By Yunus S Saliu
The Director General of National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC) Saturday joined rest of the world to euologised Amadou Mahtar Mbow on the occasion of his centenary birthday celebration.
Amadou Mahtar Mbow born in Senegal in 1920, educated in France and joined the United Nations 1953. He later became Minister of Education in Senegal but in 1974 he became the first African to be appointed director general to Head UNESCO, one of the leading United Nations Organisations. A position he maintained till 1987 before he resigned.
Speakingh on the former UNESCO director general’s centennial celebration and achievements, Hassoum Ceesay, Director General of NCAC and noted Historian said the 100th years anniversary of Mr Mbowe is a course for celebration for all Africans and the world in general because he made UNESCO to concentrate on development of culture and African history.
“It was during his time that UNESCO General History for Africa project was started. This General History for Africa Project involved research and publication of a comprehensive history of Africa as told by African historians themselves. His plan was to ensure that history of Africa is studied from view point of Africans and 8th volumes were published between 1978 and 1990. These books are now a major source for African history,” DG Ceesay noted.
Among other important things that Amadou Mahtarr Mbowe did as head of UNESCO, he stated, was that he created what is called the new information order as he believed that western press was dominating spreading of news very much and of which was negative about Africa.
“So through UNESCO, he helped many African countries to create their own news agencies including country like The Gambia so that African countries will be able to tell their own stories in the media while he also promoted the installation of satellites to kick start satellite broadcasting in Africa,” he pointed out from his achievements.
According to DG Ceesay, “coming back to The Gambia, Mr Mbowe supported The Gambia to establish a film unit in 1970s, which later became Gambia Television in 1995. He also helped The Gambia to establish news agency called GAMNA (Gambia News Agency) in early 1980.”
And while he was still at UNESCO, he supported the establishment of radio broadcasting in The Gambia, “from 1979, every Gambian school had a radio set and this radio set was used to listen to broadcast on radio subject like English, Mathematics and Science and it was a very successful project in The Gambia, which boasted education in country because in a school with no enough teachers the radio broadcasting unit, the education broadcasting unit of the Radio Gambia was able to fit in that gap.”
However, “he is really a hero, that his 100 years birthday anniversary, is a course for joy and celebration for all practitioners in culture, arts, science and technology,”
Mr Amadou Mahtarr Mbowe currently lives in Dakar Senegal were joined on Saturday by families, friends, organizations, UN system from across the world to celebrate his centennial birthday through different mediums which included physical present, Live on Skype, Zoom, Instagram, YouTube among other devices.