By: Nyima Sillah
The Gambia Red Cross Society on Sunday observed World Red Cross and Red Crescent Days at its Headquarters in Kanifing.
On 8 May, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement celebrated the dedication, compassion, courage, and impact of millions of volunteers and countless others who offer help, care, and life-saving services to people in their communities.
The theme for this year’s celebration was Be Human Kind.
Jato Sillah, president for The Gambia Red Cross Society said the motive of celebrating the day is not only about growing the dignity of an individual Henry Dunant, but also about protecting the lives of people from disasters and emergency situations.
He thanked GRCS volunteers across the country for their selfless services to humanity, saying their work has touched the hearts and changed the lives of many vulnerable people.
He appealed to Gambians to open up their hearts and homes to those in need during emergencies.
Alasan Senghore, secretary general for The Gambia Red Cross Society said the world can feel tough and scary right now as the past months and years have been marked by multiple crises that have spared no one and have hit the most vulnerable people the hardest—from COVID-19 to the climate crisis, humanitarian emergencies, and escalating conflicts.
However, he said, despite this, there is so much hope and humanity to be found in the form of acts of kindness.
He added that acts of kindness are all around us and no matter how big or small, they make a huge difference in people’s lives.
Mr. Senghore pointed out that they believe that acts of kindness have the power to spark a ripple effect, to multiply, to spread across communities, countries, and the whole world.
“We pay tribute to all those individuals who selflessly help others in need. When all these small local actions multiply, the impact can be enormous.”
According to him, the impact of kindness is appreciated more than anything. He thanked GRCS volunteers for their selfless services to humanity, their donors, Government, his staff, media and everyone that has supported and worked with them in alleviating human suffering.
Meanwhile, The Gambia Red Cross Society is the organisation that walks to what is called ‘the last mile’ to reach the most vulnerable and hard to reach people. It is working around the clock to provide life-saving food and non-food relief, health services and emergency evacuations, shelter, care for displaced population, climate change, water, sanitation and hygiene, reuniting missing families, provides humanitarian assistance to migrants, livelihood, food security, first Aid services, addressing gender issues, among others.
Many people around the world celebrate World Red Cross Day to commemorate the birthday of Henry Dunant who was the reason behind the establishment of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, which today is the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and National Societies (NS) in the year 1863 in Switzerland, Geneva.
