The course was attended by 19 students and was organised by the National Heath Laboratory Service at the Royal Victoria Teaching Hospital in Banjul. The course was funded by the Global Fund for Tuberculosis in collaboration with the Department of State for Health and Social Welfare.

Graduates of this kind are a huge benefit to our nation as a whole and we commend all those sponsors who helped make the training a reality. As well as the Department of State for Health and Social Welfare, which came in for special praise at the graduation ceremony, other sponsors included the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria and the World Health Organisation.

The current batch of graduates consists of 19 laboratory personnel who covered topics in the main areas of medical microbiology namely, clinical chemistry, histopathology and cytopathology.

It is indeed a pleasure to see young vibrant Gambians being educated in these sophisticated areas of study.

We join with Mr. Tuman Janneh who was speaking on behalf of the chief medical director at the RVTH at the graduation ceremony. He said, “today’s ceremony is of the utmost importance because it entails the training of crucial staff for the health sector.”

He also stressed the importance of well-trained staff who can carry out their duties to a high standard. He strongly urged the graduates to stick to their work ethics and always have an interest in their patients. He finally urged the graduates to work diligently and honestly. We couldn’t agree more.