{"id":96680,"date":"2026-06-22T17:38:30","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T17:38:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/uncategorized\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house"},"modified":"2026-06-22T18:24:40","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T18:24:40","slug":"bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house","title":{"rendered":"Bensouda Declares UMC Prepared for State House"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. <\/strong><\/span>The leader of the Unite Movement for Change (UMC), Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda, has declared that his party is on course to capture State House in the 2026 presidential election, citing the successful organization of its Women\u2019s National Congress as evidence of the party\u2019s growing strength and national appeal.<\/b><\/p>\n

Speaking to supporters in Farafenni on Saturday following the congress, Bensouda congratulated the newly elected women leaders and said the event demonstrated UMC\u2019s organizational capacity, which he argued distinguishes the party from many of its political rivals.<\/p>\n

\u201cI congratulate the women who have been selected today at the Women\u2019s National Congress of the United Movement for Change,\u201d Bensouda said. \u201cThere are many parties in The Gambia that cannot do this. This shows that UMC is set for the State House in 2026.\u201d<\/p>\n

The UMC leader highlighted the party\u2019s rapid growth since its formation, noting that it has already conducted major internal democratic processes within a relatively short period.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn six months, we have held our national congress, held the women\u2019s congress, and, Insha\u2019Allah, next week we will hold our youth congress,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Bensouda described women and young people as the backbone of Gambian politics and said UMC\u2019s efforts to build strong structures within both constituencies are central to its political strategy.<\/p>\n

\u201cGambian politics consists of two major bases: youth and women. That is why we are building structures in these areas to ensure that we can enter State House and develop our country,\u201d he stated.Turning to governance issues, Bensouda criticized President Adama Barrow\u2019s administration, accusing it of failing to adequately address the needs of Gambian women. He pledged that a UMC-led government would place women\u2019s empowerment at the center of its development agenda.<\/p>\n

\u201cGambian women have been left behind, especially under President Adama Barrow\u2019s government. A UMC government will look after women, Insha\u2019Allah,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The Kanifing Municipal Council mayor pointed to initiatives undertaken by KMC as examples of what UMC could achieve at the national level, despite not being in control of the central government.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, if you look at KMC, we are not the government, yet we are doing many things for women,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Bensouda highlighted the Bakau Women\u2019s Garden project as a model for women\u2019s economic empowerment, particularly for communities in the North Bank Region and Farafenni.<\/p>\n

\u201cWomen\u2019s gardens are very important in The Gambia, especially in the North Bank and Farafenni. The Bakau Women\u2019s Garden has become an example for the country. It has a complete perimeter fence, cold storage facilities, and a market where women can harvest and sell their produce to support their families,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n

He said such initiatives reflect UMC\u2019s broader vision for women\u2019s empowerment and economic development nationwide.<\/p>\n

According to Bensouda, a future UMC government would establish financial mechanisms to improve women\u2019s access to credit and increase public investment in agricultural projects that support women\u2019s livelihoods.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat shows that when UMC comes to government, we will establish a bank to support women so they can access financing. We will also allocate government resources to develop women\u2019s gardens and help improve the welfare of their families,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

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

Africa-Press – Gambia. The leader of the Unite Movement for Change (UMC), Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda, has declared that his party is on course to capture State House in the 2026 presidential election, citing the successful organization of its Women\u2019s National Congress as evidence of the party\u2019s growing strength and national appeal. Speaking to supporters […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":96679,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,12],"tags":[260],"class_list":["post-96680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-gambia"],"yoast_head":"\nBensouda Declares UMC Prepared for State House - Gambia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The leader of the Unite Movement for Change (UMC), Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda, has declared that his party is on cour ...\" \/>\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\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bensouda Declares UMC Prepared for State House\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The leader of the Unite Movement for Change (UMC), Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda, has declared that his party is on cour ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house\" \/>\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=\"2026-06-22T17:38:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-06-22T18:24:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2026\/06\/sm_1782140023.737589.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\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Bensouda Declares UMC Prepared for State House\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-22T17:38:30+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-22T18:24:40+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house\"},\"wordCount\":556,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2026\/06\/sm_1782140023.737589.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Gambia\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/bensouda-declares-umc-prepared-for-state-house\",\"name\":\"Bensouda Declares UMC Prepared for State House - 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