{"id":86998,"date":"2025-09-29T18:04:38","date_gmt":"2025-09-29T18:04:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/uncategorized\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised"},"modified":"2025-09-29T18:53:44","modified_gmt":"2025-09-29T18:53:44","slug":"mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised","title":{"rendered":"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. <\/strong><\/span>Kanifing mayor Talib Bensouda yesterday confirmed to The Standard that the US$26 million grant his council expected from the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) through its Blue Peace Financing Initiative never materialised.<\/b><\/p>\n

In October 2024, the Kanifing Municipal Council announced it was set to receive US$26 million from the United Nations Development Fund (UNDF) through its Blue Peace Financing Initiative to enhance capacity for local governments, enabling them to manage natural resources effectively and promote economic growth.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe KM Mayor Talib Bensouda finalised the disbursement of the funds during a recent visit to UNCDF headquarters. The visit followed his participation in a Round Table Migration Council meeting of world mayors and development organisations who gathered under the UN General Assembly to discuss pressing international issues,\u201d the council said in a statement in October.<\/p>\n

Since the announcement nothing has been heard about the funds.<\/p>\n

Following the recent announcement of another grant, this time from the Global Cities Fund for Migrants and Refugees (GCF) to help cities implement bold, city-led solutions that drive economic inclusion for migrants, refugees, and receiving communities, critics have raised questions about the credibility of these announcements.<\/p>\n

When contacted by this medium yesterday to provide clarity on the UNDCF US$26 million grant, Mayor Bensouda said there was a miscommunication from the council regarding the grant.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe announcement from the council was premature,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He explained: \u201cFollowing the announcement from KMC, the UNCDF complained that they only informed us about them applying for it and it was not yet approved. I remember making corrections to that effect. So because of the premature announcement the deal never materialised.\u201d<\/p>\n

Commenting on the US$450,000 grant Global Cities Fund for Migrants and Refugees (GCF), Mayor Bensouda said it was announced by the GCF.<\/p>\n

The mayor shared a letter from the GCF which reads: \u201cI am delighted to inform you that Kanifing, The Gambia, was selected as a grantee of the 2025 cohort of the Mayors Migration Council\u2019s Global Cities Fund for Migrants and Refugees (GCF). Your GCF grant will have a period of 24 months beginning December 1, 2025, with a grant award amount of US$450,000. The primary objective of the 2025 GCF is to unlock economic opportunities for migrants and refugees while promoting inclusive economies for all. The secondary goal is to uplift the capacity of local leadership, such as your own, to institute inclusive practices that can be scaled, replicated, and drive lasting systems change. The MMC team and a Steering Committee of experts were not only impressed with your city\u2019s application, but also with your personal dedication to supporting the economic empowerment of migrants and refugees living in Kanifing.\u201d<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Gambia<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. Kanifing mayor Talib Bensouda yesterday confirmed to The Standard that the US$26 million grant his council expected from the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) through its Blue Peace Financing Initiative never materialised. In October 2024, the Kanifing Municipal Council announced it was set to receive US$26 million from the United Nations […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":86997,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,7,12],"tags":[260],"class_list":["post-86998","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-head-lines","category-policy","tag-gambia"],"yoast_head":"\nMAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED - Gambia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Kanifing mayor Talib Bensouda yesterday confirmed to The Standard that the US$26 million grant his council expected f ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Kanifing mayor Talib Bensouda yesterday confirmed to The Standard that the US$26 million grant his council expected f ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gambia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-29T18:04:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-09-29T18:53:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2025\/09\/sm_1759159380.455922.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-29T18:04:38+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-29T18:53:44+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised\"},\"wordCount\":457,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2025\/09\/sm_1759159380.455922.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Gambia\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"head lines\",\"policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised\",\"name\":\"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED - Gambia\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2025\/09\/sm_1759159380.455922.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-29T18:04:38+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-29T18:53:44+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"description\":\"Kanifing mayor Talib Bensouda yesterday confirmed to The Standard that the US$26 million grant his council expected f ...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2025\/09\/sm_1759159380.455922.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2025\/09\/sm_1759159380.455922.jpg\",\"width\":1280,\"height\":720,\"caption\":\"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/\",\"name\":\"Gambia\",\"description\":\"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cfeditoren\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED - Gambia","description":"Kanifing mayor Talib Bensouda yesterday confirmed to The Standard that the US$26 million grant his council expected f ...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED","og_description":"Kanifing mayor Talib Bensouda yesterday confirmed to The Standard that the US$26 million grant his council expected f ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised","og_site_name":"Gambia","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa","article_published_time":"2025-09-29T18:04:38+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-09-29T18:53:44+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1280,"height":720,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2025\/09\/sm_1759159380.455922.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED","datePublished":"2025-09-29T18:04:38+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-29T18:53:44+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised"},"wordCount":457,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2025\/09\/sm_1759159380.455922.jpg","keywords":["Gambia"],"articleSection":["all news","head lines","policy"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised","name":"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED - Gambia","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2025\/09\/sm_1759159380.455922.jpg","datePublished":"2025-09-29T18:04:38+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-29T18:53:44+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"description":"Kanifing mayor Talib Bensouda yesterday confirmed to The Standard that the US$26 million grant his council expected f ...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2025\/09\/sm_1759159380.455922.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2025\/09\/sm_1759159380.455922.jpg","width":1280,"height":720,"caption":"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mayor-bensouda-says-26m-uncdf-grant-never-materialised#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"MAYOR BENSOUDA SAYS $26M UNCDF GRANT NEVER MATERIALISED"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/","name":"Gambia","description":"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cfeditoren"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86998","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=86998"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86998\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/86997"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=86998"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=86998"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=86998"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}