Fatou Kinteh, minister for Gender, Children and Social Welfare has said that her ministry is currently revising the Gender and Women Empowerment Policy 2023-2033 as well as the National Children´s Policy. The revision would cover thematic areas on Sexual and Gender-Based Violence including Female Genital Mutilation and Child Marriage.

Minister Kinteh made these remarks last Wednesday at her office during a press conference to brief member of the media on their attendance at the 6th Periodic State Report on the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) held in Switzerland, Geneva as well as on the situation of The Gambia on the level of implementation of the CEDAW.

The Government of The Gambia through the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Welfare in collaboration with other line Ministries participated in high-level meetings via the invitation of the United Nations Committee on CEDAW.

She added that the Government fulfilled its obligation and reported to update the committee on the progress and achievements in implementing the Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination against Women in The Gambia.

She highlighted that The Gambia registered one of the highest commitments to addressing gender equality and women empowerment in 2019.

According to her, they addressed issues of discriminatory laws against women by engaging the Ministry of Justice between 2019 and 2021 to comprehensively review and harmonise all existing legislation with particular focus on laws intended to stifle freedom of expression, discriminatory laws against women and children, amongst others.

She applauded the Ministries of Justice, Interior, Basic and Secondary Education, and UN Agencies for the establishment of a National Forensic Laboratory as well as the Special Gender-Based Violence courts.

She said her ministry also collaborated with The Gambia Federation of the Disabled to establish a Disability Advisory Council and conducted numerous sensitisation programs on the Disability Act 2020.