By Sainey Darboe:
Foreign minister laments lack of funds to support Gambians abroad
The Gambia government has not provided sufficient funds to enable Gambian missions abroad to support affected citizens, Foreign minister Momodou Tangara has lamented.
During a grilling session with members of National Assembly, the minister conceded:
โEven though our mission lacks the necessary funds to provide support to the affected Gambians, our Mission in Washington[SIC] is currently providing both moral and advisory support as requiredโ.
He added that efforts have been launched to appeal to the US government to exercise a measure of leniency for Gambians in custody due to legal troubles:
โMadam Speaker as a result of the intensity and rapidity of the spread of COVID 19, my Ministry is currently engaging our Mission in Washington to appeal to the US authorities based on humanitarian grounds for Gambian Nationals who are under the custody of the Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) of the United States of America to be temporarily released until such time the threat of COVID-19 has been substantially reduced.
Our Mission in Washington has also designated Honorary Consul in States that have significant amount of Gambians in the U.S to serve as liaison between the communities and the Embassy.
However, we wish to regrettably inform you that two adult female Gambians succumbed to the Covid-19 in USA.In North Carolina few Gambians caught the virus but certainly with mild symptoms and have fully recovered. In New York, the number of affected Gambians is not yet established but the confirmed victims either fully recovered or are recovering well.
Our communities in Canada and Brazil have also been contacted and we are informed that no Gambian so far has been infected or killed by the virusโ.
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