UNDP Launches Three Million Dollars Security Sector Reform Project

Group Photo © Askanwi

By Edward Francis Dalliah and Haddy Ceesay

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) launched a 36-month Security Sector Reform Project worth $3,000,000 approximately (D210,000,000) for The Gambia on Wednesday 2nd October 2024 at Bakadaji Hotel, Kololi.

The project is geared towards sustaining the Gambia’s peaceful transition by supporting the implementation of the Security Sector Reform Strategy (SSRS) and is aligned with the government’s Recovery-Focused National Development Plan 2023-2027 (NDP).

After the government of President Barrow came to power in 2017, a SSR assessment was carried out to ascertain the gaps and shortcomings of the security sector inherited from the repressive regime of former President Yahya Jammeh. According to the assessment report, it was discovered that the legal frameworks that established and spelt out the mandate and functions of the respective security services are obsolete and inadequate.

Moreover, “the security institutions were found to be operating beyond their legal mandates, leading to operational excesses and high handedness. This coupled with their increased politicization resulted in the loss of public trust and confidence”. With this report, recommendations were given to the government highlighting the need to develop a National Security Policy and its associated Strategies.

Speaking at the launching, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Public Service Mr Pateh Jah acknowledged the project while pointing out that the government places great emphasis on security and good governance. He highlighted that in 2017, the government under the leadership of President Barrow initiated a Security Sector Reform and came up with a “National Security Strategy (NSS) and a Security Sector Reform Strategy (SSRS)”.

UNDP Representative © Askanwi

A publication made on the official website of the UNDP in December 2020, reveals that the NSS was “developed to support the implementation of the National Security Policy” which is another security sector reform document, while the SSRS “aims to describe The Gambia’s plan to implement the findings and recommendations of the SSR Assessment Report – to transform the security sector as envisioned in the National Development Plan (NDP)”.

The UNDP Resident Representative Ms Mandisa Mashologu, giving her speech at the launch pointed out that the project that has been launched is aligned with the government’s Recovery Focused National Development Plan 2023-2027, adding that “a key component of this project is the promotion of gender-responsive reforms within the security sector, ensuring that the rule of law and human rights are upheld”.

She further noted that “women’s participation in the security sector is limited, often due to entrenched social and cultural norms, this project aims to address these barriers head-on, ensuring that women are not only included but empowered to participate fully in decision-making and leadership roles within the security sector”.

The National Development Plan (NDP) was unveiled in February this year by President Adama Barrow aimed at addressing the country’s recovery needs in the short and medium term. It highlights the government’s commitment to advancing the security reform agenda “while at the same time recognising the vital role security institutions play in safeguarding sovereignty, territorial integrity, and personal safety of citizens”.

The document states government “seeks to address challenges relating to women’s participation in peace and security through the following strategies and interventions: strengthen and expand regional peacebuilding committees, set up and/or strengthen gender units in all the security institutions, support a representation of females in the senior positions of the security sector, strengthen and increase the number of female mediators, and provide scholarships to female officers to attain higher level training in conflict prevention and resolution”.