Meeting “STARFISH International” in the Gambia

Starfish Message:

Our mission is to uplift Gambian girls by providing them with a world-class education that is focused on service to humanity while at the same time providing international service-learning opportunities for our volunteers.

Our vision is to establish a state of the art Academy of Excellence that will provide the Gambian girl-child an exceptional education from pre-school to graduate school. Every participant in this endeavor, including administrators, teachers, volunteers, and students…. Read More…

Nyima Sarr (in Pink) is also a member of the Marine Foundation – click here
Mam-Yassin Sarr (Founder).

Brian S. Mason

Chairman of the Development World Bank – Official Website

Meeting “STARFISH” and the future of Education in the Gambia

Starfish Message:

Our mission is to uplift Gambian girls by providing them with a world-class education that is focused on service to humanity while at the same time providing international service-learning opportunities for our volunteers.

Our vision is to establish a state of the art Academy of Excellence that will provide the Gambian girl-child an exceptional education from pre-school to graduate school. Every participant in this endeavor, including administrators, teachers, volunteers, and students, will be motivated by the end goal of service to humanity and challenged to find effective ways of infusing service to others into their daily work. Read More…

Nyima Sarr (in Pink) is also a member of the Marine Foundation – click here
Mam-Yassin Sarr (Founder) on the left – Fatoumata Jaiteh right.

Villa Marcelle

Welcomed into the ancestral Bensouda home, what an honor, with the great hospitality and excellent cooking of Rose Bensouda. I particularly love this large room Moroccan style and truly, this is exactly what I would see in my future home in The Gambia. What a beautiful place. (Philip is a Master Architect) Founder & Managing Director of P.A.B Designs
P.A.B Designs & Technology Co. Ltd.

On the occasion of a potential purchase of the Coco Ocean Resort & Spa, meeting the Owner, Philip’s Uncle Mr. Driss Bensouda.

The motivation to purchase Coco Ocean came through an assemble of facts that would guide me to start the research and even involve the parties concerned. I had the honor and chance to meet Mr. Driss Bensouda, a wonderful and kind gentleman, and frankly, I did enjoy conversing about the beautiful property of Coco Ocean. Honestly, I do love this place, and as I see the many potentials to hold our first Marine Embassy Resort and hub there. The hotel is much different than any structure I have seen before in that category of establishments. The landscape is truly amazing, and I must say it was excellently designed and conceived. The original owners and management must have given the best to the business until a few years back when they decided to depart for Europe. Since then, the place might not have given its best looks and services. A place like that is not easy to maintain. I really appreciated the meeting with Mr. Driss.

Arrival in the Gambia and the 3 Musketeers.

After the successful Guinea Conakry delegation led by Mrs. Balde, I decided to fly to the Gambia on the solicitation request from 3 gentlemen (1 Gambian and 2 Senegalese) to purchase a bank called “Megabank” on sale by the government. The three new friends who then became the three musketeers had led me to believe that this would be an excellent opportunity for the DWB to establish itself in Africa in some turnkey situation. They did promise me to meet the Governor of the Central Bank and the President of the nation without protocol. Still, it did not happen and instead led to the compromised situation of supporting their expenses. The Megabank became something of a bad reference due to the many stories attached to its strange history. The option became for the DWB to get its financial license directly with the government. I then became interested in acquiring the falling Coco Ocean Resort. Still, the contradiction created by the story of the Megabank left a bitter conflict of interest with my present relations. I preferred to leave this to “time” and return to the property with a direct offer from the Marine Foundation to create the MER Resort (Marine Embassy Resorts Concept) later.

The Real Plan began to register the Marine Foundation’s branch office in the Gambia, and this became a complete success with Philip Abel Bensouda. He now stands as the president of the Marien Foundation The Gambia. The setup would include getting the structure to be receivable of funds immediately with the choice of the best banking structure of the country. Coming to the Gambia was a success since meeting the Bensouda Family. The unexpected turn of positive events was a blessing simply due to the base of a long friendly relationship with the most respected African family, Mrs. Fatou Bensouda, and her great husband, Philip. With his beautiful spouse Rose, the son, Philip Abel, is truly the most trusted people you would need if you came to work and invest in Africa.