By Dawda Baldeh
The Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education (MoBSE), Louis Moses Mendy, has responded to the concerns raised by the Gambia Teachers Union regarding unpaid School Improvement Grants (SIG) and the alleged lack of textbooks for students in various grades.
In an interview with The Fatu Network, PS Mendy acknowledged the delay in SIG payments, stating that the Finance Ministry has allocated the necessary funds and that payments will be processed shortly.
Regarding concerns about the lack of textbooks for students in various grades across the country, PS Mendy told The Fatu Network that shipments of books meant for grades 1-9 are on the way to Banjul. Hopefully, they will arrive here by the end of this month as per the schedule.
“As we speak the shipment of books supply for the various grades up to grade nine is underway and we are expecting them before the end of the month (November),” he said.
He also added that for the new grade ten students affected by the book shortages, the necessary steps have been taken and printing of the textbooks commenced and their supply to school will be done soon. “Only the new grade 10s are affected and we are printing the books,” he said.
Mendy reiterated the Ministry’s commitment to addressing the needs of students and teachers to ensure proper education service delivery takes place for the country’s progress.
