Gambia, Saudi to sign grant of OIC
Banjul, Gambia (PANA) - Gambian President Adama Barrow will Thursday preside over the signing ceremony of a grant from the Republic of Saudi Arabia towards preparations for the 2022 Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit to be hosted in Banjul Thursday, official sources told PANA here.
The 15th session of the summit of heads of state and government of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) held in Makkah recently declared that the 2022 summit of the organization would be held in the The Gambia.
A statement received by PANA Wednesday stated that the money would be used to finance major infrastructural projects in The Gambia.
It said a delegation from Saudi Arabia currently in Banjul was hosted by the OIC Gambia Secretariat and the Ministry of Finance.
In its final communique at the Makkah Summit, Muslim leaders said “the conference decided to convene its 2022 Session in the Republic of The Gambia at a date to be determined in coordination with the OIC General Secretariat.
It further called upon the OIC member-states and relevant organs “to cooperate with the General Secretariat and support the host country and make efforts for the success of the Islamic Summit Conference in Banjul”.
The government of The Gambia last month announced it was deferring the hosting of the 2019 Summit to allow itself more time to successfully host the world’s biggest gathering of leaders.
The decision paved the way for Saudi Arabia – the host country of the OIC headquarters - to welcome the Muslim leaders in Makkah, and give The Gambia enough room to implement related projects.
-0- PANA MSS/RA 19June2019
