Lrr — A Turkey-based charity, Sen De Gel, in partnership with Cemiyetul Hayr Relief Organisation (CHRO), with funding from the Cocoa Cola Foundation and UNDP, recently handed over a water project worth over D500,000 to beneficiaries at Sara Mawdou in Soma, Jarra West District of the Lower River Region. The project, which is a well fitted with a hand pump, was officially handed over to the beneficiaries by the chairman of Sen De Gel, Ebrihim Betil at a recent ceremony held at the site in Jarra Soma. Alh.Yaya Jarjusey, chief of Jarra West District, thanked Sen De Gel and partners for coming up with such an important project to his home town of Jarra Soma. He acknowledged that this water project is not the first of its kind for the donors affirming that they have initiated and funded many developmental projects such as animal husbandry and poultry farm projects. Chief Jarjusey noted that those projects are really making great impact on the lives and livelihoods of many beneficiaries including those in Jarra West and others in the Lower River Region. The Jarra West chief thus encouraged the charity to continue with their humanitarian endeavours, adding that the people of LRR really welcome and appreciate the goodwill gesture. he also urged replicate their intervention in other communities. Chief Jarjursey thanked President Jammeh for bringing peace and development to the door steps of all Gambians. Since he came to power, he said of the President, he has brought and continues to bring so many unprecedented developments across all spheres of life. He thus enjoined people to support and rally behind him for more development. Ebrihim Betil, the chairman of Sen De Gel, giving a brief background of the non-governmental organisation, said it was established and registered many years ago in the Republic of Turkey and is backed and supported by the people of Turkey together with other donors and partners who are rendering support least developed countries especially those countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Chairman Betil said their first intervention is The Gambia and that they have already spent 410,000 Dollars on various community-driven intervention projects such as animal husbandry, 20 poultry farms and 25 water projects in various districts of the Lower River Region. He revealed that they also provided 7 boats with fishing gears to beneficiaries in different villages as well as provided 7 rich milling machines to different wards in the Mansakonko Area Council. Betil informed that they also supported the women folks in many communities with micro-finance lending through the 25 refrigeration centres that they had funded and established in 28 communities in the Gambia. While expressing appreciation to the people of Jarra Soma for the warm welcome accorded him and his team, the Turkish philanthropist noted that they trust their Gambian brothers and sisters and that his charity is ready and will continue to render support to more communities in the country. He challenged the beneficiary community to make the best use of the water project and handle it with care to ensure that the facility is sustained for their own betterment. Fabakary Sanneh, chairman of Mansakonko Area Council, commended the Turkish charity for their humanitarian gesture to the community of Soma. Sanneh indicated that the Local Government Act mandated his council to bring development to the people within their jurisdiction, noting that the goodwill gesture demonstrated by the Turkish charity will go a long way in complementing the effort of his council in bringing meaningful development to the people of the Lower River Region. Kebba Darboe, Village Development Committee (VDC) chairman in Jarra Soma and Sira Touray, a housewife, all spoke at the ceremony. The duo hailed the Turkish charity for the move, affirming that the issue of access to water in the newly expanding settlement of Sara Mawdou in Soma was a daily problem for them especially the women.