6 heads of state attend President Adama Barrow's inauguration

Gambia's president Adama Barrow was finally inaugurated Saturday in Gambia with participations of six heads of state.

Barrow replaced Yaya Jammeh, who ruled his country for 22 years with an iron-fist and was forced by Ecowas to leave the country after he rejected the polls in December.

"The Gambia has changed forever," Barrow said, stressing that "the people are fully conscious that they can put government in office as well as remove it".

Adama Barrow was only three days old when Gambia became independent. Fifty-two years later, he was inaugurated as the third president of the country.

In his second inauguration speech, he pledged to address socio-economic challenges such as health and education, but also foreign relations and national reconciliation.

He was sworn as Gambian president in January at the Gambian embassy in Dakar, capital of Senegal.

President Barrow singled out Senegal for the role the country played in resolving the political deadlock.

"The Gambia during the impasse knows what solidarity means. Senegal has proven to be a friend in times of need," said Barrow

"The people of Senegal hosted the people who fled and the government hosted me as President-elect and worked hand in glove with ECOWAS, the AU, UN and the international community in general to ensure that the verdict of the Gambian people is not violated," he said.

The six heads of state who attended the inauguration included Ellen Sirleaf Johnson of Liberia, Nana Addo of Ghana, Alassane Ouattara of Cote d'Ivoire, Roch Marc Christian Kabore of Burkina Faso, Macky Sall of Senegal and Abdel Aziz of Mauritania.

source: Xinhua