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Welcome The Gambia YMCA BLF Project

Big Lottery Fund / Y Care International / Gambia YMCA Funded Project on Life Skills & Enterprise Development for Marginalised and disadvantaged Young People in the Gambia

Staff ON THE BLF PROJECT / POSITIONS

Taiwo Joseph Peacock
Omar Gassama
Blf Project Coordinator
Enterprise & Employment Officer
Marie Mendy
Ishmeal Thomas
Project Finance Officer
Field Officer
Greater Banjul Area
Harriet Jabang
Fatoumatta Baldeh
Assistant Field Officer
Greater Banjul Area
Field Officer
Western Region
Marion Mendy
Musa Jobarteh
Assistant Field Officer
Western Region
Field Officer
Central River Region / North Bank Region
Sainabou Jawara
Amadou Jallow
Assistant Field Officer
Central River Division / North Bank Region
Field Officer
Upper River Region
Molpha Camara
Modou Manneh
Assistant Field Officer
Upper River Region
Project Driver

BLF Project Outline

The project duration is four years. Its main objectives are; Increased viable economic and livelihood activities for 1,800 disadvantaged young people including a minimum of 40% female in all targeted communities.

An improvement in the welfare and wellbeing of 3,000 young people through greater protection of young people’s citizenship rights and in particular employment rights creating an improved environment for young people to exercise their human rights.

The project will also engage with local, regional and national policymakers to ensure that key duty bearers are not only better able to enforce and protect the rights of young people but also honor the commitments made by the government under national and international legal frameworks to provide for the needs of young people particularly in relation to youth employment.

The primary stakeholder group are the project beneficiaries themselves the disadvantaged and marginalized young people. Other stakeholders include government departments at a local, regional and national level, including the Ministries of Youth and Sports, Trade and Industry as well as government bodies such as the National Youth Council and the National Youth Service Scheme (NYSS).

The YMCA will also collaborate with a number of multilateral and non-governmental agencies across the country in the implementation of this project. These include the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the Indigenous Business Advisory Services (IBAS), Gambians for Self-Employment (GAMSEM), the Gambia Micro Finance Network (GAMFINET) and the Village Savings and Credit Associations (VISACA). All the above stakeholders will be consulted closely and at regular intervals to ensure strong coordination and good practice in project management.

Some of the agencies will also be represented on the local project steering groups and will also form part of the youth employment network, to be established under this project. Some of the above stakeholders such as the National Youth Council will also collaborate with the YMCA in some of the human rights advocacy activities, to ensure that the activities have the widest reach.

The project will be implemented in the following regions of the Gambia: Upper River Division (35% of beneficiaries), Western Division (25%), Central River Division (12.5%), North Bank Division (12.5%) and the Greater Banjul area (15%). In order to mitigate against the increase in rural urban drift and youth migration in search for potential opportunities the Gambia YMCAs will train and set – up each and every beneficiary in his or her own region during this period. Training courses will vary from 2–9 months, with most courses likely to last 3-6 months with the following components as its major activities.

  1. Micro-finance facility
  2. Post training Support
  3. Human Rights and leadership training
  4. Advocacy Activities

The project staff of the Gambia YMCAs BLF / Y’ Care International Funded project as per its sensitization activities meet with Central and Local government authorities in the persons of the Lord Mayor of the BCC and the Hon. Speaker of the National Assembly to inform and orient them on the existence of the project visits were also made to the Lord Mayors of Banjul and the KMC and the Secretary of State for Youth and Sports. All these visits are geared towards mobilizing their support and partnership and participation for the implementation of the BLF Project.

Joseph Taiwo Peacock
BLF Project Coordinator
Gambia YMCAs
Email Contact:-jpeacock@ymca.gm