Trust Bank MD Njilan Senghore presents cheque to PS Finance at a ceremony yesterday.
By Fatou Sillah
Trust Bank has donated GMD 2.5 million to support the Gambia National Team in their preparations for the upcoming AFCON 2024 in Ivory Coast. This generous donation is part of Trust Bank’s commitment to corporate social responsibility in the realm of sports.
During the presentation ceremony, Njilan Senghore, the Managing Director of Trust Bank, urged the nation to unite in support of the National Team. She emphasized the sacrifices the players are making for the Gambia and called for both financial and emotional backing from the public. Additionally, Trust Bank is sending two staff members to Ivory Coast and supporting the national television broadcaster, GRTS, to ensure widespread coverage.
“The boys are going to sacrifice everything for the Gambia. What remains is for us as a nation to rally behind them and give them the kind of support that will validate what they are doing. We need to support them financially and emotionally, and we need to be there in our numbers. In addition to this donation, we are sending two of our staff to Ivory Coast. We are also providing GRTS with support so that for the rest of us who cannot go, we can watch on national television.” she said.
Highlighting Trust Bank’s pride in being a Gambian institution, Senghore underscored the bank’s active involvement in contributing to critical sectors in the country. She encouraged everyone to join the bank and the government in collective efforts to support the National Team.
“Trust Bank is a very proudly Gambian bank, and that is why anything that affects the Gambia is our business. This last Quarter alone, you have seen us out and about donating to critical sectors in this country, that is who we are. We don’t want proudly Gambia to be just a word; we want it to be how we are actually perceived because of the things that we do. So we are calling on everybody to join us and to join the government in these efforts,” She said.
Senghore also drew inspiration from Senegal’s recent victory in the last AFCON, emphasizing that if Senegal, with its comparatively smaller size and resources compared to the favourites, could achieve success, the Gambia could do the same.
“The last AFCON game, we saw Senegal winning against the most favourite nation; they have won it more than any other nation; they have won it seven times, and we saw Senegal beating them. We cannot compare Egypt and Senegal in any indicator, not in terms of size, not in terms of GDP, not in terms of population, so Senegal is our closest neighbour and is not a very big nation compared to other African countries, so if they can do it, why can’t we do it?” She said.
The Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Musa Mbye, expressed gratitude to Trust Bank for their significant contribution, encouraging other corporate entities to follow suit.
“Trust Bank has already, “Yokka Cherreh Dolly Nyeh,” and we want to thank Trust Bank so much for this wonderful gesture. This Is a challenge to all the corporate bodies in this country to take what we own and think it’s really important,” he said.
Juldeh Ceesay, the Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs, thanked Trust Bank for their gesture and called on other corporate bodies to emulate their example. She acknowledged the crucial role of collaboration between the government and corporate partners in the success of events like AFCON.
“We cannot succeed without being complimentary of the government; the government has done everything; last AFCON they have done it and this AFCON they will do it, but they need collaborators, so we are proud enough to sit with corporate bodies like the Trust Bank, with whom we have been partnering throughout the AFCON 2021 and this 2024, and I want to extend my gratitude and sincere appreciation,” she said.
Musa Sise, the Chairperson of the Media and Publicity Committee of the National Team Coordinating Committee of AFCON, conveyed his gratitude to Trust Bank for their support.