President Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh is expected to be honoured this Saturday with the most outstanding national youth award by the National Youth Council (NYC) of The Gambia.

This distinguished special award will be presented at a ceremony to be held at the Joint-Officers Mess in Kotu.

Pa Malick Ceesay, executive secretary of NYC, said the award is meant to show appreciation to the Gambian leader for his commitment to the youth folk, as manifested in his government’s numerous development initiatives for young people.

Briefing journalists about this development in a press conference on Wednesday at the Independence Stadium, Bakau, Mr Ceesay revealed that the youth council will also award 58 youth organisations, 41 institutions, 15 individuals, as well as 11 media institutions, for their contributions to the development of Gambian youths.

“The award ceremony will also bring together all those who matter in the world of youths. Such an occasion will provide a platform for rededicating ourselves to the ideals of empowerment and development for the youths of The Gambia.

We shall avail ourselves of the opportunity to engage in an appraisal of our activities,” he told journalists, adding that “with this, we will have more than enough courage to be able to tackle the challenges ahead”.

The NYC executive secretary further said that the award ceremony is also expected to have a bearing on the operations of youth groups.

“It is gratifying also to note that it will mark the fulfillment of the mandate of the NYC as stated in NYC Act 2000: that all youth organisations in the country shall be registered with the NYC. Once this programme is successfully implemented, these youth organisations will be given a new lease of life,’’ he said.

On the expected outcome of this high profile programme, Ceesay said the youth organisations, the government, individuals, as well as institutions will be awarded certificates, which, he said, will serve as a motivation for others to invest in youths.

The NYC executive secretary heaped praises on Africell for being the sole sponsor of the event, stressing that their immense contributions to the welfare of youths cannot be over emphasised.