By Seedy Jobe
The leader of the App-Sobeyaa Party, Essa Mbye Faal, said his party would invest $50 million annually in Gambian youth if elected to office, framing the proposal as a central pillar of a broader effort to reduce inequality in education and expand access to opportunity nationwide.
In an interview, Mr. Faal said the investment would be directed toward addressing longstanding disparities in the education system, which he argued have limited opportunities for young people based on background rather than merit.
“With that kind of investment, we will change their lives,” he said, describing the funding as a transformative commitment aimed at empowering young Gambians across social and economic lines.
Mr. Faal said the proposed program would support a range of educational pathways, including technical and vocational training as well as advanced academic instruction. Students seeking practical skills would be directed toward technical education, he said, while those with academic potential would be supported to attend institutions such as the University of Science, Engineering, and Technology and other higher-learning establishments.
“We will give them all those who need technical education; those who have the capacity to go beyond that, we put them in USET schools or in other institutions,” he said.
A central theme of Mr. Faal’s message was his pledge to dismantle what he described as ethnic and social barriers within the education system. He criticized practices that, in his view, allow family background, region, language, or ethnic identity to influence access to educational opportunities.
“Education should not depend on who your father is, where you come from, what your surname is, what language you speak, or what ethnic group you belong to,” Mr. Fall said, adding that such distinctions would be eliminated under an App-Sobeyaa-led government.
He concluded by emphasizing his party’s commitment to equal opportunity, saying that every Gambian youth would be afforded the chance to succeed regardless of social status or origin.
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