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GambiaUpdates

NMHP Engages Stakeholders On Roles Of NGOs In Mental Health
~4.5 mins read

The Event, Jointly Organized With The International Voluntary Mental Health Organization (IVMHO) Was Held On The Theme;’ –"Strengthening NGO And CSOs In Mental Health Advocacy" that Brought Together Various Stakeholders.
The Event Was Part Of Efforts Aimed At Raising Awareness On Mental Health Challenges In The Country.
Giving An Overview Of Their Ongoing Initiatives, Mam Jarra Marega, Programme Manager, National Malaria Control Programme, Said The Forum Represents Another Significant Milestone In Their Collective Journey Toward Achieving Mental Health Equity In The Gambia.
"As We Gather Here, We Recognize That Mental Health Is Not Just A Medical Issue, But Some Fundamental Human Rights That Touches Every Aspect Of Society, From Education And Employment To Family Stability And National Development."
She Recalled That In Recent Years, They’ve Made Important Strides And Strategic Achievements In The Mental Health Landscape, Including The Development Of The Gambia Mental Health Policy 2025 -2035, The Development Of The Mental Health Investment Case And The National School Of Mental Health Programme.
The Investment Cases, She Went On, Looks At The Economic Burden Of Mental Health In The Gambia, Where They Highlighted Some Of The Financial Burdens When It Comes To Services Offered, Out-of-pocket Expenditures, Among A Host Of Others.
"We Coordinated The Maiden National Dialogue On The Mental Health Situation In The Gambia, Establishment Of Partnerships With Key Stakeholders, And Currently Reviewing The Mental Health Bill And Development Of The Mental Health Strategic Plan 2025-2030 And Have Launch Nationwide Campaign And Awareness. Yet, Significant Challenges Remain."
This, She Said, Includes Persistent Stigma That Silence Voices And Prevents Help-seeking, Adding That Some People With Mental Health Conditions Are Not Coming Forth And Willing To Seek Help Due To Stigma, And Some Opt To End Their Lives By Suicide Instead.
She Thus Lauded The Critical Role Of NGOs In Raising Awareness On Mental Health, Adding That They’ve Come A Long Way In Their Collaborative Efforts In Improving Mental Health Issues And Making Sure That There Is Equity When It Comes To Its Services.
Mental Health, She Added, Is Beyond Just Health And That It Is Not Just About Health, But A Fundamental Human Right That Affects Every Aspect Of Our Lives And Communities.
She Made Reference To The Recent Surge In Suicide Cases In The County Without Any Under-lining Factors, Saying The Continues Changing Of Social And Financial Status In Communities Also Contributed To This.
Thus, This Stakeholder Engagement, She Explained, Is Also Another Avenue To Help Align Their Efforts To Avoid Duplication.
Samba Baldeh, National Coordinator, School Of Mental Health Under The International Voluntary Mental Health Organization, First Acknowledged The Tremendous Support Of The Ministry In Raising Awareness On Mental Health In The Country.
He Expressed Delight To Work With The Ministry Especially The NMHCP To Raise More Awareness About Mental Health Issues.
Baldeh Reminded That The IVMHO Was Founded In 2016 Due To The Rising Surge In Mental Health Issues In The Country And The Need For Advocacy Group To Help Tackle The Issue.
The Organization, He Added, Conducts Advocacy And Campaigns On Mental Health In Schools And Communities, Acknowledging That Everyone Is Affected Directly Or Indirectly To Mental Health Challenges.
He Spoke Of Their Readiness To Collaborate With Partners To Align Their Programmes, So As To Avid Duplication.
Alagie S. Cham, Senior Programme Officer, The Association Of Non-Governmental Organization (TANGO), Spoke About The Role Of Association In Raising Citizen’s Awareness And Advocacy For Policy Change.
He Explained That The Association Of Non-Governmental Organizations In The Gambia (TANGO), Founded In 1983, Is The Umbrella Organization For NGOs And CSOs Operating In The Gambia.
Cham Also Spoke About The Mandate Of The Organization, Which He Said, Is Geared Towards Facilitating The Development Operational Work Of Its Members As Well As Serve As A Catalyst For Partnership With Resources Mobilization And Other Capacity Building Initiatives.
Amadou D Jallow, Senior Mental Health Officer At Kanifing General Hospital, Also Spoke At The Ceremony.
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Futbol

~1.5 mins read
Alexander Sorloth's late leveller was the final word in a thrilling match as Atletico Madrid secured a dramatic 4-4 draw with Barcelona on Tuesday. Momentum swung back and forth in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final, with former Manchester City attacker Julian Alvarez stunning the hosts after just 50 seconds and ex-Barcelona man Antoine Griezmann adding a second soon after. The hosts recovered from their sluggish start with a Pedri finish and a Pau Cubarsi header drawing them level with 19 minutes on the clock. Another first-half header from Inigo Martinez and a second-half finish from Robert Lewandowski appeared to have set Hansi Flick's team on the way to a win, before Atletico Madrid mounted a comeback of their own. Marcos Llorente got a third for Diego Simeone's side late on, before substitute Sorloth clinched a dramatic draw in the third minute of added time to leave the tie in the balance. Pitting La Liga's top scorers against the league's most-resilient defence was always going to produce a tense game, but this one lived up to the hype - and then some. After Alvarez converted at the back post and Griezmann finished past Wojciech Szczesny to make it 2-0 in just six minutes, Barcelona looked shell shocked. Flick's team regrouped and began to dominate, capitalising on their pressure through Pedri, who slotted Jules Kounde's pullback beyond Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Juan Musso. Raphinha's corner just two minutes later was headed in by Cubarsi to level things up, before Martinez completed the first-half turnaround. Barcelona moved further ahead when their top-scorer Lewandowski came off the bench to score, finishing after Yamal's dazzling run down the right. The early lead Diego Simeone's side held had been unravelled but Llorente finished past Szczesny to set up a tense finish in which the visitors were back on top. Deep in injury time, Samuel Lino broke in behind and worked the ball across to Sorloth, who made no mistake to clinch a late leveller for the visitors and set up an intriguing second leg in April.
All thanks to BBC Sport
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Investopedia
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4 Key Takeaways From Oracle's Earnings Call
~2.3 mins read
After Oracle (ORCL) reported fiscal fourth-quarter earnings that missed estimates and announced large cloud infrastructure deals with Microsoft (MSFT), OpenAI, and Alphabet's (GOOGL) Google Cloud, company executives joined the company's earnings call Tuesday to discuss the new partnerships, how artificial intelligence (AI) could drive growth for Oracle, and more.
Oracle announced a partnership with Microsoft and ChatGPT maker OpenAI to extend Azure Al to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) to provide additional capacity for OpenAl.
The company reported that it already has 11 databases at Azure sites and has more locations with Microsoft "coming online soon."
Oracle Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Larry Ellison said the company is building "a very, very large data center" with "lots of Nvidia chips" for AI model training, noting that large data centers are necessary for complex AI training, especially as models' capabilities expand.
Ellison said alongside Microsoft and OpenAI, customers using Oracle's cloud infrastructure and data centers include Nvidia (NVDA), Google, and Elon Musk's xAI, among others.
The company also announced a multi-cloud partnership with Google. OCI and Google Cloud network interconnect were available on Tuesday in 10 regions, Oracle CEO Safra Catz told investors.
Oracle databases at Google Cloud are going live in September, giving customers direct access to Oracle database services running on OCI deployed in Google Cloud. Catz said the company will have 12 Oracle databases at Google Cloud sites live this year.
Amazon's (AMZN) AWS was not in the mix of Oracle's large cloud customers, but Ellison said the company "would love to do the same thing [as it's doing with Microsoft and Google] with AWS."
Catz underlined that Oracle expects revenue to continue to grow, fueled by the data center and cloud capacity required by advancing AI models.
Catz said she "expect[s] continued strong cloud demand to push Oracle Sales and RPO even higher and result in double-digit revenue growth this fiscal year," adding that "each successive quarter should grow faster than the previous quarter as OCI capacity increases to meet demand."
The CEO said the "current momentum will continue as our pipeline is growing even faster than bookings." She noted that fiscal 2025 cloud infrastructure services will grow faster than they did in fiscal 2024.
Oracle said that part of what sets it apart from competitors is that it can offer customers comprehensive data center services.
"Whatever the deployment model is, [Oracle's customers] don't have to compromise," Catz said, adding "some of our competitors may offer some level of sovereignty or some level of disconnected but they don't actually have all the services."She said that "the reason we've been so successful is whether it's disconnected or sovereign, the customer always gets everything—all services, not just some services, and they get to deploy it any way they want."
The CEO also highlighted that sovereignty "may be very critical" for government and some customers, which could set the company apart as organizations look for sovereign solutions to ensure data security.
Oracle shares were up around 9.4% at $135.55 in extended trading as of about 7:15 p.m. ET Tuesday following the company's earnings call.
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Futbol

'We Will Get There' - Who Were Winners & Losers For Tuchel's England?
~6.9 mins read
"It is good, because I learn about my team and my team learn about me," said Thomas Tuchel after his England reign started with routine World Cup qualifying wins over Albania and Latvia. "We will get there." Some players played their way into Tuchel's thinking, while some may have played their way out of the team. Myles Lewis-Skelly, Reece James and Eberechi Eze all got their first England goals - while Harry Kane netted in both games. Lewis-Skelly and James both staked their claims at full-back - but things are less clear at centre-back or on the wings. Albania and Latvia were limited opponents who only briefly threatened to score at Wembley though. Former England goalkeeper and BBC Radio 5 Live pundit Rob Green said: "Tuchel on reflection will turn around and say 'how much could I expect from these two games?' "It's been the bare minimum. Still a lot of question marks." Tuchel added to the BBC: "These qualifiers bring a bit of tension, what happens when the going gets tough, how will the players react? It is important to get better. "I will always fight for them because they have been great in training. Some players played out of position. Taking this into account, overall I am very positive." BBC Sport has a look at who the winners and losers of this England camp were. James was making his first England start since September 2022 against Latvia - and took his chance in style. The 25-year-old - who won the Champions League with Tuchel at Chelsea - has seen his career plagued by injury but is back fit right now. "Reece's quality is at the highest level," said Tuchel afterwards. "We were in close contact in the last weeks. We knew he was in good shape and a good space mentally. That's what he proved. He was very positive throughout the camp." AC Milan's Kyle Walker, 34, started the first game against Albania - and was solid - with James taking the right-back spot three days later. A sensational 25-yard effort into the top corner made him England's first defender to score a free-kick at Wembley since Stuart Pearce in 1992. "I love Reece James," said BBC pundit Green. "He's a brilliant footballer. There are question marks over both right-backs. "Where will Walker be in a year's time? What stage in his career, what shape are we looking at going into the World Cup? "Nobody doubts James' quality, mentality, intelligence. He's a fit guy and his body lets him down now and again. "If you could take Walker's fitness and put it into James' body you've got someone who can be there at end of the World Cup who can match anyone in the world." Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold, who missed these games through injury, will be a strong contender for that spot when he returns. Teenage Arsenal left-back Myles Lewis-Skelly, who scored on his international debut on Friday, was lively again - and won the free-kick which James scored from. The 18-year-old, as he does at club level, often stepped into a central midfield role alongside Gunners team-mate Declan Rice. "He showed in patches what he can do going forward with runs in behind, what he can do controlling in midfield," said Green. "Tonight was not the headline grabbing performance of Friday but really a competent and versatile performance. "[Newcastle's] Lewis Hall will have to stake a strong case when he comes back." Ezri Konsa had two solid games at centre-back, and was unlucky not to score, outperforming those alongside him - Dan Burn and then Marc Guehi. Debutant Burn, 32, looked comfortable in the first half but was caught out a couple of times in the second half against Albania - and Guehi was involved in both of Latvia's first-half chances. "Those sort of games will give Konsa confidence. Two more games under the belt - for momentum, feeling at home in the squad, intangible stuff for an international footballer," said Green. "While they [Burn and Guehi] didn't look as assured as Konsa, they didn't do themselves any harm over the two games." On Newcastle's 6ft 7in Burn, who hit the bar against Albania, Green said: "Going into tournament football maybe a big thing is you can throw him on. He's a different option to when you're playing against stronger opposition and might go to a back three. "He can add something to corners, a huge part of England's success at tournaments." Tuchel likes proper wingers who can get down the line and get crosses in. He will not have seen enough in these two games to convince him he has found his man. The German will be keen to get Arsenal's Bukayo Saka - who he spoke to after the game - and Chelsea's Cole Palmer back from injury. Manchester City's Phil Foden - who likes to play in the middle - struggled in the system against Albania - and was replaced by West Ham's Jarrod Bowen for the second game. Bowen shot off target a couple of times and created a handful of chances on the right, but again did not set the world alight. Marcus Rashford started on the left side for both games. He put 11 crosses into the box against Latvia, and created six chances - but lost the ball 36 times across both matches - far more than anyone else. "Marcus again showed the hunger and desire to go again and again," said Tuchel. "He wasn't sure to take the dribbling. The most important thing was he showed the hunger and confidence in his ability. "We maybe lacked a little bit of the support. They switched sides in the second half but it didn't suit him so well. These are the things we need to learn and take away from these matches. We didn't play into his hand." Eze took his chance when he replaced Bowen just after the hour-mark against Latvia. He cut in from the left before slamming England's third goal home via a deflection. "I'm over the moon for him," said Eze's Crystal Palace team-mate Guehi. "Every time he's come on, he's created things. I'm glad it was on target and they gave it to him [and not as an own goal]." He was set up by Foden, who came on in his central role he relishes. "You're asking for people to stake a claim and I don't think any of them did in a major sense," said Green. "Eze really provided a point of difference as opposed to what was on the pitch. "Bowen didn't really get the opportunities out there he'd hope to have. Rashford didn't have the opportunities to come in on his right foot. Stepping onto his left foot he hasn't got that quality or confidence. "It's a tough one for wingers but you're expecting it with the shape of Latvia." Newcastle winger Anthony Gordon would have hoped to start against Latvia, but he was ruled out of the second game through injury. "Gordon is a big one, he brings something different, the ability to drive forward," said Green. In the middle, Harry Kane scored in both games to extend his England record to 71 goals. Having excelled under Tuchel at Bayern Munich together, there are no doubts about his place in the team. Another place where Tuchel tried different things out was through the middle. Rice, another guarantee on the teamsheet, started both games in his number six role - and set up both of Kane's goals. Liverpool's Curtis Jones started alongside him in the first game but was replaced by Morgan Rogers against Latvia. Rogers, making his first England start, played further forward, alongside Jude Bellingham - whose assist for Lewis-Skelly in the first game was wonderful. Villa's Rogers had his moments against Latvia, with six shots, succeeding with six of his seven dribbles and winning eight of his 12 duels. He ended up on the right wing after England substitutions - where Tuchel thought he did his best work. "He did good. I'm happy with him in general," said Tuchel. "He deserved to start, in a match where we are so dominant it could suit him more to play from the wings. He felt more freedom when we played him there, there was more space." Rogers, speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live afterwards, said: "Thankfully I got my chance and hopefully I can get many more in the future. "I'm a bit disappointed I didn't score. I'm not always going to get it right but if I do the right things then good things will come from that." BBC pundit Green added: "Rogers did well in patches. When the opposition were tired he got a little more space. "Tuchel will look at it and say there's something there. He's probably seen enough to say you can come back and have another go. It's been a positive night for him." Everton's Jordan Pickford has been England's number one goalkeeper since 2018. There had been rumours Tuchel was considering benching him on Friday - but that did not happen in the end. He only had one save to make across either game - although a mix-up with Guehi did allow Latvia one golden opportunity which they missed. The 31-year-old won his 75th cap against Latvia. "As a statement it's good for Tuchel to say he's my number one, nip it in the bud," said Green, who played for England in the 2010 World Cup. "Pickford doesn't get injured. He plays every game for Everton and England. As soon as anyone else plays there's always a question mark maybe he's not number one. If he does what he does for England I'm OK with it." Dean Henderson and James Trafford remained unused substitutes, with Aaron Ramsdale left out of the matchday squad for each one.
All thanks to BBC Sport
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