The Honourable Minister of Youth and Sports, Hon. Bakary Y. Badjie, on Wednesday officially opened the First National Athletes’ Forum at Paradise Suites Hotel, describing it as a landmark step towards athlete-centred sports governance in The Gambia.
Organised by the Athletes’ Commission of the Gambia National Olympic Committee (GNOC), the two-day forum brought together athlete representatives from all 29 National Sports Associations and Federations affiliated with the GNOC.
In his keynote address, the Minister praised the GNOC for convening the timely forum and stressed that athletes are key stakeholders, whose welfare, voices, and experiences must shape sports policy, planning, and governance. He highlighted the National Sports Policy as a guiding framework aimed at strengthening governance, improving infrastructure, promoting grassroots and school sports, supporting elite performance, and safeguarding athlete welfare.
Hon. Badjie reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to sports development under the leadership of H.E. President Adama Barrow, while also acknowledging ongoing challenges such as athlete welfare, education, career transition, and life after competition.
He encouraged open and constructive dialogue during the forum, calling for unity, discipline, and integrity within sporting institutions to ensure sustainable progress.
The forum will provide training, facilitate discussions on key athlete-related issues, promote networking and idea-sharing, and generate feedback to inform future policies and programmes of the GNOC, Government, and partners.
Paradise Suites Hotel
Two-Day National Athletes’ Forum