The deputy editor of The Standard Newspaper, Omar Bah, is currently in Brussels, Belgium attending the European Union Visitors Programme, EUVP, one of the EU’s most selective and influential public diplomacy initiatives.
Bah’s selection places him among a small cohort of young promising leaders and opinion-formers from outside the EU hand-picked by the European Parliament and the European Commission for a tailor-made, first-hand immersion into the heart of European decision-making.
Established in 1974, the EUVP is the flagship outreach programme of the EU, jointly sponsored and administered by the European Parliament and the European Commission. Its purpose is to strengthen people-to-people contacts and promote understanding of the EU’s institutions, policies and values.
Widely regarded as a career-shaping experience, it is distinguished by its highly selective participation process, focusing on individuals occupying or expected to assume influential roles in public, political and intellectual life. It is overseen directly by the Vice-President of the European Parliament and the Vice-President of the European Commission/High Representative for Foreign Affairs.
Each year, only a limited number of young leaders aged 20-40 from non-member countries are invited. The programme invites young, promising leaders from countries outside the European Union to visit Europe to gain a first-hand appreciation of the EU’s institutions, policies, values, and people.
Participants undergo an intensive individual 5-day programme of meetings with EU officials at the EU institutions in Brussels and/or Strasbourg. All programmes are coordinated and arranged by the EUVP Secretariat.
Bah falls under the Media category — reserved for those exercising an editorial function in areas of special relevance to the EU, such as foreign affairs editors, political correspondents of national newspapers and current affairs producers.
As deputy editor of The Gambia’s leading private daily, and one of the country’s most assertive political reporters covering governance, elections, transitional justice and EU-Gambia cooperation, his selection underscores the EU’s recognition of the Gambian independent press as a critical pillar of democracy.
During the programme in Brussels, Bah is meeting with officials from the European Parliament, European Commission, European External Action Service, and other EU stakeholders to discuss EU-Africa relations, electoral support, press freedom, and the EU’s cooperation portfolio with The Gambia.
His participation comes at a crucial time when The Gambia heads toward the 2026 presidential election — an election in which EU support for electoral integrity, anti-disinformation and human rights will be pivotal.
Mr Bah commended the European Union’s Deputy Head of Mission to The Gambia, Raphael Brigandi, and the entire mission in Banjul for nominating him for the programme.
The Standard congratulates Mr Bah on this prestigious recognition.