By Yunus S Saliu
The National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC) in collaboration with Natcom UNESCO The Gambia with support from the Migration and Sustainable Development in The Gambia Project (MSDG) Thursday launched a network of Women in the Arts at the event which took place at the National Museum, Banjul.
The objective of forming the Women in The Arts network is to create and promote creative experience for women artists via partnerships with the mission of providing leadership advocacy, capacity, building, and connections among Gambian women.
Launching the network, Hassoum Ceesay, Director General of NCAC commended the Migration and Sustainable Development in The Gambia (MSDG) for supporting the establishment and launching of the Women In the Arts network in The Gambia.
He disclosed that there are many funding opportunities for women in the arts, thus, “most of the organizations want to deal with association taken into consideration easy accountability of funds, also the impacts will be wider.”
He encouraged the committee to sit together and with support from the Natcom UNESCO the Gambia to develop a good proposal for viable activities.
DG Hassoum further encouraged them to kick start their activities in earnest to allow them to be considered by donors for funding.
He, therefore, thanked the Natcom UNESCO and MSDG Project for their support.
Speaking at the launch, Lamin Jarjou, Senior Program Officer of UNESCO NATCOM in detail discussed the meaning of the participation programme and its importance to the network.
He noted that the participation program functions as a vital complement to UNESCO’s regular activities by analyzing, evaluating, and facilitating the implementation of the national, sub-regional, inter-regional, and regional projects submitted by the Member States and NGOs directly related to the activities of the organization.
This he said, “serves as a means of employed by UNESCO to strengthen the partnership between the organization and its Member States as well as between the organization and Non-Governmental Organizations in official partnership with UNESCO.”
Therefore, he said, the participation programme enhances the inclusive and generous spirit of UNESCO’s noble mission.
Mr Jarjou, among other issues, expounded on submitting a request, regional projects, International fund for cultural Diversity (IFCD); among others.
Sanna Jawara, head of the copyright office NCAC elaborated on the importance of copyright to the network saying there could be no future without creativity and no creativity without incentive and protection.
He disclosed that copyright protection gives authors and creators the exclusive right to either restrict or authorize the use of their creations for a specific time while noting that copyright and related rights cover rights of performers, writers, fashion, theatre, broadcasting organizations, and advertising industry, photographers among others.
Further to that, he said the 2004 copyright act and the 2018 copyright regulations with administration and coordination of copyright and related rights affairs in The Gambia placed under National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC) with the Ministry of Tourism and culture having the portfolio to that effect.
He pointed out that as per NCAC data 2022, “we have 11 registered and recognized Copyright Industries (creative and artistic associations) which are Music Union of The Gambia (MUSIGAM); film Producers of the Gambia (FPAG); Writers Association of The Gambia; Gambia Producers and Promoters (GAMPP); Handicraft Association of the Gambia, Fashion Association of The Gambia; Gambia Association of Theatre (GAMUT); Gambia Wrestling Association; Photographers Association of the Gambia; Collecting Society of The Gambia while he strongly advised the Women in the Arts network to register and be part of them.
