Canadian University Projects in International Development Database (CUPID)

Africa

The Gambia

• Community-Based Policing in The Gambia
• Capacity Building for Higher Education in The Gambia
• West African Rural Development Centre
• A Sustainable Built Environment in The Gambia

A Sustainable Built Environment in The Gambia

Project purpose:
The project will create a community development-oriented, studio-centred, undergraduate university program, focusing on design-planning and design-construction for The Gambia. It will work with the existing construction sector and several communities to gain broad acceptance of the critical need to use knowledge of nature and culture, such that students, graduates and others create more favourable conditions for the growth of a sustainable built environment.

Key results to date:
Three faculty members, who completed degree programs at the School of Architecture and Planning, Dalhousie University, returned to The Gambia to develop and launch the three-year Bachelor of Community Building and Design (BCBD) program, consisting of academic courses, internships and field placements. The first cohort of students entered the program in 2007 and two more have followed. Fourteen graduates for the first cohort were presented with their degrees in June of 2010. Partnerships have been established five communities and village development committees have been formed to cooperate with the BCBD students in physical planning, design and construction projects. This cooperation has led to a growing number of small locally-driven and collaborative applied research projects. The project also contributed to building a mutually beneficial relationship with the private sector which is the source of many mature students, and which provides teaching resources and scholarships, as well as jobs for the graduates.

West African Rural Development Centre

Project purpose:
The purpose of the project was to create the West African Rural Development Centre (WARD) located on the Gambia Technical Training Institute's campus. Although WARD is based in The Gambia, it is meant to be a regional centre dedicated to providing services to West African non-governmental and government organizations and institutions in the area of rural development to train community development workers and rural animators.

Key results to date:
Since the project's inception, 22 facilitators have been trained; the community development foundations (CDF) curriculum has been completely revised; eight more weeks of curriculum for the human resources and development and the economics and development modules have been completed and revised; tests of all 14 weeks of programming have been successfully delivered; the CDF course has been offered four times, reaching about 100 participants; the human relations and development module was tested successfully with 24 CDF graduates; the economics and development module was tested successfully with 26 CDF graduates; two Gambian facilitators were trained in advanced facilitation skills in Canada; a test of the human relations and development course was held in northern Ghana.

Community-Based Policing in The Gambia

Project purpose:
The project aims to assist in the development of an autonomous and sustained community-based policing (CBP) model that can be used country-wide. In addition, it aims to support the development of a new and sustained certificate program in CBP and restorative justice.

Key results to date:
Seven certificate modules, accredited by Gambia College, have been developed: Social Sciences, Gender I and II, Leadership, Human rights, Community development and Basic policing skills. Partners developed and delivered five basic training lessons: introduction to community-based policing; use of non-lethal force; introduction to restorative justice; crime scene investigation and evidence preservation; and introduction to human management and leadership. Nine Gambians have been certified as restorative justice facilitators and four officers and faculty members have been certified in mediation techniques. About 1,000 community members have attended sensitization sessions. Police-youth forums were held at high schools with more than 5,800 students attending. Sixty-eight officers attended a workshop on human resource development and 50 education students received an overview on community-based policing and bullying behaviour. Community outreach activities such as school forums, community police open houses and drama troupe presentations are being conducted in three pilot communities.

Capacity Building for Higher Education in The Gambia

Project purpose:
The purpose of the project was to strengthen and support The Gambia's capacity to develop a higher education system that would contribute to economic development, improve the quality of life of its citizens and strengthen institutions of civil society. Specifically, it sought to build capacity in the areas of governance, policy development, administration and management.

Key results to date:
The project contributed to the establishment of the first university in The Gambia. In addition, faculty and staff of the institution acquired tools for policy development, program design and implementation and can now contribute to planning processes with increased knowledge of administration, financial management, academic quality assurance and international linkages. A foundation has been laid for an effective governance structure and strategic planning processes. Students and graduates have emerged as stakeholders, not only in the products of higher education, but also in its governance; needs have been identified and a foundation laid for a library (a central element in university capacity-building) and an institutional outreach program has been designed and implemented, giving an active role to university students and directly benefiting over 750 young people.