If everything goes as planned, some Gambian migrant returnees, drug addicts, alcoholics as well as youth in agriculture, could see the light at the end of the tunnel, as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Muhamadou Drammeh–(born in Gambia and brought up in Canada as per information on his facebook page)– intends to launch a project aimed at training and empowering Gambians deported from Europe and North Africa, and also other young people in the country to enable them become productive and self-reliant in their lives.
Information obtained by Mansa Banko Online from the PAFWA website suggest that it’s “a charity operating in The Gambia which adopts proactive steps to address the problems associated with illegal migration of young Africans to Europe and the challenges confronting youths, women and children in The Gambia and the rest of West Africa”.
They claimed to be “particularly committed to vigorously implement some of the Priority Initiatives contained in the First and Fifth of the five Priority Domains of the Action Plan of the AU/EU 2015 Valletta Summit on Migration”, which include, among others, to: Launch projects to enhance employment opportunities and revenue-generating activities in regions of origin and transit of migrants in East, North and West Africa to enhance the professional skills and employability of young people, including the AU/NEPAD skills initiative, access to digital technologies, support to micro, small- and medium-sized enterprises in the formal and informal sectors and increased access to finance. Also, launch projects in countries of origin to support the “reintegration of returnees into their communities aiming at capacity building for authorities and civil society organizations involved in the return and reintegration processes in their field of competence, in particular by integrating the returning migrants in the local community, labour market and social system”.
The said information further introduced PAFWA President Drammeh as a “Canadian of Gambian descent”, who, after completing his studies at Trios College in Ontario, Canada, had worked in different “capacities in various organisations, including a voluntary stint as Computer Teacher, later Senior Program Coordinator, and Community Social Worker (CSW) at Toronto intergenerational partnership (TIGP)”.
Meanwhile, during an interview with our reporter, the PAFWA Founder and CEO revealed that, “Africa Renaissance Project” would establish a resettlement Centre to be called ‘Stay Put Education and Youth Empowerment Centre’ in Madina Ba Tolokoto, in the West Coast Region (WCR).
The PAFWA chief pointed out that, the Centre would comprise a Vocational Institute for Skills training and a Model Farm that would serve as a farmer field school for the training of Gambian youths in agriculture, agro-processing and agribusiness; to help them become big time entrepreneurs. He promised the Farm would embark on massive crop production, horticulture, animal husbandry, aquaculture and agro-processing with an eye on exporting.
On what had motivated him to return home, to initiate such an ambitious project, CEO Drammeh reasoned, he decided to leave the “comfort zone” because he is conscious of the fact that, economic underdevelopment and chronic poverty are mainly responsible for the illegal migration of many young Gambians and other Africans to Europe via the Sahara Desert/North Africa and the Mediterranean Sea.
Lamenting that many of the West African youth who embarked on the perilous routes (with the hope of reaching Europe) got stranded in Libya where they were captured and imprisoned, enslaved and brutalized by rogue elements, Drammeh added some of the young people who survived and eventually returned home, are now “psychological wrecks”.
The one-time Community Social Worker (CSW) at Toronto intergenerational partnership (TIGP) noticed frustration, depression and a great deal of anger among those youth who succeeded in entering Europe but were eventually deported to The Gambia and the rest of West Africa.
Hear the optimistic PAFWA head: “In these circumstances, some turn to criminality or resort to unsociable alternatives like illicit drug consumption and substance abuse or heavy drinking [of alcohol] to overcome their depression. Many young people in Gambia and the rest of West Africa resort to the aforementioned alternatives because they wrongly believe that, it is not possible for them to achieve success at home, and are ignorant of the many opportunities in their countries especially with regard to renewable natural resources and how to tap into them.
“We intend to change this mindset. We will make them [youth] realize that Africa, including The Gambia, is the next frontier for development; help them identify the very many economic opportunities at home, especially in the area of agriculture, and train them on how to utilize these opportunities.The end result of the project is that youths will become high income earners, comparable to their compatriots who settled in Europe. When this is achieved, they will no longer see the need to migrate.”
CEO Drammeh, who vows to use his “wealth of experience” as an ex-social worker in Canada to bring about a positive turnaround in the lives of Gambian youth folk, divulged their plans to set up a rehabilitation clinic that would be offering both outpatient therapy and residential care for drug addicts, alcoholics and returned migrants traumatized by their experiences in Libya and other places, while attempting to migrate to Europe.
The PAFWA founder seized the opportunity of the interview to call on all stakeholders in the anti-irregular migration crusade, to support his Foundation in order to ensure the success of this noble initiative.
