Taking advantage of this thought again, he came up with the idea of establishing the College of Medicine and Allied Sciences in West Africa, in the Republic of The Gambia. An idea that would apply the traditional model of medical science studies in Cuba that was realized on October 1, 1999 and is currently governed by West African Standards, an educational organization of great international standing, which knew how to recognize the high scientific level of Cuban teachers who worked with teachers from Nigeria. Gambia, Senegal and others.
The history of teaching in The Gambia has seen before and after shaping the future of health in this sister country. Among the first professors and specialists to arrive in this friendly land were: Dr. Arturo Menendez who served as direct advisor and methodologist to the Dean, and who together with Dr. Etim M. Sision, dean of the university at the time, gave him the honorable mission of starting the training of future health professionals.
Since then, more than 500 doctors and other health professionals have graduated, and enrollment has grown so much since 2015 that it now exceeds 60 students and is expected to continue to increase. Currently in this year 2024 the total number of medical students is 377 and 53 are dental students. The current batch 22 has 65 students, of whom 50 belong to the Medicine program and 15 to Dentistry. In addition to the students of these courses, we also have students from physical therapy and nursing, who were integrated at the end of the second semester and to whom our Cuban teachers teach basic science subjects.
The aim of teaching in The Gambia is to prepare health professionals from a holistic perspective, so that they can fulfill the social responsibility of improving the epidemiological situation of the country and demonstrate the humanitarianism and altruism that characterizes them in their care.
On October 1, 2024, we will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Medical College in this region, so we will honor our historic leader with many curricular and extracurricular activities, which will highlight the importance of this wonderful idea that means and is also a great gesture of humanity and solidarity.
United with the Gambian people, our motto is to continue the beautiful mission of training future generations of professionals, which we wanted to conclude with a few words said by Fidel in one of the anti-imperialist podiums, recalling the work done by Cuban collaborators in this brotherly country:
Fidel’s words:
“A few days ago, I met 70 health workers, who were returning to The Gambia after a short leave to resume their noble and dedicated work in that West African country. When they mentioned with expressions of affection and advance congratulations that my birthday would be in a few days, I replied: My birthday is today, after this meeting with you.
I felt really deep emotions that day after the three-hour talk with these citizens. They were highly qualified university professionals, some very young, others older, from the eastern, central and western provinces, almost all family doctors and other specialties, although there were also dentists and nurses; They were men and women of humble origins, of all races and mixed races, just like us. Something stood out above all: legitimate pride, optimism, personal courage, self-confidence, creative spirit, quick mind, joyful voice and gestures, which characterize Cuban internationalists in an unmistakable and incomparable way.
They returned anxiously to the dozens of populated points they served, on both banks of a wide river extending for hundreds of kilometres, in a small, rectangular country where they rendered the most humane of all services: the relief of pain, the preservation or restoration of vast wealth. Good health, and above all saving lives.
This completely different world is now yours as much as Cuba itself. How his love for humanity and the country grows! How great and heroic a human being can be! To what amazing heights their minds and hearts can rise!
This is how our leader saw us, and we will never let him down, this is how we see Gambia as a homeland, like ours!
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