schools in the area, and what plans are in place to address the issue.
The Vice President acknowledged that the situation in the area had been brought to the attention of the Office of the Vice President.
“We are aware that erosion has caused damages to the road and the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) has dispersed a team from the NRA to survey the site. The team has done the designed and a bill of quantity for a culvert that needs to be installed”, he said.
He added that a contractor had already been identified and work will commence soon. The NDMA Executive Director and the team had visited the area to consult with the community on the implementation strategies.
