The Daily Observer (Banjul)
Suwareh Kunda
2 July 2009
From Kerewan, the Observer July 22nd Bus headed straight for Suwareh Kunda in Lower Badibou.
This village is one of the many settlements in the area called Badibou which have experienced developments of the magnitude of the difference between light and darkness. And its people are more optimistic about the near feature."Within three months we will feel like Buckingham Palace," remarked Seedy Sawaneh, a native of the village, on seeing the Observer July 22nd Bus crew. Just like Kerewan, Suwareh Kunda enjoys electricity and water supply, a clearly incredible level of achievement for the inhabitants of a previously deprived area.
"You may not accept it," added an elderly Kalilu Drammeh, "but we are equal with those of you living there in the Kombos." And Kalilu's justification, "From the confines of my room, I can speak to my child all the way in Europe, thanks to the development our village has undergone under this government of President Yahya Jammeh."
The streetlights in Suwareh Kunda are more than a source of light. As it turned out, they also serve the purpose of security, as the people explained. For instance, a previously high rate of snake bites resulting from excruciating darkness have become rare occurrences thanks to the streetlights, which brighten the streets at night, to the delight and comfort of every single villager.
Saaba
Alhaji Saoba was the first person to acquire a Cash Power electricity meter in the village of Saaba, also in Badibou. He recounted the benefits he derives from the coming of electricity to his village - from lighting to preservation of food. This, he said, has changed his life and those of his family enormously.
Buramanding Bayor enjoys drinking cold water amid the high temperature in the region. And also now he can charge his mobile phone in the comfort of his own room. In Saaba, the villagers recalled once putting money together to acquire a generator, but they could not maintain it. And now the Rural Electrification Project has "freed us from the burden", according to Bayor. One very peculiar thing about this village is that the presence of the streetlights has drastically cut down the crime rate as it sends away thieves and other criminal minded people. Its people today remain one of the most grateful of President Jammeh's supporters.
Momodou Jonk is among the thriving population of youths who are wasting no time in taking advantage of the Rural Electrification Project. He runs a metal workshop in the village of Njaba Kunda, something unthinkable in that part of the country some 15 years back. Jonk has been in the trade in Njaba Kunda for the past nine years. He said that previously people of that area went to far-off places in search of the services he now provides. "But now, they have it all at their door steps," he said explaining that these range from the making of compound gates, doors, to the manufacturing and repairing of agricultural implements as well as a vast array of services.
Describing the Rural Electrification Project as a major development undertaking that every Gambian should be proud of, Jonk marveled at the fact that there are so many jobs and contracts awaiting him. He used the opportunity to call on his colleagues, the youths, to venture into such skilful jobs. In terms of education, Njaba Kunda happens to be among the villages that benefited from the spree of construction of schools in the region. Its upper basic school was established in the early days of the Revolution, in 1995 to be precise. This has today been upgraded to a senior secondary. All in all it now has an enrolment of 482 students - 210 in the Upper Basic School and 272 students in the Senior Secondary School. There are 9 classrooms, science laboratories and a computer room. There are also living quarters for teachers with ten rooms, electricity and water supply, all of which enable teachers to teach under in conducive environment. According to Sheriff K Kanjie, the principal of the school, the establishment of the upper basic school in the area has had great impacts on the lives of the people. "Now everyone has access to education at his or her doorstep," he noted.
The Free Education for Girls policy has revolutionized access to education for many people especially in rural Gambia; and there is no place where this has been as pronounced as in Njaba Kunda, as the school's bursar, Fatou Sanyang, put it. As a result of it, she said, the enrolment level of girls has increased tremendously in the area. "And the parents are grateful to the government for this wonderful initiative," she stated.
Electricity and education
There is this rewarding link between the availability of electricity and the learning process. We saw this at play in Njaba Kunda. According to Principal Kanjie, the availability of electricity has helped smoothen the commencement of computer classes. "Due to the electricity supply now, we are also set to start practical sessions on technical subjects like wood work, metal work, and others," he said.
Salikenenni
Salikenni is the biggest village in Central Badibou. However, its people have had to go through years of neglect, as the pre-July 1994 images of the village show. The situation then in Salikenni reflected the situation in the rest of the region - over three decades of inexplicable denial of developmental project. And the result was total alienation of the people.
The emergence of the AFPRC/APRC, if anything, turned out to be a blessing for the inhabitants of Salikenni. Today, its people feel emancipated from some sort of internment, and they will ever remain grateful to the man they see as a 'saviour', President Yahya Jammeh, for the development they have so far enjoyed. "The most important thing is livelihood, and that is what this government has assured us," said Sefo Momodou Chendeh Dibba of Salikenni, a formidable opinion leader in Badibou.
And he added, "Everybody knows what has transpired in this country since President Jammeh assumed office - from transportation to communication... For over four decades we have been in politics, but we have seen the differences in between." "Electricity has enhanced our feeding situation immensely," pointed out Modou Bintou Dibba, another elderly figure in Salikenni. He said that the availability of electricity has changed the way they do business in terms of preservation of perishable goods, and also the fact that the women can engage in petty businesses like ice block selling, which kind of supplement the livelihoods of their families.
With regards to education, the people of Salikenni have not been left behind either. The education of the girl child is especially enhanced now more than ever before. Initially, the thought had been as to where to take their female children without the danger of getting them pregnant, among other issues. "But now, it is a different thing," said Dibba. "They school here up to grade 9. The danger of losing the attention of your children is no more."
Making reference to the Kerewan Bridge, Dibba, like the rest of the villagers of Salikenni who spoke to the Daily Observer, expressed delight at the fact that they can now see the dead bodies of their loved ones.
In the days of the unreliable ferry, they recalled, Badibonkas were constantly in a hurry for fear of missing it, and if your loved one died - say your father, you were at the mercy of mere chance to see the dead body before burial, because if you could not catch up with the ferry, the body was bound to be laid to rest in your absence.
This is something of fundamental importance in Gambian as well as Muslim tradition, and it partly explains the importance the people attach to it, and how grateful they are to President Jammeh, as the man who has ensured their putting all these behind them. Alhaji Yoro Bah lives in a smaller village called Naolerr, in the outskirts of Salikenni. For him border security constitutes a key aspect of national development. And this, he stressed, has been a priority for the APRC government under President Yahya Jammeh, pointing to the deployment of security personnel in strategic places across the region.
The construction of boreholes, Yoro Bah pointed out, has also drastically cut down on health complaints in his village. He recalled what used to be a fundamental problem for the people of villages like Naolerr, with Farafenni as the nearest in terms of availability of health facilities having been made more remote by the deplorable condition of the road then.
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