Discussing tourism, we talk about people visiting destinations either as new tourists or repeat tourists for sightseeing; visiting friends and families; taking a vacation and generally having a nice time.

Tourists need accommodation and good dishes when they are on holiday. Visitors to any destination may spend their leisure time engaging in various sports, sunbathing, conference, seminars taking rides, touring the environment among other things. Worldwide, the hospitality and tourism industry is considered to be one of the largest industries. The industry success is judged by economic indicators such as tourism share of employment and gross domestic product or growth in incomes. Travel and tourism in The Gambia has created jobs for some thousands of people from different levels.

Many job opportunities are available in the rapidly growing food service in the industry. Every hotel needs a specialist who will provide good and delicious meals for their guests, that is a chef. The services of cooks cannot be overemphasised in the tourism and hospitality industry.

In March 2008, chefs in The Gambia, working in various hotels came together and registered an association called the Chef Association The Gambia. The association aims to bring all chefs in the Gambia under one umbrella so that they can work together. It is also part of their aims to bring Gambia dishes into the forefront in the industry. It will as well enable members to find solutions to any problems facing them as regards their job. Presently, membership of Chef Association The Gambia is over 50. This number is still low compared to the number of professional chefs working in hotels and restaurants in The Gambia.

Chef Association the Gambia members want young people to see tourism and hospitality as a vital, serious and rewarding career choice. Yet not many embrace it. Could it be that they are not well informed about the enormous opportunities that exist in the industry. Njabo Jawo, a representative of the association, said career counsellors in high schools, the media and the industry itself, family members or colleagues should tell the youths about the importance of the sector.

Students who are interested in studying tourism and hospitality should know that young entrants and graduates from hotel management schools can move rapidly up the career ladder and with the proper higher education can aim to be in significant management positions. According to Ousman Manneh, Chef Association The Gambia, employers who look to retain talented chefs need to take more of a stake in their employees’ careers. Chefs also deserve exposure and up-to-date training. Above all they need support from the general public to boost their morale. Hotel proprietors should give Chefs Association the Gambia more support through capacity building and training. This will greatly help them.