The National Assembly Members were informed by Hon. Fatou Kinteh, Minister of Gender, Children, and Social Welfare, that a total of D46,105,751.48 has been recovered under the Women Enterprise Fund, which accounts for 69.5 percent of the disbursed funds.
In response to a query posed by Hon. Modou Lamin Bah, the National Assembly Member for Banjul North, she disclosed this during the question and answer session at the National Assembly.
On behalf of Hon. Bah, Hon. Abdoulie Njai, who represents Banjul Central, requested an update on the disbursement and recovery status of the Women Enterprise Fund since its inception.
“A total of D66,320,000.00 has been disbursed to women groups across the country and in all regions since its inception. Additionally, a total of D46,105,751.48 has been recovered, which accounts for 69.5 percent of the total amount that has been disbursed,” she informed the Parliament.
She underscored the fund’s critical role in empowering women in The Gambia, with a particular emphasis on those in the entrepreneurship sector.
Hon. Njai inquired as to why the remaining funds had not yet been recovered in his supplementary queries.
Minister Kinteh clarified that certain organizations reported that their members had submitted payments; however, their executives neglected to deposit the funds into the bank account.
Despite the fact that our field staff visited the members to provide coaching and mentoring, there was a misunderstanding of the payment mechanism for a few of them. In fact, as a consequence, we have determined that we will employ additional personnel to oversee the fund’s loan recovery in the upcoming year.
“The PMO and Finance Ministry have granted confirmation that they will employ additional personnel to assist in the recovery of the funds from loans beginning next year.”
Hon. Njai also requested that the Minister provide an explanation of the strategic approaches that the Ministry lacks in order to recover loans.
The Minister stated that their staff is continuing to follow up to guarantee that the loans are repaid into the account.
“Indeed, they executed a contract with us upon depositing the sum into the account, and the payment method is explicitly specified in the contract,” he stated.
The Minister was requested by Hon. Alhagie Babou Ceesay, who is representing Sabach Sanjal, to provide the list of women’s organizations that received assistance from the Women Enterprise Fund during the period of 2021-2023. The Minister responded that she is prepared to furnish this information at a later time.
The Minister was advised by Hon. Fatou Cham, who is the representative of Sannementerg, to reevaluate the employment of additional staff for recovery purposes, as it could potentially impact the unrecovered funds.
Minister Kinteh guaranteed that the funds would not be impacted by the addition of additional staff, as the salaries of the new employees would not be sourced from the fund.
Additionally, the Minister was requested by Nominated Member Fatoumatta K. Jawara to furnish a list of organizations that have failed to make payments. The Minister stated that her ministry would furnish the requisite information, which would encompass the outstanding balances.