Banjul — The pace of development in The Gambia is moving steadily in the right direction under the dynamic and visionary leadership of President Jammeh.

The president's efforts are meant to break the shackles and other obstacles that led to the undesirable gross under development of low income countries; otherwise called the third world countries. His efforts therefore need to be complemented by all Gambians, regardless of political affiliation, towards getting the country where it ought to be. No country can thrive with people who shun, and abandon the cradle in which they were born. No country can develop when her citizens turn a blind eye on salient issues and development challenges that face them.

The recent courtesy calls on the Gambian leader by top officials of the World Bank and the African Development Bank and the subsequent revelations that emanated from their closed door meetings are indeed good news for all Gambians. The world economic icons rated Gambia?s economic growth as moving in the right direction in many areas with specific reference to the widely acclaimed ?education for all? initiative, spearheaded by the president himself and implemented by the Ministry of Education.

The World Bank regional director did not hide his total satisfaction with the pace of development taking place in the country. This is however, not the first time that international economic icons are thumbing up Gambia?s economy. For instance in March 2008, a West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) mission to The Gambia assessed the country's economic performance under the quantitative and qualitative convergence criteria as outlined in the Banjul Declaration of 2005.

The Mission commended the Gambian authorities for sustaining the momentum of implementing the WAMZ programmes and developing a strategic plan consisting of a combination of policy measures aimed at delivering the economic objectives of high growth, low inflation, and a viable external sector. The programme improved economic management as shown in the prudent management of resources, improved the external reserves position, and engendered macroeconomic stability. Public expenditure and debt management have improved, while reinforced tax administration has led to improved revenue collection.

The mission was satisfied with the performance of the economy and in particular, the ability of the authorities to sustain its performance on the convergence scale leading to the meeting of all the four convergence criteria- inflation); fiscal deficit; central banking financing of fiscal deficit; and gross external reserves. An IMF mission that also visited the country last year to assess our Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) arrangement, concluded that the authorities? policy strategy has been successful in maintaining macroeconomic stability and sustaining high growth. Fiscal performance has been good, and monetary policy has been geared towards maintaining low inflation.

Real GDP growth has been strong at a performance that compares favourably with the record of other countries in the region. This success in economic growth can simply be attributed to the available infrastructure that set the pace for the modernization of our economy. The Gambia under the dynamic leadership of President Jammeh, has taken a giant step towards building a viable investment zone for economic growth. The high influx of investment corporations and businesses, ranging from commercial banks, estate developers, light industries and a host of other trading groups, illuminate the fact that the dynamic leadership of President Jammeh is placing this country at the front seat of development in the sub-region.

It is evident that our economy is gaining momentum as a result of the peace and stability that the leadership of President Jammeh engenders. This is obviously what is attracting more and more investors into the country. What is important in this regard is the need for attitudinal change, particularly on the part of the youths, to venture into enterprising avenues for a desirable future. Learning a trade will help generate success in such ventures.

The growth of one?s country from an emerging economy to a developed one is a cause for celebration considering the current global economic meltdown and its resulting impact on people?s lives. But thanks to the visionary leadership of the president in keeping the economy of the country on a strong footing that the country is rapidly developing.