Your Excellency, the Vice President,. Former Vice Presidents in attendance,. Honourable Speaker of the National Assembly,. My Lord, the Chief Justice,. Honourable Members of Cabinet and the National Assembly,.
Lord Mayors of Banjul and Kanifing Municipality,. Members of the Diplomatic and Consular Corps,. Representatives of International Organisations and Partners,. Political Party Leaders,. Government Officials and Service Chiefs,. Venerable Religious Leaders,. Civil Society Organisations,. Distinguished Personalities,. Members of the Media,. Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls,. Today marks fifty-seven 57 years since The Gambia attained independence from British rule in As we celebrate our Independence anniversary, we can also rejoice at the realisation that there is no longer any African nation under colonial rule.
In this era, the dilemma of African countries largely remains the attainment of economic independence in an inter-dependent world. As a result, linking it with political independence, democracy and national unity, economic independence is the key focus of my address today. Although it is my view that absolute economic independence is impractical, it is certain that we can reduce our heavy dependence on the outside world.
The question is: How can we do this meaningfully? The solution depends hugely on how practical we are and how far we choose to go in raising our productivity and production capabilities and outputs, while minimising imports and maximising exports.
The imbalance between imports and exports for the country is enormous, and this needs to be offset. Generally, there is a great need to transform the population into a more productive resource. To free ourselves from economic dependence, among other strategies, we must invest more freely in the productive sectors, produce as much of what we consume as we need, and eat more home-made products. By the same token, we need to expand and patronise local businesses, while developing, encouraging and tapping local talent.
