GIEPA Empowers 50 Methodist Youth Through Enterprise Development Training
Group photos of delegates
By Edward Francis Dalliah
The Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA) has launched a three-day enterprise development training program for 50 young members of the Methodist Church in The Gambia. The initiative aims to enhance their entrepreneurial skills and promote self-reliance.
The training began on Thursday, 8th May 2025, at the National Association of Cooperative Credit Union of The Gambia (NACCUG) Training Centre. It is designed to equip participants with practical knowledge across the business spectrum, from idea generation and product development to marketing strategies and financial management. Upon completion, all participants will receive certificates.
Entrepreneurial is a process of identifying, developing, and bringing a vision to life, this vision could be an innovative product, service, or solution to a problem, while taking on financial, psychological, and social risks in order to create value and potentially earn a profit which is essential for building successful and sustainable businesses.
Representing the Chief Executive Officer of GIEPA at the opening ceremony, Mrs. Kodou Gaye Senghore, Director of Corporate Affairs, emphasised the critical role of enterprise development in national growth. She noted that entrepreneurship is a key tool in job creation, income generation, and the overall improvement of livelihoods.
Also speaking at the event is the Director of Small and Medium Enterprise Development at GIEPA, Mr. Madi Kambai praised the youth for seizing the opportunity to empower themselves. He assured them of GIEPA’s continued support through technical assistance, access to financial linkages, product development guidance, and exposure to marketing opportunities.
Established by an Act of Parliament in July 2010, GIEPA is The Gambia’s national agency mandated to promote and facilitate private sector investment, boost exports, and support micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
Delivering a strong message on development, the Vice Chairman of GIEPA, Dr. Ernest Aubee, highlighted the transformative power of skills acquisition as a key driver of community and national progress. Additionally, he also commended the emerging partnership between GIEPA and the Methodist Church.
In his keynote address, Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church The Gambia, Bannie EF Manga spoke passionately on the theme of Liberation, urging the youth to free themselves from the grips of poverty and unemployment. He encouraged them to take full advantage of training programs and not to dismiss small-scale business ventures, which, according to him, are often overlooked by locals but successfully taken up by foreigners.
According to the RF-NDP 2023 Annual Progress Report, “the number of youth graduating from entrepreneurship trainings --- showed an increase from 1,110 to 1,283, surpassing the target of 1,200. This shows a positive trend in enhancing entrepreneurial skills among the youth. However, the gender aspect remains constrained, suggesting that more efforts are needed to ensure equal participation and benefits for young women in these training programmes.”
With GIEPA launching initiatives like this, the agency is complementing the government’s broader job creation efforts. Youth in The Gambia constitutes approximately 883,463 individuals, 36.5% of the total population, with 53% female and 47% male.
