Role Model and Visionary Lady Wins Award
Friday 8th February 2008

An ambitious female role model was recently awarded by the University of The Gambia the Best Education student award and best female overall student with a trophy plus D10, 000 and D7, 000 cash respectively. Jahou Bah Faal was born in Banjul at Gloucester Street, attended Malfa and Albion Primary School, and from there to St Joseph’s High School. Mrs Faal later proceeded to Gambia Technical Training Institute (GTTI). Upon graduation from GTTI, she was employed by GTTI as a trainee lecturer and went through the whole system in GTTI because she had never worked for any institution except GTTI. Currently she is the head of the Business Studies Centre. To know more about this lady of substance please read below:

She She: What inspired you to enroll at the University of The Gambia?

Mrs. Faal: Before even going to the university I went for higher education at Bolton Institute of Higher Education in the United Kingdom, where I took up studies in teacher training and also did an advanced secretarial program between 1987-1989. Upon my return I went back to the system, that is teaching and developing myself at the same time, especially with information and Technology (IT), even though I got married and started building my family. I had this urge to read more because I had the opportunity at the University right at my doorstep. I said let me just seize the opportunity and enroll.

She She: How did you cope with University being a housewife working in a busy department, and also studying at the university?

Mrs Faal: It was tough having a mixed role being a wife, mother, working and studying at the same time; but with hard work, commitment, dedication and believing in oneself, one could realize one’s dreams.

She She: What is your next aim?

Mrs Faal: My aim is next to go further and enroll in a Masters degree program.

She She: How do you feel about being a winner of two different awards at the University?

Mrs Faal: I feel proud about it.. It was a pleasant surprise, but I worked hard for it, so when it came I took it as the icing on the cake, but I have always been an achiever. I remember when I was doing my O’ levels, I was one of the few that had division one for that year, in the GTTI entrance examination also I came in second position and won a government scholarship. Also at the end of my training at GTTI I was one of the three that graduated with a distinction certificate so it was not a total surprise to have won the awards.

She She: What advice would you give to the young ones?

Mrs Faal: I try to portray a positive outlook to the young people. As head of department, there are four hundred students under me and the advice is always that the young people need to be respectful hard working in whatever discipline they find themselves, in order to be meaningful members of the society. For female youth let them aspire to be responsible people in future and they can be when they learned. For the youth, they need to be disciplined because you can’t divorce discipline from faring, as in the absence of the former (Respect) discipline cannot take place.

She She: On the side of women, what do you have to tell them?

Mrs Faal: Let them do everything in their power to contribute their quota in the development of the nation. I salute Gambian women for contributing their quota in their different ways to the socio-economic development of The Gambia and for the minority of those women, for one reason or the other shy away from developing themselves, to come forward. The avenues that women can take are many because the country has abundant opportunities for them to develop themselves, their families and nation. I take myself as an example. After being blessed with four kids, three teenagers, I still felt that I should further my education.

She She: What will you advise women who are married to prominent personalities like you but feel proud or have enough to work, for their nation?

Mrs Faal: I think it goes back to the family. I give credit to my late mother for bringing me up with humility. I never at any given time had this feeling of a label attached on my back that I am a wife of a prominent personality. I work. It has never occurred in my mind we should leave everything in the hands of men; we’ve seen prominent female personalities like presidents, doctors, lawyers, and we have also seen couples that are both prominent personalities. So that notion of my husband is prominent and so I shouldn’t work, does not come to my mind at all, and it amazes me when I hear such utterances.

We live in an advanced world and those beliefs do not in any way have a place in today’s world, so we should get up from our slumbers. I would like to express my appreciation to my husband , who is always in support of me especially in career development, and I think he is wise because at the end of the day we all enjoy from whatever benefit I get from my achievements.

She She: Thank you for that interview, and managing time for it.

Mrs. Faal:  I am indeed happy to oblige.