Democracy and Human Rights in The Gambia Since 2017

Convener: Miles Larmer

Speaker: Ambassador Muhammadou Kah, Gambian Ambassador to the UN in Geneva

 

“Democracy and Human Rights in The Gambia Since 2017”

From 1994 to 2016, former president Yahya Jammeh ruled the Gambia. In 2017, following
a post-election political impasse that shifted political power from his grasp, Jammeh
agreed to step down from his presidential post and go into political exile. Jammeh's tenure
as president was marked by tyranny, oppression, and human rights abuses. Jammeh's
departure opened the door for a new age of Gambian governance, one wherein democracy
could replace authoritarianism and respect for instead of the routine abuse of human
rights could become the new normal. Like many African states, The Gambia's transition
from dictatorship to democracy speaks to wider discourses on African political sovereignty,
the relationship between democratic governance and human rights, and the interface
between civilian and military synergies in African contexts. Guests interested in The
Gambia and African affairs more broadly are invited to attend a talk delivered by
Ambassador Professor Muhammadou Kah, who is The Gambia's Ambassador to the UN in
Geneva and is a Vice President for Human Rights at the UN Human Rights Council that
will engage the topic “Democracy and Human Rights in The Gambia Since 2017.
 

 

Ambassador Professor Muhammadou Kah - Brief Biography

His Excellency Amb. Prof. Muhammadou M.O. Kah is the Ambassador of The Republic of
the Gambia to the Swiss confederation & Permanent Representative to the UN Office at
Geneva, World Trade Organisation (WTO), and other international organizations at
Geneva, Switzerland. Amb. Prof. Kah has also recently been elected to serve a second term
as a Vice President for the UN Human Rights Council. Before his appointments in Geneva,
Amb. Prof. Kah served as the Founding Chairman of Zenith Bank, The Gambia, Chairman
of the Board of Directors, Africa Consulting & Trading Group (ACT), Dakar, Senegal;
Board membership: Malabo Montpelier Panel; African Agriculture Technology
Foundation; Africa Europe Foundation and ReEnergy Africa. Alongside his diplomatic
appointments, Professor Kah has held teaching and leadership positions in the USA,
Africa, the Middle East (Gulf countries) and Eastern Europe (Caucuses). A regular
contributor to the “Africa Module” in the Advanced Leadership Program (ALP) at
Cambridge Judge Business School, he was appointed as an honorary Fellow of the Judge
Business School and the Digital Innovation Centre, University of Cambridge (2016-2017).