Banjul [Gambia] : Indian Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan visited the Republic of The Gambia and held meetings with its President Adama Barrow and other officials and discussed the bilateral cooperation. According to a press statement by the Ministry of External Affairs, the MoS was on the visit to the West African country from November 1 that lasted till November 3. This comes as a follow-up to the first-ever state visit of President Ram Nath Kovind to The Gambia in August 2019. The MoS also had discussions with Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Gambians abroad Dr Mamadou Tangara on bilateral cooperation and reviewed the entire gamut of our bilateral relations. During the visit, MoS also met Speaker of the National Assembly of The Gambia, Mariam Jack-Denton, and Minister of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology, Badara Joof. Two agreements were signed during his visit that include an Agreement on Exemption from Visa Requirement for Holders of Diplomatic and Official Passports, and a General Framework Agreement for Cooperation between India and The Gambia. Based on The Gambia’s request, a repurposing of USD 500,000 grant for procuring dialysis machines was announced during the visit. Dr Mamadou Tangara and MoS jointly released the design of a commemorative stamp, marking 75 years of India’s Independence, said the press release. The MoS visited the National Assembly Building Complex of The Gambia in Banjul, which is one of the landmark projects in West Africa built under Line of Credit. He also visited two ongoing Indian LOC projects, an Electrification Expansion Project and a water project of replacement of asbestos water pipes with UPVC in the Greater Banjul area. Muraleedharan also visited the Katchikally Museum and University of The Gambia construction site, which is a Gambian Government project, being constructed by an Indian company, according to the release.
