By: Yunus S. Saliu
The National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC) on Monday, 19th May 2025, welcomed a delegation of 20 professors from the University of Pittsburgh, United States, who toured Senegambia to explore the region’s cultural heritage sites.
The delegation was received at the NCAC’s RDD Annex by Director General Hassoum Ceesay, supported by Mamat Sallah, Director of Cultural Heritage, and Sanna B. Jarju, Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) Focal Point. The group was introduced by Professor Assan Sarr of the University of Ohio.
The visit is part of a broader academic and cultural exchange initiative that includes attending Gambian cultural festivals, touring heritage sites, and engaging with research-oriented institutions such as the NCAC.
Director General Ceesay delivered a presentation outlining the NCAC’s mandate, which encompasses the preservation, interpretation, protection, and management of The Gambia’s oral archives and intangible cultural heritage. He emphasized the Centre’s dual role as both a custodian of culture and a hub for academic research and knowledge production.
“NCAC is not just a welcoming space for researchers in the humanities; it also actively produces knowledge through its extensive databases on folklore, oral archives, and intangible heritage,” said Ceesay.
He invited the visiting professors to collaborate with the NCAC on joint research, academic publications, exchange visits, and capacity-building initiatives, particularly in fields such as archaeology, anthropology, history, and museum studies.
In response, members of the University of Pittsburgh delegation expressed enthusiasm about potential partnerships, especially in areas aligned with their interests such as African studies, traditional dance, folklore, and indigenous therapy (healing) practices.
The visiting scholars also praised the NCAC for its work in cataloging The Gambia’s intangible cultural heritage and for fostering an environment conducive to academic exchange. Sanna B Jarju and Mamat Sallah highlighted the recent completion of a digitization project aimed at preserving and enhancing access to the nation’s oral archives.
As part of their cultural immersion, the group visited James Island, the National Museum, and other significant heritage sites before concluding their visit to The Gambia.
