Banjul, 7 March 2018
The Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa (IHRDA) and the West Africa Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) are organizing a two-day human rights training workshop for the National Assembly of The Gambia.
The workshop runs from 7-8 March 2018 and brings together 60 Members of Parliament (MPs) and staff of the National Assembly.
Speaking at the opening of the workshop, the Speaker of The Gambia National Assembly, Honorable Mariam Jack Denton, appreciated the organizers of the training which she described as opportune, as it comes at a time when there are a lot of legal developments in the country which demand that Parliamentarians should have a better understanding of their roles in such matters.
Also speaking at the workshop were the UN Resident Coordinator for The Gambia and the Honorary Consul of The Netherlands in The Gambia, who extolled the government of The Gambia for its commitment to the promotion of human rights, and underscored the important role the National Assembly has to play in this process.
On his part, IHRDA Executive Director, Gaye Sowe, recalled that human rights featured among the modules of the induction workshop the National Assembly had organized for MPs in September 2017. He commended the Parliament for its receptiveness to issues of human rights and its willingness to respond to its role in promoting human rights.
Discussions during this workshop touch on basic concepts of human rights; engagement of the National Assembly with African and international human rights mechanisms; role of Parliament in advancing human rights; promoting gender equality; matters of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, as well as transitional justice.
This project is funded by the Dutch Embassy in Dakar, Senegal.
