The Gambian government, in partnership with UNICEF, will host the second edition of the Special Mansakunda for children on Saturday, August 8, at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference Centre. The initiative is designed to give young people a direct voice in national policymaking and strengthen government accountability.
Information Minister Dr. Ismaila Ceesay and UNICEF Representative Nafisata Binte Shafique announced the event on GRTS, highlighting its role in bringing children face-to-face with cabinet ministers to discuss issues affecting their lives, including education, healthcare, climate change, digital safety, and child protection.
“We want to give children a voice,” Dr. Ceesay said. “They need to participate in the decision-making of this country.” He described the forum as more than symbolic, calling it a cornerstone of efforts to promote transparency, accountability, and public participation. While the administration continues to prioritize expanding access to electricity, clean water, healthcare, education, and infrastructure, he stressed that investing in young people is essential to the nation’s future.
The forum will allow children to question ministers directly about government policies and services. Discussions may include how rural electrification impacts education and safety, as well as measures to protect young people from harmful online content. Dr. Ceesay added: “If I had to choose between two Mansakundas, the children’s MansaKunda would be more important to me.”
UNICEF is fully funding the event, which follows last year’s inaugural edition that brought together more than 200 children. Ms. Shafique said the forum reflects UNICEF’s broader partnership with the Gambian government in areas such as health, nutrition, education, water and sanitation, social protection, and public financing for children.
She pointed to recent achievements, including a nationwide measles and rubella vaccination campaign that reached more than 350,000 children, the return of roughly 75,000 out-of-school children to classrooms, and nutrition services provided to over 3,500 children, with recovery rates exceeding 82 percent. Importantly, she emphasized that children themselves will set the agenda for the forum, rather than having topics prescribed for them
