Gambia braces up for fine arts festival

The Gambia is set to host the first ever Banjul Fine Arts festival, scheduled to take place from the 4th to 17th of January 2010 at the Alliance Franco Gambienne, along the Kairaba Avenue.

As part of activities geared towards the successful hosting of the sub-regional festival, the organising committee of the festival recently paid a courtesy call on Momodou Joof, director general of the National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC), in his Banjul office. Joof received the committee comprising artists and journalists, on behalf of Madam Nancy Njie, minister of Tourism and Culture and the NCAC.

Yuspalkala, a renowned artist and coordinator of the Banjul Fine Arts festival, gave a detailed overview of the festival, its aims and objectives as well as its perceived impact on The Gambian arts and culture.  Yuspalkala told DG Joof that the meeting was meant to brief officials of the ministry and the centre about the festival and to inform them of their desire to work with them. He added that the program will bring together participants from The Gambia, Senegal, Mali, and other countries in the sub-region and beyond.

"The festival aims to promote the development and preservation of the spirit of arts and culture in The Gambia, and to explore the potentials of both young and experienced artists. The programme is also meant to serve both as a meeting point for the participating artists and a breeding ground for prospective ones," he explained to the NCAC director general. As a mark of appreciation, Yuspalkala, on behalf of the organising committee, presented the symbol of the festival to Madam Nancy Njie through Momodou Joof.

Ebrima Jobarteh, manager of the Kanbeng Traditional Dance Group of Brikama, Western Region (WR), spoke at length on the role of artists in any given community. Jobarteh expressed the hope that the Banjul Fine Arts festival will be a success. "The Gambia, as a developing country needs such programmes to boost the morales of artists and arts lovers. Artists contribute significantly towards human, political and economic development of communities," he said. For his part, Momodou Joof thanked the committee for the visit. He described the idea as a step in the right direction and assured the organising committee of the support of both his Centre and the Culture ministry. 

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2010 Tourist Season Opens

The Gambia 2009-2010 tourists’ season opened Thursday at the Banjul International Airport with the arrival of the first batch of more than 200 tourists from Sweden and Denmark.

Most holiday makers coming to the Gambia come mainly from the United Kingdom and the Scandinavian countries.

Speaking to journalist shortly after the arrival of the tourists, Morten Evensen, the area manager for Thomas Cook (a tour operator) said even though the world economic crisis will impact negatively on tourism, he was convinced that this year’s tourist season will be slightly better for the Gambia than predictions made by sceptics. He said the Gambia was a cheap destination and that will attract several tourists from Scandinavia.

He revealed that his company plans to bring more than 600 tourists to the Gambia every week. He said the bookings they have for this year’s season were promising.

Lamin Saho, the marketing director at the Gambia Tourism Authority, said they were facing several challenges as a result of the global economic crisis, but he was quick to add that they are now exploring new markets like Russia and Nigeria.

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Gambia Gets New Flight Connections

Arik Air, a new airline from Nigeria, will start operating in Banjul from Wednesday, the airline’s General Manager, Sales and Marketing, Suraj Sundaram, said on Tuesday.


According to him, the airline will fly from Nigeria to Banjul, Dakar and Freetown ending years of limited air access between the four cities.


He added that the new service would operate four times a week - Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

“A state-of-the-art Boeing 737-700 aircraft, configured to carry 124 passengers with 12 business class seats and 112 economy seats will be used for the new services. It is one of the two latest Boeing 737-700 aircraft delivered to Arik Air in March 2009,” he said.


Sundaram added that the services of the airline would improve accessibility and help the country to develop stronger economic ties and trade relations in West Africa.


He said Arik Air’s arrival was expected to stimulate further travel, ease the movement of goods and personnel and provide affordable air travel to communities in the Mano River region of Guinea Conakry, Liberia and Sierra Leone.


Michael Mc Tighe, Arik Air’s Managing Director, said the airline serves19 airports across Nigeria as well as Accra, Cotonou, Niamey and Heathrow in London.


Contact details and Reservations:
Luigis Complex for the best Gambian self-catering apartments, serviced flats, beachside accommodation, bed and breakfast, restaurant and eco-tourism excursions.


Relax and enjoy your Gambia Holidays with us!
info@luigiscomplex.com
www.luigis.gm/
Tel +220 4460280