Bristol, United Kingdom, 5 August 2024 | The Gambia High Commissioner to the UK Her Excellency Fatou Bom Bensuda has recognised the Bristol-based charitable organisation, Kombo Sillah Association, for its "dedication to promoting Gambian culture and engaging in charitable work".
The recognition underscores the association's significant contributions to the Gambian community in the UK, highlighting its efforts in organising annual cultural events, supporting community members, and preserving Gambian heritage. This acknowledgment by the High Commissioner celebrates the association's ongoing commitment to fostering unity and providing essential services to Gambians in the diaspora.
The High Commissioner was a guest at the association’s Family Fun Day at Eastville Park, in the City of Bristol over the weekend as part of the 2024 Cultural Night and Family Fun Day activities.
The Cultural Night event was attended by Mr Suntu Touray, Deputy Head of Mission in London with his beautiful wife, Jarra Touray, while Her Excellency, Madam Fatou Bom Bensuda attended the Family Fun Day, as well as deputy Mr Suntu Touray.
Speaking at the Family Fun Day at Eastville Park, Her Excellency Fatou Bom Bensuda said:
“First and foremost, I want to thank you (Kombo Sillah Association) very much for the invite. This is the second time I’m coming and I’m really very impressed, not just with the turnout, but with the warm welcome and the very, very nice drumming that welcomed me when I was coming in, so I want to thank you for that, and I want to continue to encourage you.”
Further speaking on the Family Fun Day, the High Commission continued: “This is really very pleasing to see our fellow Gambians coming together and celebrating. As the young lady just said, it is important for us to be united. United makes us strong, helps us not to be divided and not to be broken. So we really need to support each, this is even more important than anything, support each other in whatever we are doing, however we are able to lend a hand, we should try to do that. And I see that Kombo Sillah really is an association that has been doing very, very well.
But today, particularly this time, I can see that even more effort has been made in the organisation. We heard that since February, you have been planning just to make sure that we come together today and to celebrate and be with one another. So I want to thank all of you and also the friends of the Gambia because I’m sure that there are non-Gambians here as well. So I want to thank all of you.”
Concluding her remarks, Gambia’s top diplomat said: I have a little token of appreciation which I wanted to present you with, but unfortunately it’s in the car”
That token of appreciation was to recognise Kombo Sillah Association for her "dedication to promoting Gambian culture and engaging in charitable work".
The Events saw the attendances of hundreds of people over the two day affair which began with a cultural night on Friday night. Gambians, non Gambians, and members of the association up and down the country converged in Bristol for the annual cultural events. Traditional activities like the Mandinka wedding was on display and traditional dances like the ‘Bukarabu’ of the Jola tribe of the Gambia were some of the melodious tunes entertaining the crowd.
The Kombo Sillah Association organises these events to promoting social cohesion with a view to maintaining cultural ties and providing essential services to their members. It also serves as an encouragement for the association to continue its work in promoting Gambian heritage and supporting the welfare of Gambians living in the UK.
Kombo Sillah Association UK (KSA-UK) is a Bristol based registered charitable organisation involved in promoting social inclusion, education, relieving poverty, cultural education aimed at advancing and cementing social cohesion and community integration.
Kombo Sillah Association has been founded by Gambians and friends of The Gambia resident in the United Kingdom (UK) with a view to promoting education, and relieving poverty. In the UK, this involves cultural education targeted at the objective of advancing and cementing social cohesion and community integration.
“The Charity's objects (the Objects) are:-
a) The prevention or relief of poverty in the United Kingdom, in particular but not exclusively for people from The Gambia or West African Countries, by providing grants, items and services to individuals in need and/or charities, or other organisations working to prevent or relieve poverty.
b) To promote social inclusion for the public benefit by working with people in Bristol and other areas of the United Kingdom, in particular (but not exclusively) those from the Gambian community, who are socially excluded on the grounds of their ethnic origin, religion, belief or creed to relieve the needs of such people and assist them to integrate into society, in particular by:
providing advice and information on the legal framework in which they will be living in the UK, including (but not exclusively) child protection issues and the law on female genital mutilation (FGM)
providing social and recreational facilities and events involving local communities
providing a local network group that encourages and enables members of the Gambian community to participate more effectively with the wider community;
increasing, or co-coordinating, opportunities for members of the Gambian community to engage with service providers, to enable those providers to adapt services to better meet the needs of that community.
c) The relief of poverty and need for people in The Gambia by providing financial relief
d) To advance education for public benefit”
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