Officials From TANGO
By Ramatoulie Jawo
The Association of Non-Governmental Organizations (TANGO) has presented its position paper on the Population Bill 2024 to the National Assembly’s Joint Committee on Health and Gender.
During the presentation, TANGO outlined its recommendations, emphasizing the importance of inclusive representation, gender and youth responsiveness, and streamlined administrative processes in the bill’s implementation.
Presenting on behalf of TANGO, Modou Lamin Mbye urged lawmakers to amend the bill to grant TANGO and the Gambia Federation of the Disabled (GFD) full membership in the commission, rather than assigning them observer status.“In the bill, it states that TANGO will serve as an observer, and the Gambia Federation of the Disabled will also serve as an observer. But we are recommending that TANGO being the umbrella body of civil society organizations, ask the Gambia Federation of the Disabled being the umbrella body for the people with disabilities in the Gambia we recommend for them to be listed as part of the commission but not observers as it stated in the bill“ he said.
TANGO also recommended that the commission be gender- and youth-responsive. It emphasized that a proportion of the representatives should be women and young people, as they make up a significant portion of the population. Saying, “the high chunk of our population begins with women and young people; it will be important to have that.”
In addition, TANGO raised concerns about the quorum required for the commission’s meetings. The bill currently states that a quorum can be met with just seven members present, but TANGO recommends that a quorum of at least 10 representatives be required to ensure meaningful decision-making on national issues related to population.
“We are saying a commission of this importance that is to meet and also discuss national issues that have to do with issues around population should not have a smaller quorum to make a decision at least there be meaningful representation when decisions are going to be taken on behalf of the country in terms of meeting and so on,” he told the committee.
Regarding the qualification requirements for the chairperson of the board, the bill specifies that candidates must hold relevant academic and professional qualifications related to population and development. TANGO proposed that this section be expanded to include qualifications in economics, political science, development studies, and other relevant fields to avoid limiting the pool of potential experts who could lead the board’s work.
“Because you don’t want to limit it too much that you might miss out on potential experts who could lead part of the work that the board or the secretariat will be doing,” he said.
Furthermore, TANGO recommended changes to the section of the bill regarding grants, gifts, and donations. The bill currently requires approval from the Vice President and Minister of Finance before such funds can be accessed. TANGO suggested that the approval process be delegated to the board to avoid delays caused by bureaucratic procedures, particularly when key officials are unavailable.
“This is because they want to avoid the bureaucracies that will be encountered when you want to get approval of the Vice president and minister of finance. At times, you will realize that they are not even within jurisdiction. So if you need something done as a secretariat for you to have to wait for the vice president or the minister of finance, in case they are not in town, to come back before you are able to proceed with your work, and we believe that will take time,” he said.