The European Union has pledged to give The Gambia’s new democratically elected government 80 million dollars, after cutting funding for two years due to human right abuses by former President Yahya Jammeh, according to DW report.
1/2 Committed to engage w @BarrowOfficial1 & his gov – today we sign 75M€ package for immediate support to #TheGambia. pic.twitter.com/0gpmd5WWyx
— Neven Mimica (@MimicaEU) February 9, 2017
The aid is to be used to build the capacity of the state, increase food security and boost jobs, said the EU commissioner for international cooperation and development, Neven Mimica, in the capital, Banjul, on Thursday.
“The visit is a clear signal of the EU’s readiness to provide immediate financial and technical support to the democratic process in The Gambia,” Mimica told reporters. He added the EU was preparing a 150 million euro medium-term assistance package.
The newly elected President Adama Barrow vowed to reform security services, respect human rights and improve the foreign relations of the small West African nation.
The Gambia’s new government has said that the nation will not be withdrawing from the International Criminal Court as indicated by the former President.
Jammeh who ruled Gambia for nearly 23 years has been accused of torture, killings and other human rights abuses, leading to poor relations with the EU and the expulsion of the bloc’s charge d’affaires in 2015.
Thank you very much for welcoming us President Barrow! We look forward to working with you and your Government for the people of #TheGambia! pic.twitter.com/6TDXxRsRVb
— Neven Mimica (@MimicaEU) February 9, 2017
