The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) (www.ITFC-idb.org), a member of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), has conducted a capacity-building training workshop on leadership and change management for the Gambia National Water and Electricity Company (NAWEC).

The workshop was conducted within the framework of ITFC’s Integrated Trade Solutions (ITS) under the leadership of the Corporation’s Trade and Business Development (T&BD) Department. Having identified several development issues, challenges, and opportunities that considerably affected NAWEC’s growth, the workshop was designed to strengthen the Company’s strategic leadership, corporate governance, and change management processes. Specially tailored three training sessions on “Corporate Governance with Focus on Financial Reporting”, “Financial Planning, Cash Management and Forecasting”, and “Strategic Formulation and Execution, Change Management” were conducted from 6 to 21 December, 2023, in The Gambia.

Commenting on the training workshop, the CEO of ITFC, Eng. Hani Salem Sonbol noted, “ITFC's Integrated Trade Solutions framework demonstrates its leadership position to drive capacity-building for critical companies in the economic development sector. Therefore, we are pleased to support NAWEC as the Company seeks to contribute to The Gambia's economic development. Nurturing trade development offers enormous potential to enhance economic prosperity across OIC Member Countries.”

The workshop's outcome showcased participants’ improved skills in efficiency and productivity level through systematic planning, management, and communication among NAWEC’s departmental teams. Ultimately, the workshop helped enhance human capacity in key strategic areas such as providing services, finance administration and management, and corporate relations and governance.

Speaking on the impact of the workshop NAWEC’s Managing Director, Mr. Nani Juwara, said “This training in strategic management is a significant opportunity as it plays a critical role in our ongoing transformation as we strive to become the company that all Gambians desire. ITFC has been a vital partner to us over the years, providing crucial financial support for our operations through medium-term loans and we deeply appreciate their continued support."

The training workshop was aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), including Number 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth, and Number 17: Partnership for the Goals.  Senior managers and supervisors in the leadership and management team attended the capacity-building workshops, benefitting about 50 selected staff members.