Correspondent: Mamsambo Joof

Mamsambo was born and brought up in typically poor and remote community. He grew up in poverty and knew how painful it is to be poor. All during his school years he always thought of what he could do to contribute to the lifting of poverty in his own community as well as other communities. This was the driving force that led him to enroll in the only Rural Development Institute in the Gambia after completing his High School education.

Since then he has spent his life working as a development worker first with an international NGO ( Save the Children- USA) and then ADWAC. Following the close of Save The Children programmes in the North Bank Division where it was a major development partner supporting poverty alleviation efforts he and his colleagues decided to set up ADWAC to continue the good work started by Save the Children. The closure of this international NGO would have left a huge gap in the fight against poverty in North Bank Division and this was what led to the establishment of ADWAC as national NGO.

He had served at different levels in the Agency from an extension worker in the field to Sector Coordinator, Management Team Leader and finally as the Executive Director of the Agency.

He is a member of several national and local committees and Boards. He is a member of the West Africa Rural Development Centre and a Principle facilitator and curriculum development adviser of this Centre. He also helped set up three local NGOs involved in poverty alleviation works in different parts of the country and he is chairman of the Boards of three local NGOs .

He has a Diploma in Integrated Rural Development with 18 years of work experience in social development