Two National Teams receive an Award : SOAD South Africa and SOAD Gambia

Mondo

Di

Every year, the leaders of the State of the African Diaspora (SOAD) award the Member of Parliament of the Year, as well as the Ambassador of the Year; this will be the case again this year, as usual. But for 2025, a new award has been launched, to distinguish one or even several national teams. Indeed, beyond individuals, it is often a group of ministers, ambassadors and members of parliament who, working in the same country and pooling their efforts, achieve results, progress and victories for the whole community.

As we all know, there is strength in unity. That is why the Prime Minister and the two Vice Prime Ministers wanted to create this new category among the New Year awards, to encourage SOAD’s leaders to work as a group in the future.

And this year, it is quite clear that the national team that has distinguished itself most within the State of the African Diaspora is SOAD South Africa. Indeed, it was a team effort that led to the signing of the historic cooperation agreement between SOAD and the Parliament of the African Union on November 15, 2024. Everyone played their part, and while on site in Johannesburg, the Prime Minister was very impressed by the involvement and dedication of the whole team. The team was made up of :

-Ms Penny Mkhize, Minister of International Cooperation
-Ms Nthabiseng Montsho, Minister for Women’s  Social and Economic Development
-Dr Willy Tsaku, Minister of Health
-Princess Palesa Kambule Dlamini, President of SOAD MPs in South Africa
-Dr Isaac Kekana, Ambassador of SOAD
-Ms Nolutsha Gladness Mnyaka, SOAD Ambassador
-Mr Evariste Kotchi, Advisor to the Minister of International Cooperation
-Mr. Mkhululi Chimoio kaMadala, Communication Advisor to the Prime Minister

 


SOAD South Africa

Furthermore, this victory in South Africa would not have occurred or been possible without the remarkable efforts of SOAD Gambia, another national team who deserves to be rewarded.

SOAD Gambia team is made up of :

-Salieu Puye, Minister of Traditional Medicine
-Luke McKenzie, Ambassador
-Adrian Ryan, Member of Parliament
-Hon. Sulayman Saho, Gambia’s Member of Parliament at the African Union and SOAD Ambassador
-Farouq Malik, Member of Parliament

 

SOAD Gambia

The journey to victory began with Minister Mkhize and her team, who were entrusted with key projects commissioned by the Republic of The Gambia. Around the same time, preparations were underway for the upcoming General Assembly Session of the Pan-African Parliament (PAP).

Leading the charge, Mr. Adrian Ryan MP reached out to Hon. Sulayman Saho to discuss the projects, with crucial support from Minister Salieu Puye, Ambassador Luke McKenzie, and Farouq Malik MP. Hon. Saho was also briefed on the significance of integrating the Diaspora into the Pan-African Parliament, a vision closely aligned with SOAD’s mission. Inspired by this initiative and the impactful work of SOAD, Hon. Saho took on a dynamic advocacy role, engaging directly with the President of PAP to champion SOAD’s inclusion. His dedication led him to accept the role of Roving Ambassador for SOAD.

Hon. Saho then enlisted the support of his colleague, Mr. Alhagie Mbow, Member of Parliament for The Gambia and President of the ECOWAS Members of Parliament within the African Union’s Parliament. Through the collaborative framework of SOAD Gambia, strategic meetings were held, by SOAD South Africa with Hon. Mbow playing a key role in garnering the support of President Charumbira. This effort culminated in President Charumbira extending an invitation to SOAD’s Prime Minister. Ultimately, this unified and strategic collaboration led to the signing of the historic Cooperation Agreement.

The Prime Minister of SOAD declared:

“In these two examples, we can see how beneficial teamwork has been. In Gambia, it was a chain that led to the establishment of cooperation between SOAD and the Parliament of the African Union, and in South Africa, members of SOAD Gambia worked with members of SOAD South Africa, and it was this cooperation, in which everyone played their part, that enabled us to take a giant step towards pan-African unity, which is our goal. That is why the two Vice Prime Ministers and I are delighted to honor SOAD Gambia and SOAD South Africa in this way.”

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