CONTENTS

Momodou Saidy Managing

Director & Editor-In-Chief
Hatab Fadera Deputy Editor-
In-Chief
Mariatou Ngum News Editor
Baboucarr Camara - News Editor
Sheriff Janko - News Editor
Amadou Jallow Senior Reporter
Musa Ndow - Senior Reporter
Momodou Faal- Senior Reporter
Bekai Njie - Senior Reporter
Sanna Jawara - Senior Reporter
Sidiq Asemota - Senior Reporter
Yunus S. Saliu - Senior Reporter
Omar Wally - Senior Reporter
Modou Kanteh - Senior Reporter
Alieu Ceesay - Senior Reporter
Lamin Suwareh
Betty Quacco
Marie Gomez
Nyima Marong
Hassan Jallow

Sadibou Sanneh
Nfamara Drammeh
Mustapha Bojang
Accountant & Financial
Controller
Wura Bah
Admin and Marketing Manager
Modou Lamin Sanneh
Production Manager
Joseph Wilson
IT Manager
INFRASTRUCTURE

AGRICULTURE
YOUTH & SPORTS
EDUCATION
WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

HEALTH
ENERGY
WATER
ICT
TOURISM
TRANSPORTATION
JUDICIARY
ECONOMY
THE BREAKTHROUGH
DEMOCRACY & DEVELOPMENT
NATIONAL SECURITY
EDITORS
REPORTERS
LAYOUT & GRAPHICS BY
LAYOUT EDITORS
PROOF READERS
PHOTOGRAPHERS
05
16
27
35
43
53
58
64
69
79
86
89
94
102
104
111
Capital investment in public infrastructure;
a hallmark of the Revolution
How agriculture has
evolved from 1994 to date
Youth & Sports has occupied
its rightful place in our national development
Education: leadership
declares the space as the limit
Babili Mansa- The No.1
advocate of women advancement
The dramatic evolution of the health sector
22nd July Revolution:
A turning point in national access to electricity
Clean drinking water, key to improved livelihood
Capturing ICT for development
The transformation of Gambia
tourism and culture In 21st Century
Injecting new life into Gambias transport sector:
GTSC, a capital government investment
Judiciary and access to justice since 1994
The success story of Gambias economy
A leaders audacity saves humanity
Democratic institutions,
products of the Second Republic
National security, preserve
nations integrity and territory
Madiba Sillah
Karabulie Conteh
Seedy Bojang
E
steemed readers I wish to seize this opportunity to
once again thank you for the patronage and trust
that you continue to give to the Daily Observer
newspaper.
In our modest efforts to inform, educate and entertain our
readership we have always tried to the best of our ability, with
our trusted and dedicated team of reporters, editors and colum-
nists to furnish you with the most updated news and information
about The Gambia and beyond.
In this noble quest of being the eyes and ears of society we try
to be as objective and unbiased as possible bearing in mind our
responsibility of promoting peace and stability in and around
our dear country.
To this end we are pleased to introduce to you our special
maiden magazine in which we have attempted to chronicle no
less than ffteen sectors of The Gambias economy spanning 20
years since the inception of the July 22nd Revolution in 1994.
It is no gainsaying that the advent of the July 22nd Revo-
lution has transformed The Gambia economically socially and
politically beyond the expectations of our friends and foes alike.
Since the country became independent in 1965, The Peoples
Progressive Party (PPP) led by Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara, domi-
nated Gambian politics for 30 years. It was not until July 22nd
1994 that the PPPs total grip on power was broken by a military
takeover, led by Lt Yahya Jammeh.
The advent of the Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council
in the political life of the Gambia led to signifcant political and
economic changes in the country, notably in Agriculture, Health,
Education and Infrastructural development.
SOLDIERS WITH A DIFFERENCE
At the beginning many people saw it as any other military
take over in Africa, where a group of soldiers, hungry for power
overthrow a democratically elected government and establish a
junta, rob the country of her resources and jail or kill anybody
trying to resist military rule.
The Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council led by the
young 29 year old, Lt. Yahya AJJ Jammeh made the reasons for
taking power from the 30 year old regime of Sir Dawda Jawara
very clear in the frst announcement on Radio Gambia on July
22nd 1994. Lt Jammeh said:
--- (This supreme sacrifce was necessitated because of ram-
pant corruption and the suppressive nature of the country under
the PPP regime for the past three decades. Henceforth a new era
of freedom, progress democracy and accountability will be the
order of government of the day). The message was clear.
The zeal and sense of patriotism of the new military govern-
ment stunned the nation.
The AFPRC took the lead in every imaginable sector of public
life, set-setal (cleansing exercises), enforcement of civil service
discipline, religious activities, and in all these, soldiers could be
seen side by side with civilians in these exercises. There was little
doubt that these soldiers were confdent and were very clear in
their vision for The Gambia. They are indeed soldiers with a dif-
ference.
Many arm-chair pundits and so-called prophets of doom pre-
dicted that the new regime wouldnt last a month, some develop-
ment partners gave them only three months. But twenty years
on, The Gambia under the stewardship of President Jammeh
continues to grow and develop beyond the wildest dreams of the
citizenry.
Despite all odds, President Jammehs government mapped
out a strategy for a return to civilian democratic rule, and a
strategy for socio-economic development, aimed at raising the
standard of living of The Gambian population through a series
of interventions with the aim of transforming The Gambia into a
dynamic middle income country by 2020.
Vision 2020 as this socio-economic strategy is called focuses
on six major areas, namely Agriculture, Trade, Tourism Indus-
try, Financial Services and Human Resource Development.
This special edition, in commemoration of twenty years of
unprecedented economic growth and development under Presi-
dent Sheikh Professor Alhagie Doctor Yahya AJJ Jammeh Na-
sirudeen Babili Mansa has attempted to chronicle ffteen differ-
ent sectors of the country. We enjoin our readers to relax and go
through the pages of this special edition and see for themselves,
frst hand, how the great 22nd July 1994 revolution transformed
the lives of the citizenry towards greater economic and social
prosperity into the 21st century and beyond.
The 22nd of July 1994 will forever be remembered in the his-
tory of The Gambia, as a major milestone that transformed the
lives of the people of this great country.
On a fnal note I want to thank the management, my report-
ers and editors the photographic unit, and indeed the entire staff
of the Daily Observer Newspaper for their dedication, commit-
ment and support in the publication of this Special Edition.
Momodou Saidy
Managing Director
and Editor-In-Chief
FOREWARD
Capital investment
a hallmark of the Revolution
in public infrastructure;
U
narguably, the new or-
der of the 21st Century
development trajectory
has been massive in-
vestments in public infrastructure,
running into millions and billions of
Dollars. The era has seen visionary
governments around the world as-
signing huge chunks of their budgets
to public infrastructure, premised on
the fact that no sustainable develop-
ment can take place without this in-
dispensable necessity. But even at the
level of regional groupings, enhanced
infrastructure is a key item on the
agenda. Such is the case at both the
levels of the Economic Community of
West African States (ECOWAS) and
the African Union each has unit for
infrastructural development.
(By Hatab Fadera, Deputy
Editor-in-Chief)
The Gambia under the Second Re-
public has an ambitious government
under the watch of His Excellency
Sheikh Prof. Alh. Dr. Yahya Jammeh
Nasirul Deen Babili Mansa. In this
race to rapid modernisation through
enhanced infrastructure, his 20-year
old government is not trailing behind.
Since the birth of New Gambia
in 1994, one of the hallmarks of the
Revolution has been massive capital
investments in public infrastructure
across the board. It is best anchored
on the glaring fact that infrastructural
development is the single most indis-
pensable investment need that any
serious and responsible government
would prioritise as far as meeting the
targets is concerned. The reasons are
quite simple and comprehensible
no infrastructure, no development!
Aware of the fact that The Gambia
at the time of his Revolution was lag-
ging behind in terms of many basic
structures compared to neighbouring
countries and [even though the First
Republic under the watch of Sir Daw-
da Kairaba Jawara managed to put
in place a few acceptable projects],
Jammeh rolled out his ambitious in-
frastructural design for the country
that touched on all spheres of the
socio-economic lives of the people.
His objective being to overhaul The
Gambias entire infrastructure system
and modernise it to a standard that is
commensurable with the lofty visions
of his administration.
His government, young as in the
05
transition, kicked-started construc-
tion of projects in earnest at a pains-
taking period when critics or skep-
tics had given his regime just three
months to survive, whilst Gambias
development partners chose to starve
his administration of resources they
injected during the First Republic. But
Jammeh wasnt that leader who would
defne success before achieving it; he
implemented ideas he thought were
the best for the nation; those that had
long been yearned for by the citizenry.
Thus, all those criticisms had fallen on
deaf ear, and consequently, Jammeh
and his administration weathered the
storm to start overhauling Gambias
ailing infrastructure system.
I can remember during the early
days of the Revolution at which time I
was the minister of Finance and Eco-
nomic Affairs, some people said that
Jammehs Revolution wouldnt last
days or weeks. But with Allahs guid-
ance we kept moving towards months
and months and then they said, we
give them another three months.
Some even predicted that we wouldnt
be able to pay salaries. I can remem-
ber I did that budget in front of the
parliament and I paid salaries and
also paid one-by-six across the board.
This was when people started to
say, hey, there is something happen-
ing here. But they however still gave
us six months again and 20 years
after that, we are here. Thats why I
said the Revolution is not only about
development projects, but it is also
an ideological battle because no mat-
ter what we do under our leadership,
there will be reactionary forces within
and outside the country that will try
to sabotage the Revolution. But thank
God, we have a leader who is very fo-
cused and clear in our development
agenda for The Gambia, said Foreign
Minister Balla Garba-Jahumpa, who
was at the time of this interview, the
Transport, Works and Infrastructure
minister.
Twenty years on, The Gambia can
boast of state-of-the-art infrastruc-
tures comparable to those in the sub-
region or even beyond. The devel-
opment projects are visible at every
nook and cranny of the country, and if
for anything, its an indication of the
bitter pills that the leadership had to
swallow just to sacrifce and deliver
the goods required by his people.
06
From 1994 to date, the Revolution
has put in place about 20 major roads
across the country; scores of feeder
roads; 12 major and minor bridges;
four hospitals; proliferation of major
health centres, schools and so on.
From its frst road project in Bund-
ung at the dawn of the Revolution,
others that followed suit included
but not limited to the Kombo Coastal
road; Essau-Kerewan road; Kerewan-
Farafenni, fnanced at the tune of
US$10,783, 956; Farafenni-Lamin
Koto (US$24, 738, 398); Lamin Ko-
to-Passimasi (in the offng); Soma-
Basse road (EUR22, 425, 236.29);
Mandinaba-Seleti road (EUR3, 2 41,
720.54); Barra-Amdalai road, (EUR6,
055, 969.63); Westfeld-Sukuta road;
Brikama-Darsilami-Dimbaya road;
Basse-Vellingara road, (EUR12, 841,
238.94); Madinaba-Soma road; and
the new Senegambia road etcetera.
Also as part of strengthening the
network base of rural dwellers, a lot of
feeder roads have been constructed,
among them, Mayork-Kanilai; Sintet-
Kampasa-Arakon Kunda; and Kam-
fenda-Kanilai.
In addition to this, major bridges
have been put in place to enhance
communication and improve the so-
cio-economic lives of the people. They
include: the Babili Mansa Bridge in
Kerewan; Khamoi Bridge in the Up-
per River Region; Karansani Bridge
in Chamen, CRR; Suduwol Bridge,
URR; Panneh Bridge, Kombo North;
Sankulay Kunda Bridge (fnanced at a
tune of US$5, 500, 000), CRR; Mara-
kissa Bridge, (GMD1, 533, 775); Paka-
liba Bridge, LRR; Erinjang Bridge;
Tanji Bridge; Bakoteh Bridge; Kotu
Bridge, Manjai Bridge, and Bundung
Bridge, all in Kanifng.
Banjul concrete roads
project
Infrastructure in Banjul has always
been a concern for President Jammeh
who had on numerous occasions not
only spoken of his determination to
modernise this city of about 40, 000
inhabitants, but also takes time to
inspect the state of the capital citys
infrastructure. The result of such as-
sessments had culminated in the de-
signing of a concrete road project for
the city. Experts said the idea behind
the concrete roads in Banjul is to ad-
dress its road infrastructure needs on
a long-term purpose given that its low
water table nature wouldnt allow tar
roads to last longer.
Under the supervision of the Min-
istry of Transport, Works, Infrastruc-
ture and Construction, this multi-mil-
lion dalasi project is at an advanced
stage of implementation. The roads
that are being tackled are: Hagan
Street, fnanced at a tune of GMD26,
025, 047; Buckle Street, GMD36, 243,
078; Arch 22-Hagan Street, GMD59,
632, 388; Imam Omar Sowe Junction
to Anglesea Street; the D33M Inde-
pendence Drive road (yet to start) and
the D57M Box Bar street road.
These roads and bridges have not
only enhanced the movement of peo-
ple as well as goods and services, but
increased economic activities in ma-
jor centers and bus stops in the urban,
peri-urban and rural areas.
Thanks to the Revolution, today
there are more than 1000 kilometers
of paved roads around the country
compared to about 374 in 1993 and
these roads have facilitated domestic
and international trade. Moreover,
they have opened up hither to inac-
cessible parts of the country thereby
creating opportunities for the rural
dwellers, especially women, to have
access to hospitals and markets for
their horticultural products. These
are some of the key roads project of
the Revolution, said President Jam-
meh in a statement he delivered on
the eve of the 20th Anniversary of the
July 22nd Revolution.
I just came from visiting the fn-
ishing touches for the Mandinaba-
Soma highway, and when I went to
Soma, people were telling me that
businesses have now been coming
up because now the roads are good.
So these are the things that the July
22nd Revolution has made in the lives
of the Gambian people, Jahumpa,
fondly called Action Man due to his
sense of pragmatism, indicated.
Projects that stand out
Whilst it is diffcult to pinpoint
which development projects of the
Jammeh Administration have a more
profound impact on the lives of the
people since all of them were well cal-
culated and correctly targeted, how-
ever there are a few that make the top
list.
The new Banjul Interna-
tional Airport Terminal
Built by a Senegalese architect,
Pierre Goudiaby Atepa in 1997, just
three years into the Revolution, the
new Banjul International Airport Ter-
minal symbolises the kind of develop-
ments taking place in The Gambia,
giving visitors a taste of what to dis-
cover about The Gambia and its new
leadership. A British journalist from
The Observer, Rowen Moore, had
ranked it among the 10 most beauti-
ful airports in the world. Situated just
24km from Banjul, this airport is a
modern edifce with facilities of the
highest standard. It has restaurants
and bars, a frst class lounge, banking
facilities and a business centre.
The seaport and the airport are
also going through tremendous trans-
formation as both are implementing
projects to improve their competitive-
ness within the sub-region, Jammeh
added.
His Excellency the president and
us decided to leave the old terminal
which we understand was meant for
only 74 passengers, and now the new
Banjul International Airport Termi-
nal is there for all to see, Minister
Balla Garba Jahumpa noted.
Airport Phase II Project
Just on August 17, 2014, the Gam-
bia Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA),
under the Ministry of Transport,
Works and Infrastructure signed a
US$31.9M contract with AREZKI, a
Gambian based construction compa-
ny; and Greenline, a Kuwati company,
for the implementation of phase II of
Airport Improvement Project.
The components in these two
phases include: upgrading of the in-
ternal perimeter fence; upgrading of
the main road to dual carriage way
with traffc lighting; upgrading of the
aeronautical facilities such as DVOR,
DME, ILS, and NDB and upgrading
of the secondary power supply with
additional 640KWA; overlay of the
entire runway and upgrading of the
airfeld ground lighting system.
The fve new major
health facilities
The health sector being one of the
most important domains in the coun-
trys socio-economic development
07
has always been a key pri-
ority on the agenda of the
Jammeh Administration.
Being aware of the fact
that The Gambias health
care system was the least
impressive in terms of
the necessary health in-
frastructure and services
at the time of his Revo-
lution, the government
gave a giant boost to the
sector with fve new ma-
jor health facilities. They
are the AFPRC General
Hospital in Farafenni, Upper Badd-
ibu, North Bank Region; Sulayman
Junkung Jammeh Hospital in Bwiam,
Foni Kansala, West Coast Region;
and Serrekunda General Hospital
in Kanifng; whilst the major health
centers are that of Soma, Jarra West,
Lower River Region and Bundung in
the Kanifng Municipality. Of course
several minor and primary health fa-
cilities have also been built across the
length and breadth of the country.
These infrastructures have
strengthened the health sector and
made it more responsive, vibrant and
08
productive, bringing quality, afford-
able and accessible healthcare service
closer to the doorsteps of every Gam-
bian, especially the rural poor. It has
decongested the main referral hospi-
tal, the Edward Francis Small Teach-
ing Hospital as majority of patients
are no longer referred to Banjul, but
get their treatment right under their
nose.
You will see that during the colo-
nial period, what the colonialists left
us with was the Royal Victoria Hospi-
tal (now Edward Francis Small Teach-
ing Hospital) and so on. The First Re-
public had not built any hospital in
the country, but with the advent of
the Second Republic under the lead-
ership of President Jammeh, we were
able to build all these hospitals. Apart
from hospitals, when I was the min-
ister of Health and Social Welfare,
I saw many health centers that were
built with the advent of the July 22nd
Revolution and even community clin-
ics going into the villages where one
would have access to medical atten-
tion, Minister Garba Jahumpa add-
ed.
University
Perhaps one of the most impor-
tant projects of the Second Republic
is the audacity and courage to launch
a university programme in The Gam-
bia against all odds for the frst time.
For many people, the idea of a uni-
versity programme at the dawn of the
peaceful July 22nd Revolution was
a far-fetched dream with its viabil-
ity questioned at the time. Many had
cast doubt on whether The Gambia
was ready for such an ambitious pro-
gramme given the status quo at the
time, but the visionary revolutionar-
ists led by President Yahya Jammeh
were more determined to have this
golden programme instituted, given
the priceless impact it would have on
The Gambias socio-economic devel-
opment aspirations in line with their
Vision 2020 targets.
In fact it was understood that
when President Jammeh conceived
the idea of establishing the univer-
sity, a panel of intellectuals who were
tasked to do the feasibility study con-
cluded with prejudice that The Gam-
bia needed more than 20 solid years
to prepare for what Jammeh was ask-
ing. Consequently, that intellectual
recommendation found its way in the
gutters of Banjul and Jammeh moved
a step forward to immediately launch
it through a University Extension Pro-
gramme (UEP) with St. Marys Uni-
versity in Canada that graduated the
frst ever homegrown university prod-
ucts on February 16th, 1999. What
09
was thought to be a white elephant
project is today the most thumbed
up project of the Revolution, having
graduated hundreds of homegrown
doctors, lawyers, development sci-
entists, educationists, nurses, public
health personnel, information com-
munication and technology experts,
economists, etcetera.
Gambians can now enjoy univer-
sity education on home soil. Even the
son or daughter of a very poor farmer
can access the university if he or she
has access to it, the minister eluci-
dated.
Sankulay Kunda Bridge
A classic feature along the beauti-
ful River Gambia in the central part
of the country stands the symbolic
Sankulay Kunda Bridge, constructed
over a crossing point that had shroud-
ed itself with a lot of presumed mys-
teries.
Contracted to the Senegalese con-
struction frm, Companie Saheli-
enne DEnterprise (CSE) in partner-
ship with Acrow Africa Alliance, this
US$5.5M bridge connects the Central
River Region island administrative
town of Janjangbureh to the south-
ern part. Its commissioning in 2010
was seen by the people of the area as
a dream come true and a manifes-
tation of the leaderships unwavering
quest to improving the status of Gam-
bians.
The construction of the bridge
had also ended all doubts of bridg-
ing the Sankulay Kunda River due to
the evil spirits believed to inhabit it,
which many people blamed for the
numerous disasters at the river. The
bridge, which is constructed entirely
with metal, has a dual lane carriage,
a length of about 121.9 meters with a
width of about 7.32 meters, a capacity
of 350 tonnes, footpath of 1.5 meters
wide and a lifespan of about 80-90
years.
This magnifcent project has since
its opening been impacting on the
lives of the people of the area, who
are mainly poor farmers. It has since
boosted and enhanced agricultural
productivity given the fact that farm-
ers are no longer faced with problems
associated with having to cross to the
other side of the river by ferry or boat
to get to their farms. It has also en-
sured that economic activities four-
ished after it addressed constraints
in communication and access to mar-
kets.
The Kombo Coastal Road
Project
Those communities sitting on the
coast of the beautiful Atlantic Ocean in
the southern part of Kombo were per-
haps some of the most marginalised
areas of the country despite their stra-
tegic location. They had no impressive
infrastructure and the road condition
particularly was in a state of grave di-
lapidation. But all that became a thing
of the past when the Second Republic
designed and implemented a whop-
ping multi-million-dollar road proj-
10
ect. It connects Kartong through the
coastal villages to Banjul.
We all remember what the condi-
tions of the roads were in the coun-
try particularly with reference to the
Kombo coastal area that used to take
people many hours to travel. Some
commercial vehicles will not even
take you there. But with the advent
of the July 22nd Revolution, a lot of
infrastructural developments have
taken place and Kombo Coastal Road
is there for all to see, the Works min-
ister affrmed.
The new National Assem-
bly Complex
Jammehs government is one that
believes in democracy and indepen-
dence of the arms of government. His
government is well aware that democ-
racy is the lifeblood for sustainable
development and it will be hard for
any government to function without a
real democracy. And for The Gambia
to be seen as a country that really val-
ues democracy, it has to put in place
relevant infrastructures that enhance
its dispensation. The regime could not
accept the fact that the second most
important arm of the government
National Assembly has up till now
had to be housed at a former leisure
place of colonial administrators. Con-
sequently, the government on 26th
July 2010 awarded a contract to an
Indian company Shapoorji Pallonji
Company Limited and Stup Consul-
tants Private Company Limited (re-
sponsible for design and supervision)
for the construction of the new As-
sembly building.
The US$27M new National As-
sembly complex that is almost com-
pleted is a high-tech three-foor Leg-
islative house. The ground foor is
mainly for offces; the frst foor would
be National Assembly hall, whilst the
second foor will comprise of a gallery
for visitors, auditorium, dining hall,
library, washing hand kitchen and a
landscape.
Major projects in the off-
ing
But with Vision 2020 yet to come,
one might think that many other ma-
jor, perhaps more advanced projects
are in the pipeline for the general
good of the citizenry. And what are
they?
Jahumpa again: The President is
right; he said it is not safe to have
one airport and now he is thinking
of where and how we can mobilise the
resources and build a complete new
airport.
The president with his thinking
said it is also necessary for us to con-
struct a conference city so that we can
move away from renting hotels. We
have been talking about roads and
bridges, but now, he is also thinking
of something higher than those and
that is to have a railway system in
The Gambia. Studies have been done
and it will be done in phases. For ex-
ample, phase 1 from the Ports coming
through Bund Road and all the way
here to Old Jeshwang, Westfeld to
Brikama.
His Excellency the president is
also thinking about the construction
of two major hospitals with 1111 beds.
You know the president is the super
minister of Agriculture, so his think-
ing is, if you remember before the
First Republic squandered away The
Gambia Produce Marketing Board
(GPMB), how busy that place was in
processing groundnuts, groundnut
cake and so on. So the president is
thinking that with the construction of
a new groundnut processing plant, it
11
is going to be very interesting. We are
also going to construct a fruit process-
ing plant. So these are the major proj-
ects we have in the future.
Multi-million-Dalasi Ki-
ang West road project
Earlier in July this year, construc-
tion work for phase one of the Sank-
andi-Karantaba feeder road project,
fnanced at the tune of D120M, had
commenced in the Lower River Re-
gion (LRR) District of Kiang West.
The move came barely two months
after the Gambian leader had pledged
his governments willingness to tackle
a stretch that links the main South
Bank highway to scores of villages in
the interior.
This approximately 50km-road is a
signifcant stretch in the Lower River
Region that enables dwellers in that
inner and farthest part of the region
to access the main South Bank High-
way for either travelling to the provin-
cial commercial town of Jarra Soma
or to the Kombos and Greater Banjul.
Dwellers had over the past years been
yearning for its reconstruction given
its dilapidated nature that made lives
a bit unbearable.
With these achievements cata-
logued above, it will be hard to dis-
pute the Revolutions giants stride
in making a difference in the lives of
ordinary Gambians. The impacts have
been far-reaching and every Gambian
will fairly state that he or she has had
gotten his or her share of the national
cake, baked by the Second Republic.
The future can only be an optimistic
one given the lofty development pro-
grammes envisaged by the Revolu-
tionary government.
Transportation; whether by air,
land, sea, railway or cable is an inte-
gral activity in our everyday life, given
that it would be almost impossible for
life to go on without it. It is defned
by many scholars as the movement
of people, goods and services from
one place to another. Its importance
has since been underscored, espe-
cially in measuring its contributions
and impact on the socio-economic
development of societies. Since time
immemorial, transportation has al-
ways been a key contributor to the
economic lives of the people as the
general public depends on it to move
from one place to another in search of
different things.
But with time, especially with the
advent of technology in the 21st centu-
ry, transportation system of countries
become even more organised given its
potential nature in engineering eco-
nomic growth. Many a country have
embraced and institutionalised public
12
transport system for many reasons.
This is because a reliable transporta-
tion system is a catalyst to national
development in that it fosters growth;
creates employment; bridges commu-
nication gaps and bring people closer;
enhances the socio-economic lives of
the people; facilitates trade linkages;
and ensure that the average travel-
ling community accesses a reasonable
transportation fare.
In The Gambia, public transport
system (land) started in 1976 after the
parliament passed an Act creating The
Gambia-Libya Arab Public Transport
Corporation. This Act, however, was
amended during the 1987/1988 fs-
cal year and consequently, it brought
about the establishment of the Gam-
bia Public Transport Corporation
(GPTC). The major aims of the Corpo-
ration as prescribed by the legislation
were to operate and maintain the
public transport services of The Gam-
bia for the conveyance of passengers
and goods.
The company started its opera-
tions with only one shareholder, the
Gambia government, with three mil-
lion shares. The ownership remains
the same but the structure in terms of
the number of shares has changed fol-
lowing the merger of the former Gam-
bia Ferry Services Ltd with GPTC in
1993.
Prior to its collapse, The Gambia
Public Transport Corporation (GPTC)
was a great revenue booster to the
national economy through a feet of
buses that ply the length and breadth
of the country with depots in major
provincial towns. The services of the
GPTC had to a great extent enhanced
the livelihood of the people, in that
the public was able to travel far and
near at an acceptable fare.
Through its Blue and White Ger-
man made Man Buses, the GPTC was
a choice for many a Gambian given
that the services were not only reli-
able, but the buses were speedy. For
instance, during the hay days of the
company, a farmer or civil servant
in Kiang Nema or Jarra Soma in the
Lower River Region could wait un-
til after taking his lunch on Sunday
and then go to the bus stop to catch
up with the 5pm bus to Kombo, and
yet be able to go to work the following
morning without being late. This was
how reliable the company was!
But sadly, after years of effective
services, the company gradually start-
ed degrading due to what many con-
cluded was grave mismanagement
that led to the aground of many of its
buses. With of no use to the general
public and the government since it
failed to fulfll the very mandate that
established it, the National Assembly
was forced to repeal the Act that put
it in place.
The November 19th 2012 decision
by the lawmakers apparently paved
the way for winding down the Corpo-
ration and in the process, cut losses
accrued to the public purse.
Re-launch of public
transport in 2013
Just barely seven months after
the lawmakers landmark decision to
repeal the GPTC 1976 Act, the gov-
ernment of The Gambia announced
13
the re-launching of a new and fresh
public transport system through the
Social Security and Housing Finance
Corporations (SSHFC) bankrolled
Gambia Transport Service Company
on June 7th, 2012.
The 50 state-of-the-art buses, of
Ashok-Leyland (one of the most rep-
utable bus and truck manufacturing
companies in the world), according
to the offcials, have been specifcally
designed for The Gambia.
The re-launch of this system was
greeted with great joy from the gen-
eral public, who missed the presence
of a reliable public transportation sys-
tem. It came at a time when the trav-
elling community was being exploited
thanks to shylock type of commercial
drivers whose transport fare structure
was seriously erratic and disorga-
nized.
The Gambia Transport Service
Company (GTSC) is a new company
owned by Social Security and Housing
Finance and Corporation (SSHFC). It
was established in January 2013, with
operations started precise on 22nd
July. The essence is to re-launch pub-
lic transport service for the general
public. It was conceived by the gov-
ernment through SSHFC and all the
necessary support was given.
We have 35 (green coloured buses)
for normal public transport, 10 (white
coloured buses) for school and 5 (blue
coloured luxurious buses with fat
TV screen, air condition) for private
service. Currently we are starting op-
erations at a minimal level. We just
started launching the provincial route
recently. The intention is to go coun-
trywide for the beneft of all, the gen-
eral manager of the Company, Seedy
Kanyi told The Observer Focus in a
recent exclusive interview.
Reliability and afford-
ability
It is a glaring fact that reliability,
affordability and effciency are key
things that are crucial in the manage-
ment and operations of a transport
company as they connect very well to
14
its success. The difference between
a good public transport system and
the commercial type system is that
the former puts all these three things
into consideration in its operations,
whereas the latter more or less cares
less about them. But if the words of
the man at the helm of the GTSC are
anything to go by, these things are
given higher priority in their opera-
tions.
We have competitors taxi but
rather in a very disorganised form.
People have been taken for a ride
and have always been complaining
about fare structures even though
The Gambia National Transport Con-
trol Association (GNTCA) is trying to
put things in place, but they are fac-
ing some challenges. We are charg-
ing lower than others and ours will be
consistent and not erratic or based on
demand and supply. We an organised
body with set tariffs which we must
go by. The buses are new and manu-
factured in 2013. We are assured of
reliability and durability. The timing
of the buses are also good because
the general road conditions are also
good, he told The Focus.
Designed for Gambia
Given that the durability of the
buses also has to very much do with
the prevailing conditions of the coun-
try vis--vis the infrastructure and
weather, thus, the question is wheth-
er they have been designed based on
those circumstances.
Kanyi explains: The buses are in
a way designed for The Gambia be-
cause when the parent (SSHFC) com-
pany was working on the modalities
to reviving the public transport sys-
tem, different options were consid-
ered and Ashok Leyland happened
to be a better option. One or two vis-
its were made to the manufacturing
company and discussions were held
and a technical team was sent by the
manufacturing company to The Gam-
bia to assess the road conditions and
the general weather conditions before
they started assembling the buses. So
in a way they were actually designed
for The Gambian conditions.
Kanyi is also of the view that the
re-launch of this transport system
also comes along with enormous eco-
nomic benefts, but singled out that it
would create access to the so-called
remote areas through effective and ef-
fcient transport system.
We want to make sure that wher-
ever one is, he or she should be able
to afford to move from that village
to another to transact businesses. So
generally it will facilitate economic
development and trigger it. You can
call it the new factors of production.
In every developed or developing
country, they can comfortably move
forward if the public transport wheth-
er air, land, sea is taken cared off, he
underscored.
The culture of Mainte-
nance and sustainability
Regular maintenance or preven-
tive maintenance plays an important
role for the survival of any company
of this nature. Apparently, experience
has shown that the culture of mainte-
nance is lacking in most institutions,
thus taking its huge toll on the sur-
vival of those institutions. One can-
not merely handle an investment or
anything in the interest of public with
total negligence to maintenance.
Yes GPTC did survive for decades,
but inadequate maintenance also con-
tributor to the grounding of its buses,
thus leading to the eventual collapse
of the Corporation. Although too soon
to jump to conclusion with its succes-
sor vis--vis maintenance, but it ap-
pears that the new company seems
to have understood that it needed a
highly equipped engineering unit to
take care of the regular maintenance
of the buses for sustainability.
Through a memorandum of un-
derstanding with the manufacturers,
we got a well stocked state-of-the-art
spare part store that we can use for
the foreseeable future. We are about
to get our mobile workshop truck on
the way. Im not sure whether we are
having it in the country right now, but
we may be one of the frst to have a
brand new mobile workshop truck so
that in case of minor breakdowns, can
be deployed to fx the problem. We
have gotten the trained manpower for
this area. There is no fear of ground-
ing the buses because of the lack of
spare parts, he disclosed.
Boosting economic ac-
tivities along the route
Apart from the fact that the new
company would create a lot of em-
ployment opportunities and expedite
the overall development of the coun-
try, what also remains critical to men-
tion is the fact that it will greatly spur
economic activities along the various
routes in the country, especially at
different bus stations. It will encour-
age women and rural dwellers to en-
gage in petty trading in most major
stops in the provinces, thus boosting
their livelihoods and lessen the im-
pact of poverty. More importantly, it
will also inject a new life into major
provincial towns like Soma, Basse,
Farafenni, Bansang, Brikama-Ba, and
Sibanor amongst others. In the hay
days of the defunct GPTC, these desti-
nations used to experience a surge in
economic activities as the passengers
aboard will use the opportunity to buy
things at these stops to keep for their
long journeys.
So indeed the establishment of The
Gambia Transport Service Company
is injecting a new life into the public
transport system of the country with
immeasurable economic benefts.
15
How agriculture
has evolved from 1994 to date
T
here can be no sustain-
able development without
the attainment of food
self-suffciency, which un-
doubtedly makes agriculture a crucial
component in the development en-
deavours of every nation. The recog-
nition of this reality in combination
with other factors explains President
Yahya AJJ Jammeh Babili Mansa Na-
sirul Deens approach towards farm-
ing, putting agriculture as the bedrock
of The Gambias development.
Twenty years on today Edi-
tor Sheriff Janko assesses some
of the gains made in this crucial
sector.
What is unique about the July
22nd Revolution is that the president
did not just stop at making mere pol-
icy statements of the initiative, but he
personally takes the lead as the Num-
ber One farmer in the country. He
went further than that, proving to the
entire nation and beyond, that he is
an action-oriented leader, who stands
by his words.
Regardless of his status as a presi-
dent, he toils on the farm to produce
food for the nation and beyond. There
is no reason to speak further in justi-
fying this statement, as his position in
the clarion call for back-to-the-land is
a well-known fact across the world.
This is solid proof to all skeptics
that the president and the people, are
collectively registering success in the
drive to make The Gambia food self-
suffcient, a reality which has enabled
us earn the respect of the world.
However, we should not lessen our
efforts. We should continue to spur
our ambitions in agricultural devel-
opment. By so doing, the dream of
transforming the country into a Sili-
con Valley will be dreams come true.
His ambition for a redirection in this
sector dates back to the transition pe-
riod, when he championed the back-
to-the-land call initiative, aimed at
ensuring that the nation achieves
food self-suffciency.
Meanwhile, since agriculture is the
mainstay of the countrys economy
and a life-saver for the citizens, pro-
viding over 70 percent of employ-
ment, President Jammeh continues
to encourage and inspire more Gam-
bians into farming, through his prag-
matic and exemplary farming activi-
ties, as seen in Kanilai where he often
spends his annual leave, toiling hard
16
on his farms.
His government has since 1994
been making giant efforts towards
agricultural mechanisation in view
of the fact that the nation cannot be
food self-suffcient and export sur-
plus without the former [mechanisa-
tion]. This was manifested over the
past years, as he has distributed new
tractors to all the regions and dis-
tricts of the country in anticipation
for a major assault on food insecurity.
Despite the fact that, a miserable crop
failure was registered during the pre-
vious cropping season, due to erratic
and poorly distributed rainfall, these
tractors together with the massive
investments in millions of dollars by
the government and its development
partners are expected to reinforce the
anti-hunger crusade of the country in
the coming years.
Efforts have also been made by the
government to diversify this sector,
as much as possible and introduce
well-recommended new seed variet-
ies from other countries.
Agriculture continues to play a
prominent role in the livelihoods of
the people of this country, as it con-
tinues to contribute over 30% of GDP,
providing employment for over 70%
of the population. And since 1994,
there has been a signifcant develop-
ment in the felds of agriculture and
food security, in particular. Techni-
cally, most people will say the prog-
ress and the developments have been
very slow, but this development can
be regarded as a silent transformation
of agriculture from what it used to
be before 1994. A very good example
is with regards to food availability,
taking into account when you talk of
food security; there are two important
components: availability and access.
Availability is what you produce
and access is having the resources to
purchase food, if you cannot produce.
And weve seen signifcant improve-
ments in access to food since 1994;
and a good example is that before
1994, there used to be food shortfalls,
food defcits and then the excuses
were that the ships bringing in food
from Asia were delayed; and there
was a lot of hoarding of what food was
available. For example, shopkeep-
ers and traders will tell you that you
have to buy tomato paste from him or
her to sell you rice. And there used
to be long queues all over the country,
whenever there is a shortage of rice,
the Minister of Agriculture Solomon
Owens told the Daily Observer, dur-
ing an exclusive interview as part of
activities marking the 20 anniversary
of the July 22nd Revolution.
In addition to that, he said, tradi-
tionally The Gambia and some of its
neighbours used to experience what
they used to call the hungry season, a
period between July and September;
and this is usually when the food pro-
duced during the season is exhausted,
and there is no food and people would
start rationing the amount of food
they consume during the period, thus
the name Hungry Season.
This is now a thing of the past and
even if it exists, it has become very
minimal to the extent that people
dont even experience or feel it. Now-
17
adays, you cannot tell the difference
in terms of food availability between
the months of January and August,
because even where availability is
restricted, access is there and food is
still available in the stores and in the
warehouses. So, that is a signifcant
improvement when it comes to food
security, thanks to the July 22nd Rev-
olution, food is available throughout
the year.
Minister Owens added, So, I think
it is a big success in the area of agri-
culture between 1994 and now. Sec-
ondly, I think farmers have become
richer between 1994 and now, taking
into account the producer price of
their various commodities has been
increasing every year. Government
has been paying higher prices, espe-
cially for the export crop (groundnut)
and this has encouraged farmers to
really produce more.
Presently, The Gambia produce
over 100,000 hectares of groundnut
that is cultivated and the same hect-
ares for early millet. Now, to show
another development in the food se-
curity aspect, millet used to be the
staple food in most parts of the rural
Gambia. Today most of our millets
are exported to countries as far as
Niger; you can fnd Gambian millets
in Niger. And what farmers are doing
is selling the millet they produce and
buying rice. Again, this is even one of
the reasons, why we thought of com-
ing up with Vision 2016; whereby the
country wont import rice, but pro-
duce all the rice we consume. The
consumption of rice is an indication
of improved standards of living.
Most of the countries in West Af-
rican did not have rice as their staple
food; until 1994 there were only four
countries, notably The Gambia, Sen-
egal, Liberia and Sierra Leone that
used to widely consume rice. But to-
day, every single country in Africa is
consuming rice and so we are spend-
ing billions of dollars, just to import
rice every year. But again this is an in-
dication of high standards of living,
he stated.
Presidents back-to-the
land clarion call
Since he took over the country in
1994, the Gambian leader has called
on Gambians, especially the youth
folks to revisit the land and grow
what we eat and eat what we grow.
This clarion call has paid dividends
as some have embraced the move,
but still there is a need for attitudinal
change, especially among the youth
folks. This call is extremely impor-
tant, taking into account the amount
of money spent on importing food
into the country, including rice.
According to Minister Owens, the
country still imports wheat four, veg-
etable oil, tomato paste, tonnes of on-
ions and Irish potatoes; and when put
together it amounts to billions of da-
lasis spent on imported food. These,
he said, are all commodities that can
be produced in the country.
Just take an example of MA
Kharaf, one of the private sectors en-
gaged in large-scale production of on-
ions and other food stuff.
And government has given them
this directive that they inform us two-
three months before their harvest, so
that we ban the importation of those
produced until theirs are all sold.
Equally, the presidents clarion call
for people to go back-to-the-land, so
as to eat what we grow and grow what
we eat I think is in the best interest of
Gambians. Interestingly, people were
thinking that the price of goods will
eventually go down, but the demand
for food worldwide is on the increase
every day; and one thing that will
never go down in price is food that is
imported into any country. Thats the
importance of this clarion call.
Its an arguable fact that when
foods are produced locally, costs are
reduced and availability is there. And
there will be no delays in shipping
from Asia to Africa, and most impor-
tantly, its freshness is undisputed.
Therefore, it is a moral responsibil-
ity for people to start producing their
own food locally, because in the long
run food can be used as a weapon
against countries, meaning you may
have all the money to buy food and
not be able to get that food into the
country. So, one of the greatest poli-
cies that has come out of 1994 to date
has been the presidents clarion call
18
for people to go back-to-the-land and
grow what they eat and eat what they
grow. By doing so, they will get fresh-
ness, quality and quantity.
Mechanisation in Agri-
culture
Mechanisation in agriculture is an
important component in the develop-
ment of any nation. Today, as can be
attested to, there are a lot of tractors
countrywide and the government has
insisted on mechanisation as one of
the strategies to increase agricultural
production and productivity. In this
day and age, powered machinery has
replaced many jobs formerly carried
out by men or animals, such as oxen,
horses and mules. This is indeed an-
other great transformation in ensur-
ing that farmers in the country realise
high yields.
Another development that has
happened in the agriculture sector is
the means and ways of production. It
used to be done with the traditional
hand hoes and a little bit of oxenisa-
tion. Since 1994, the government of
The Gambia has distributed over 500
tractors to farmers and is being used
in land preparation; and just recently
the government also brought in seed-
ers, fertilizer, applicators and spray-
ers. These are all implements that go
with the tractors so as to mechanise
the entire agricultural production
process. That is indeed a signifcant
contribution to the agricultural devel-
opment. Again, weve seen increased
irrigation and rises in the production
of rice has gone on the increase, add-
ed agric minister Owens.
Before 1994, there were only few
pump irrigation schemes in the coun-
try, mostly in URR and parts of CRR,
but today the country has moved from
pump irrigation to tidal irrigation;
and with tidal irrigation the govern-
ment has brought much more land
into production, especially during the
dry season. In addition to tidal irriga-
tion, the government is also exploring
the possibilities of using the ground
water to produce upland crops, such
as rice, groundnut and maize.
There is also the proliferation of
vegetable gardens all over the country.
Formerly, vegetable garden produc-
tion was only restricted to West Coast
Region, but now there are countless
vegetable production schemes all over
the country; as projects have come in,
such as the LHDP and GALDEP, to
name a few; and each of these proj-
ects have established a number of
5-hectare gardens facilities for farm-
ers, especially women farmers all over
the country. And this has increased
the availability of fresh vegetables
throughout the year. Thats another
signifcant development from 1994
to date. Some of the vegetable gar-
dens are equipped with boreholes and
some even with vegetable processing
equipment.
Availability of seeds &
fertilizer
Taking into account they are inter-
twined naturally, President Jammeh
continues to give this sector promi-
nence so as to ensure high productiv-
ity. Its an arguable fact that seeds and
soil fertility are the two components
in ensuring sustainable development,
especially in agriculture. Due to con-
tinuous cropping of our soils, it has
resulted in decline in productivity in
most cases, but government is aware
of that and is putting a lot of emphasis
and strategies to address the issue.
Government is going to help
breeders to come up with new vari-
eties of crops, but where we cannot
breed the seeds here, we can get seeds
from other countries and introduced
them here for adaptability. We do get
seeds from other countries for adapt-
ability test and where these are suc-
cessful they are multiplied, because
if we have varieties of crops that are
only producing one to two tonnes; and
then there are other crops that has
the potential to produce fve tonnes
I think thats where we come and try
to multiply them here. We talk about
rice and that is a big component of Vi-
sion 2016.
For example, in Asia, using hybrids
people are aiming at 15/16 tonnes of
rice per hectare. In The Gambia, we
are still below 2 tonnes. So with re-
gards to Vision 2016, if we can get to
5/6 tonnes per hectare, we are safer;
19
and the country is working towards
that. Seeds are very important and
currently we are doing seeds improve-
ment and multiplication, not only for
rice, but even groundnuts, sesame and
maize. The president even gave direc-
tives to see the possibilities of breed-
ing and developing vegetable seeds in
the country, because the country still
imports a lot of vegetable seeds in the
country.
According to him, government is
spending millions every year to bring
in inorganic fertiliser, mostly com-
pound fertiliser, (NPK) and Urea, as
the countrys soils are low in nitrogen,
phosphorous and potassium being
the three main elements in crop pro-
duction.
He maintained that farmers are
also encouraged to go into organic
fertilisation, as the country boosts of
over 400,000 heads of cattle, noting
that all the manure produced from
these animals can help improve the
fertility of soil. But what we are see-
ing is that in most of these commu-
nities the locals will gather this ma-
nure that can help the soil and burn
it before planting. So, extension and
education of farmers is also ongoing
to sensitise them to plough these ma-
nures into their soils.
Livestock sector
Shifting to the livestock sector, it
has been recently discovered that the
countrys cattle population is again
on the increase. Around 1994, there
was something about 200,000 heads
of cattle in the country, now because
of sound management and availabil-
ity of veterinary drugs and improved
feeds for the livestock, the last cen-
sus revealed that there are 400,000
heads of cattle in the country.
As we all know cattle are wealth
and contribute about 37% to the ag-
ricultural GDP of the country. That
is indeed a signifcant increase from
what it used to be in 1994 to what it
is now. Herders or cattle owners are
now more confdent in increasing
their herd sizes, because of the avail-
ability of veterinary drugs and quality
of feeds. So, the development regis-
tered is tremendous as it cut across
wide sectors, including horticulture,
crop production and animal produc-
tion and the list goes one.
However, over the past years there
has been an upsurge in the private
sector involvement in poultry produc-
tion on a large-scale. For example,
EMPAS and a couple of others that
produce poultry products, such as
eggs and poultry in the country. We
have dairy plants that also produce
milk and yoghurt. These are all de-
velopment initiatives that go to show
how the agriculture sector has evolved
from 1994 to date.
Presidents calls for shift to
commercial agriculture
During one of his Dialogue with
the peoples tour, the president did
not only call for Gambians to focus on
commercial agriculture, but also chal-
lenged farmers to shift and engage
more in large-scale agricultural pro-
duction, so that the nation can move
from predominantly subsistence
farming to commercial farming, in
line with the objectives of his govern-
ment for the attainment of food secu-
rity and export of the surplus in the
shortest possible time.
Meanwhile, agriculture all over
the world has passed the subsistence
level; and it should be seen as a busi-
ness and thats what the president has
realised. People can make money in
agriculture, but the countrys farming
population is ageing; and if you go to
the farms you will only fnd old men.
Thats why every day the leadership
implores on the youth to revisit the
land, because whatever you produce
in the feld can generate money. Mid-
dlemen, who serve as intermediary,
are making so much money from the
farmers.
When these farmers produce
20
their crops, middlemen buy them at
cheaper prizes and take it to big mar-
kets where they make more than ten
times proft, compared to the farmers.
So, why cant farmers manage how
they market their own crops because
whatever is grown in this country can
be easily sold? Imagine what a bag
of millet now cost and supposedly
you have a hectare of millet; and you
were able to produce 2 tonnes, you
are talking about 40 bags and a bag
of millet is going for a thousands and
fve hundred dalasis. Now multiply
40 by 1500, you are better than any-
body working in an offce in terms of
income for the whole year.
Therefore, it is important for peo-
ple to see agriculture as a business as
there is money in it and people should
go into it. I hope the presidents per-
sonal intervention in agriculture has
changed the mindset of Gambians
towards agriculture, as he is always
calling on them to go back to the land
and see farming as a business. Presi-
dent Jammeh is leading by example,
as he is the number one farmer in the
country. The president grows so much
rice, groundnut and maize and every
other crop produced in The Gambia.
And every livestock available in this
country, the president produces it.
Im sure people are usually impressed
with his level of production, coupled
with the quality of his produce and
the prices he sells it to the people.
But again he (President) uses this
produce to support the population
in various areas. You go to his farms
you even get overwhelmed, person-
ally whenever I go there, I get over-
whelmed. A very good example was
that, recently during the last tour he
talked about going into large-scale
rice production. And within a few
weeks he had already put 70 hectares
of swampland into production with
impressive results
Minister Owens maintained that
these are some of the qualities that
people can copy from the Gambian
leader in his quest to ensure food self-
suffciency drive of the nation.
History of aquaculture in
The Gambia
Aquaculture, probably the fast-
est growing food-producing sector,
now accounts for nearly 50 percent
of the worlds food fsh. The need to
exchange reliable information on all
related subjects is becoming a key is-
sue for the responsible management
of aquaculture. However, the earli-
est freshwater aquaculture trials (fsh
farming) were carried out in the 1970s
and involved the culturing of Tilapia
fsh in small family fshponds, by
farmers in their rice felds in the fresh
water zone of the river.
According to reports, in 1982 a
company called West African Aqua-
culture engaged in fsh farming and
two fsh farms were being operated
in Pirang and Sanyang points, by
Scan Gambia Limited from Norway,
who introduced the foreign Black Ti-
ger Prawn in 1988, but closed down
in 1992 due to fnancial problems. In
1982, The Gambia Industrial Farm,
West Africa Aquaculture, a semi-
intensive farm, including a hatchery
and a processing plant came in pro-
ducing to the EU standards. Of the
original 200 hectares, only 50 are be-
ing used for production today. With a
production of 50 tonnes in 2006, this
farm is the only one in West Africa
today with the capacity to serve as a
base for modeling production meth-
ods adapted to the local context.
Meanwhile, the present situation
of aquaculture activities is currently
being carried out by the Department
of Fisheries, in cooperation with the
Department of Agriculture. The pilot
fsh culture ponds at Sapu in the Cen-
tral River Region is part of the con-
tinuing effort of the Department to
assist farmers improve their incomes
21
and nutritional status. Several com-
munities in the area have expressed
interest in fsh farming, but lack ad-
equate specialised equipment and the
technical know-how about the pro-
cesses associated with fsh farming.
Tilapia is one of the fsh species to be
considered for future use in the trial
rice felds of the project.
However, the Gambian leader
himself has handled aquaculture with
great interest. He is today the leading
aquaculturist in the country, practic-
ing the fsh farming method in his
home village of Kanilai.
Potential growth
The development and growth of
commercial aquaculture holds great
possibilities and is hoped to decrease
or hold the countrys reliance on net-
ted fsh. This coupled with shrimp and
oyster culture has the potential to be
economically and naturally feasible
within the area of The Gambia rivers
estuarine geography, as well as the
fresh water food plains of the Cen-
tral River Region for species, such as
catfsh and Tilapia. Commercial aqua-
culture entails culturing of high eco-
nomic value species, such as shrimps
aimed at export market.
Government policy is targeted at
the nutritional and economic poten-
tial of the aquaculture sector. The
Gambia governments policy on the
three areas of the aquaculture; namely
commercial, artisan and subsistence
were targeted for development. The
strategy includes the development
of community participation, training
farmers in pond construction meth-
ods and maintenance, tidal irrigation
methods and access to loans.
US$65 Million Nema
project
The Nema is a seven-year project
(2013-2019), designed to build on the
achievements and experiences of ear-
lier IFAD supported projects in the
agricultural sector. It is a response
to a GOTG request to IFAD for sub-
stantial projects that will contribute
to the implementation of the Gam-
bia National Agricultural Investment
Plan (2011 -2015), particularly pro-
grammes 1 and 3; improve Agricul-
tural Land and Water Management;
and develop Agricultural Chains and
Market Promotion in efforts to allevi-
ate food insecurity.
The ministry of Agriculture, in col-
laboration with the regional agricul-
tural directorates in the Central River
Region earlier launched the US$65
million countrywide Nema project
in Janjangbureh, CRR. As part of
International Fund for Agricultural
Development (IFAD) framework of
cooperation with The Gambia, IFAD
continues to support national efforts,
geared towards agriculture and rural
development. This project is in di-
rect response to the government of
The Gambias formal request to IFAD
to lead in the implementation of the
Gambia National Agriculture Invest-
ment Plan (GNAIP) 2011-2015.
However, the government of The
Gambia, through the able leadership
of His Excellency, Sheikh Professor
Alh Dr. Yahya AJJ Jammeh, Babili
Mansa Nasiru Deen continues to pri-
oritise food security, by placing it high
in his development agenda. The Na-
tional Agricultural Land and Water
Management Development Project
(Nema) is one of such projects, aimed
at enhancing food security and pov-
erty reduction in The Gambia, a phe-
nomenon regarded as a priority for
the government of The Gambia.
The project, according to offcials,
will tackle the limited productiv-
ity and economic carrying capacity
of land used for farming, and poorly
developed domestic markets that gen-
erate very low real (cash) demand for
the main produce of smallholders.
The overall objective, offcials added,
is to reduce malnutrition and elimi-
nate hunger. And its development
objective is to increase incomes from
improved productivity, based on sus-
tainable land and water management
practices.
The then deputy permanent sec-
22
retary at the ministry of Agriculture,
Asheme Cole during the launch of the
project in CRR, said the project would
take an integrated approach to the de-
velopment of both rice and vegetable
value-chains.
He pointed out that the project is
fnanced by a grant from IFAD, the
government of The Gambia, Islamic
Development Bank (IDB), fnancial
service providers (FSPs), other part-
ners, including private sector off tak-
ers and benefciaries. He said Nema is
fully aligned with the Gambia Nation-
al Agriculture Investment Plan 2011-
2015, which was developed within the
framework of the new partnership
for Africas comprehensive Africa Ag-
riculture Development Programme
CAADP.
The then director general of Agri-
culture, Musa Huma, for his part, said
the overall goal of Nema is to reduce
poverty of rural women and youth,
adding that we are all aware that
The Gambia is still burdened with
widespread and persistent rural pov-
erty, particularly among women and
youths.
He opined that the direct benefts
of the project are: to reduce drudgery
encountered by women in the farming
activities, improved physical access to
markets and production sites and ac-
cess to labour-saving devices, such as
land preparation equipment (power
tillers, seeders), harvesting facilities,
and on-and off-farm processing facili-
ties.
FASDEP Project
The FASDEP is funded by the
Global Agriculture and Food Security
Project (GAFSP) through the African
Development Bank, in collaboration
with the government of The Gambia
and it is a fve-year project. The pri-
mary development goal of FASDEP
is to reduce rural household poverty,
food insecurity and malnutrition,
through increased agricultural pro-
duction, productivity and commer-
cialization.
FASDEP is an important agricul-
tural support project and is a clear
manifestation of The Gambia govern-
ments commitment towards achiev-
ing sustainable economic growth, food
self-suffciency and security, a step in
the right direction, as enshrined in
our development blueprints (GNAIP);
in answering to president Jammehs
back-to-the-land slogan; to grow
what we eat and eat what we grow.
In order to achieve the objectives
of the project, the management team
were tasked by the benefciary com-
munities not to see themselves as
separate entity running parallel ex-
tension and development activities
exclusively; but rather as partners in
addressing urgent and pressing de-
velopment gaps that could not be ad-
equately addressed by concerned gov-
ernment departments.

The project intervention areas,
he added, are Central River Region,
Lower River Region and West Coast
Region, adding that during the imple-
mentation of FASDEP, participatory
processes would be promoted to en-
sure ownership and sustainability of
the interventions. He said the project
would rehabilitate and develop addi-
tional hectares of tidal irrigation. He
then cited that once the land is devel-
oped, market access is ensured, inputs
are made available, and then farmers
would be able to increase their pro-
duction, have enough food, increase
income and improve their livelihood.
On the project overview, FASDEPs
project director Fafanding Fatajo said
the government of The Gambia un-
der the dynamic leadership of Presi-
dent Jammeh Babili Mansa Nasirul
Deen has put in place a consistent
set of broad policies and measures
to accelerate agricultural production,
boost overall sector performance and
strengthen exports and trade.
The African Development Bank
has been at the forefront of develop-
ment process, providing co-fnancing
to a number of key projects since 1974;
and the Agricultural sector accounts
for 22% of the net commitment from
23
the Bank since 1994 amounting to
US$ 320.73 million.
According to offcials, the project is
built around four components, name-
ly agriculture infrastructural develop-
ment and management, agricultural
production and productivity, diversi-
fcation and commercialization of ag-
riculture and improved approaches to
national food and nutrition security.
Vision 2016 food self-suf-
fciency drive
During his 2014 Dialogue with
the People Tour the Gambian leader
has launched a new initiative, which
will cater for a very important part
of the whole crusade with regards to
food security. As government contin-
ues to provide Gambians with quite a
good number of alternatives, which if
adhered to will lead to complete lib-
eration from poverty, the Gambian
leader had conceived the idea that
The Gambia can grow all it needs to
feed its population and hope that
this could be a reality through Vision
2016.
Minster Owens said, I hear people
talking about that there is no strategy
document or plan. This is a vision and
a vision doesnt need a strategy plan
and it was His Excellency, who came
up with this declaration that we can
grow all the food we eat and I think
we can do that by 2016. And the vision
is not that by 2016, we will have all
the food that we need in this country,
but by 2016 we are going to ban the
importation of rice as an important
staple food into the country. Now, if
no more rice is coming from Thailand,
Vietnam or Burma, it will motivate
people to go and farm their own food-
rice and thats the whole idea.
The country has to ban importa-
tion of food commodities, so that
people can know that they have to
produce their own food. You dont
need a strategy document for that;
its a vision and people should under-
stand that the vision is tied towards
realising that through various activi-
ties. The activities are there and the
government will support any private
sector that wants to go into producing
and processing. It will also support a
farmer who wants to grow rice or any
other crops with inputs and mecha-
nisation.
According to him, the govern-
ment has distributed tractors dur-
ing the dry season to enable farmers
to plough their land. Well, these are
some of the activities that will help us
realise this vision, but you dont need
a strategy document for that. What we
need is to realise this vision.
In realising this vision, Minister
Owens added, a key component of
the approach, apart from the farm-
ers that are producing the food will
be the private sector that is import-
ing rice. And rather than importing
rice they can contribute towards its
production, processing, branding and
marketing and thats the key. Because
I dont see the reason why somebody
importing rice from Thailand can-
not go to Pacharr or Jahally tomor-
row and say ok whatever you produce
the private sector operator is going
to buy it and even label it as Jahally
rice, so that you would start having it
right there so that in 2016 whatever
rice you buy you would know its real
Gambian and it would be fresh.
Call for attitudinal
change
Youths as future leaders of tomor-
row should therefore take ownership
of the presidents back-to-the-land
clarion call and make agriculture an
enterprising business. Since he took
over the country in 1994, President
24
Jammeh has instituted and contin-
ues to establish numerous projects for
youth empowerment.
In the same vein, Minister Owens
called for attitudinal change, a call
being spearheaded by the president
himself, in ensuring that Gambians
take ownership of the development
process.
What the Gambian leader keeps
saying is the need for young people to
embrace agriculture so as to attain the
countrys food self-suffciency drive.
Our farming population is ageing, as
the average age of a farmer is over 50
years; there is a need for youths to
change their mindset to participate
more in agriculture. In the next 10
years, there will be no people on the
farms except women as the chunk of
the farming population are ageing. So,
this is where the youth folks comes in
and government will give them all the
necessary support.
As a matter of fact, if the abled-
bodied youths, who can farm, con-
tinue to neglect farming, then the
countrys dreams of making headway
will be jeopardised. Minister Owens
therefore asserted that for the realisa-
tion of food or economic development
and attainment of Vision 2016 and
2020, respectively, entirely lies in the
hands of the youth, adding that their
participation is greatly crucial in mak-
ing sure the country marches towards
the attainment of these lofty goals,
considering the amount of money one
can make out of farming.
So our appeal and my fnal appeal
is for the youth to get engaged as we
will give them all the necessary sup-
port. Government has projects with
the resources to support youths to go
even into agro-processing, but it is
based on a sound business plan. Even
for production, one needs a sound
business plan; and once that is done
the potential benefciaries will be able
to get 40% from somewhere else sup-
ported by a bank or fnance institu-
tion, government gives you 60% as a
grant.
This tangible call is the best path
to meaningful socio-economic trans-
formation for development. Like the
president has always emphasised, it
cannot be durable if people for whom
it is meant for are not part of the ini-
tiators and implementers of the con-
cerned projects.
Ecowas Commissioners
take on
Jammehs Agricultural
interventions
Since he took over the country,
President Jammehs personal inter-
vention in the agriculture sector has
been tremendous and this has con-
tinued to earn him greater admira-
tion from a broad spectrum of society,
both at home and at the international
front.20 years on, he did not look back
in making sure the country attains its
lofty dreams set for the realisation of
the food self-suffciency within the
shortest possible time.
Among the high-profle dignitar-
ies, who acknowledged President
Jammehs intervention in agriculture
during one of his earlier visits to The
Gambia, was the commissioner for
Agriculture, Environment and Water
Resources of the Ecowas Commis-
sion, Osseini Salifu.
Speaking to the Daily Observer,
the Ecowas offcial strongly praised
the Gambian leader, Professor Alhaji
Dr Yahya Jammeh, for his personal
involvement in agricultural activities.
We were highly impressed when
we learned of President Jammehs
involvement in agriculture, as well as
his various projects in that sector, he
said.
Further expressing his admira-
tion of the level of political support in
the drive to promote agricultural ac-
tivities in The Gambia, he explained
that President Jammehs actions are
in line with the concerns of the com-
mission and various regional heads of
state.
In fact, he added, The Gambia
seems to be well ahead in this regard
and we are sure that, if we keep col-
laborating in this way, we will def-
nitely achieve positive results.
He further explained that a forum
on private sector intervention in agri-
business, which took place in Ouaga-
dougou, Burkina Faso, in February
2009, was meant to reveal the rich
potential of the agricultural sector in
West Africa and to encourage invest-
ment in this vital sector.
It would be very proftable for
economic operators to be involved,
for example, in not only importing
rice, but in developing and growing
rice, he said.
The involvement of the private sec-
tor and indeed all parties, he added, is
vital to the growth and development
of the sector.
25
Youth & Sports
has occupied its rightful place in our
national development
S
eventeen years ago, Presi-
dent Jammeh spoke on
the importance why sports
should occupy its right-
ful place in the national develop-
ment agenda of our dear mother-
land, alongside cultural, social and
economic plans and strategies. Babili
Mansa stressed unequivocally at the
time that the development of sports
is a worthwhile investment, and that
the misconception of placing sports
at the bottom of national, political
and economic timetable has to be
discarded. He further pointed out
that our planners need to realise that
sports is a very potent asset, very in-
fuential and highly cost effective, as
well as being a ready tool for the mo-
bilisation of young people for effective
participation in the process of nation-
al development; and that it is for this
reason that sport issues dominate top
agenda of international forums.
His Excellency Sheikh Profes-
sor Alhaji Dr. Yahya Jammeh made
these remarks during the opening
ceremony of the 15th Edition of the
now defunct Zone II football tourna-
ment that brought eight sub-regional
countries to The Gambia for a two-
week competition in November and
December of 1994, where the Scor-
pions under the guidance of Hon.
Alhagie Sillah fnished fourth. It was
at that same ceremony that Profes-
27
sor Jammeh warned that, we can-
not make mistake about the fact that
it is only through integration that we
can collectively increase our chances
of success in social development and
economic transformation, thereby en-
hancing our competitive position rel-
ative to other countries on the African
continent, in particular and the world
in general. He added that the impor-
tance of sports as a vehicle for social
mobilisation, solidarity and peace-
ful co-existence has been widely ac-
claimed, particularly with respect to
young people in the transitional phas-
es from adolescence to adulthood, and
that it also has the potential of help-
ing nations overcome chronic social
and economic problems, including
poverty, environmental degradation,
rapid population growth and migra-
tion, the disintegration of the tradi-
tional family and the social structures
in the community. He therefore urged
the participating countries to take full
advantage of the medium of sports,
particularly a popular sporting disci-
pline, like football, in order to achieve
our individual and collective aims and
objectives, centered on unity and har-
mony.
Through to his words as al-
ways, Babili Mansa in the past
two decades has changed the
livelihood of many Gambian
youths and athletes, not only in
the feld of football but sports in
general. As the Daily Observer
senior News and Sports Editor
Baboucarr Camara writes, the
hosting of that championship in
Banjul, the frst under the Sec-
ond Republic was the catalysts
for the Jammehs administra-
tions unconditional stance on
the development of Gambian
youths, through sports.
Youngest millionaires in
Gambian history
Following on from the 1997 Zone
II Championship, President Jammeh
organised a Peace Football Tourna-
ment to coincide with a decade of the
birth of the great July 22 Revolution.
Eight countries had participated in
this championship in 2004 and a year
later, that same crop of players won
the country her frst international tro-
phy with the African U-17 champion-
ship in Banjul. Every player of that
team was given a landed property in
the Greater Banjul area and they were
heavily rewarded. Perhaps, what is
even more eye-catching was the re-
ward given to the next badge of Afri-
can champions in Algeria 2009.
Jammeh made a telephone call to
speak to the Gambian offcials and
players, while in Algeria following the
triumph; twenty-nine million Dalasi
was given to the players, offcials and
even journalists that accompanied
the team. He had earlier given landed
properties to members of the senior
team who held Senegal to a goalless
stalemate in Banjul in their frst post
2002 World Cup game.
The country has since participated
at three world cup competitions in
age category competitions. And even
when the whole world doubted our
potentials in Peru, as if our frst con-
tinental success was a fuke, the team
once again stood to the test of time and
proved yet again that Gambian foot-
ball has come of age; that as instruc-
tive as its we have shed our infamous
underdog tag and have now emerged
as a dominant force with solid tenac-
ity to rewrite our football history with
a renewed sense of vigour.
This prompted FIFA to once write
on its website: Mention the word
Peru and the date 17 September 2005
to any Gambian football fan and their
eyes are sure to light up. It was on
28
that memorable Saturday evening
that the nations U-17 side made Af-
rican football history. It was the frst
time a Gambian national team had
taken part in a FIFA World Champi-
onship - and the U-17 fnals were to
mark the countrys great entrance to
the world football stage. Nobody gave
the novices much of a chance, espe-
cially when the frst game saw them
pitched in at the deep end against
reigning world champions Brazil. But
the Gambians upset the form books,
pulling off a sensational 3-1 win that
made the football world stand up and
take notice.
Despite our early exit in the com-
petition, following our 2-0 defeat to
Holland, the global football frater-
nity still had their eyes glued to our
empathic arrival to the world football
stage, and when I bumped into the
BBCs South American football ex-
pert, Tim Vickery, at the 2012 Olym-
pics in London, with my Gambian
scarf glued round my neck, he straight
away recognised the red, white, blue,
white and green, before I even intro-
duced myself to him; his frst words
to me were Peru 2005, and how over
300 Gambian fans airlifted to that
championship made the pilot to make
an emergency landing, in order not to
miss another Young Scorpions game,
with The Gambia mania hitting Peru
already.
The Gambia, Brazil and Holland
all fnished on six points. However,
the African champions crashed out of
the tournament on goal a difference
and could only fnish third. It could all
have been so different. However, had
Momodou Ceesay not missed a pen-
alty against the Dutch with ten min-
utes left, for just one goal would have
taken the Gambians through! It is
vital now that Gambian football does
not pay the penalty for the Baby Scor-
pions dramatic elimination. Getting
through this group always looked a
tough assignment, and The Gambias
performances, especially in the frst
two games, outdid the pre-tourna-
ment expectations. Gambian football
has now announced its arrival on the
world stage and its players, coaches
and administrators now have the task
of building on what was achieved in
Peru 2005, the Briton wrote in one
of his weekly columns for BBC Sports.
Transformation of the
domestic league
Admittedly, the game in the past
couple of years has suffered some set-
backs, mainly due to poor administra-
tion, it is this spirit why the Ministry
of Youth and Sports has also started
working towards the total transfor-
mation of the structure of Gambian
domestic football league, as the way
forward for the development of the
sport in the country.
Sports Minister Alieu Kebba Tam-
ba Jammeh disclosed that at their lev-
el as a government, they are more pre-
pared to move to the next level, and
as a result they are convinced beyond
all reasonable doubt that the way for-
29
ward is a total transformation of the
structures. He said a large and full
following of domestic games is criti-
cal, as it will go a long way towards at-
tracting sponsors for the league.
The Ministry is currently studying
three models, which are being dis-
cussed among stakeholders to arrive
to a compromise. The frst option is
to get the current league to adopt the
features of the Super Nawettan, which
is mainly community-based. The sec-
ond model will be to bring the com-
munities to be part of the league in a
kind of hybridisation where the Super
Nawettan will take some features of
the league or the third and last option,
which is to form a superior league to
serve as the domestic competition.
People talked about it that there
is more standard of football in the
league than the Super Nawettan, I
have no doubt about that. Now that
is a very good feature of the league,
you have more followership in the Su-
per Nawettan than the league that is
a good feature of the Super Nawettan
[as well]. You take these two features
to see how you harmonise them to
become one. That will be the second
proposal and we will have a detailed
write-up around all of these. That is
the reason why we are supporting the
regions to build the structures and
improve the standards in their re-
gions. That will also be achieved with
the existence of the regional associa-
tions.
Marketing the league
As part of efforts in the transfor-
mation process, the government has
started discussions with the national
broadcaster, Gambia Radio and Tele-
vision Services (GRTS) to come up
with an agreement that will ensure
that domestic football games are tele-
vised, as well as a review of all the ac-
tions in each match day. These plans
could be applicable next season in
2015.
As part of the marketing strat-
egy, the Ministry has already begun
a 5-year consultative holistic foot-
ball strategy that seeks to ensure the
countrys participation at the 2018
FIFA World Cup in Russia. The Min-
istry is also hoping that the strategy
will be able to ensure the U-23 teams
participation in the football compe-
tition of the 2016 Olympic Games in
Rio de Janeiro, as well as the national
team for the 2017 Africa Cup of Na-
tions. The government of The Gambia
has also decided to refurbish the In-
dependence Stadium and Friendship
Hostel, in order to serve its purpose.
Fans airlifted to interna-
tional games
President Jammeh on several oc-
casions airlifted Gambian fans to in-
ternational games, in order to cheer
up the respective teams. He has done
it more than twice for The Gambias
games with Senegal, the Congo and
Canada championships. The presi-
dent also chartered a plane that car-
ried over 300 Gambians fans to Peru
2005. In 2008, he secured the Belgian
Paul Put on a four-year contract to
coach the senior Scorpions. He pro-
30
vided his salary, utility, accommoda-
tion, among other things, for the four
years he spent here. Another presi-
dential gesture came during the 2012
Womens U-17 World Cup in Azerbai-
jan, when he sponsored 50 Gambian
fans to cheer the girl scorpions and
upon their return all the players and
offcials were fnancially rewarded.
World Cup trophy tour
Ahead of the 2010 South Africa
World Cup, the trophy went on a 70-
day tour of 52 African nations. Despite
missing out on a place in Africas frst
World Cup, the trophy arrived in The
Gambia in October 2009. The Gam-
bias sport-loving president, despite
the heavy downpour, was still at the
Independence Stadium, where thou-
sands of football-loving Gambians
gathered to watch him displayed the
worlds most prestigious sports sym-
bol of football supremacy - the FIFA
World Cup trophy - that was in the
country for a thrilling three-day tour.
The president after parading the
trophy in his speech predicted that
The Gambia would be the second Af-
rican country to win the World Cup if
not the frst. Despite boasting junior
African Nations Cup title, Jammeh,
who made it all happen, insisted that
he would only term The Gambia suc-
cessful when the Scorpions bring the
World Cup trophy to Banjul - a realis-
tic dream he believes will be achieved
in the not too distant future. For be-
ing someones who doesnt mince his
words, and as a clear testimony of
the seriousness of his pledge, he con-
ceived the idea of launching Gambia
For Gold; Its our time campaign, an
adhoc committee tasked with raising
funds for our smooth participation
in those competitions. Cabinet min-
isters, regional governors, heads of
government departments and private
institutions attended the launching
ceremony.
Launching the fund-raising cam-
paign, on behalf of the Gambian lead-
er, VP Njie-Saidy told the gathering
that the magnanimity of President
Jammeh has frequently been dem-
onstrated in his unfettered quest to
change the lives of our athletes, since
his ascension to the highest offce in
the country in 1994.
She further remarked: It was a
clear testimony of his resolve and
commitment to the development
of the youth in whatever meaning-
ful venture they are engaged in. And
besides, the Gambian leader and his
government have persistently been
creating the conducive environment
for youths in general and athletes,
in particular to play their role in the
socio-economic development of the
country.
Those gestures of the president
bear undisputable testimony of his
love and concern for the development
of the game of football in the country.
It also goes to show that the man has
widely accepted sports as a veritable
instrument for social cohesion and
personal growth and development,
and has the capacity to galvanise so-
cieties, as well as motivate athletes,
both amateur and professional, to
maximise their potential.
And it is for this reason that the
government of The Gambia under the
exemplary leadership of President
Jammeh, distinctly promotes the
development of sports as a priority,
that has the potential to galvanise the
countrys youthful population to be
engaged and productive, which will
favourably impact on the socio-eco-
nomic development of the country.
The senior team has so far failed
to participate at a senior World Cup,
but referee Bakary Papa Gassama be-
came the frst Gambian to participate
in that category when he offciated
at this months edition in Brazil. A
Gambian was the man in the middle
of the group stage decider between
the Netherlands and Chile; and came
in for a lot of praises with his perfor-
mance. The referees committee of
FIFA later rated him among the best
of the competitions.
Sports infrastructure
Several sporting facilities were
developed by the Jammeh adminis-
tration aside from the several reno-
vations done at the main stadium
in Bakau. Today every region in the
country has a standard mini-stadium
and plans are already underway to
build another major stadium in the
West Coast Region, a positive step in
the right direction for the decentrali-
sation of sports in The Gambia.
The Jammeh administration in the
last fve years alone had spent over
D100million on sports infrastructure.
Ahead of the 2005 Championship
31
as well, in order to meet continental
standards, several infrastructural de-
velopments were undertaken in terms
of upgrading the available football
stadia, hotels, transportation; renova-
tion of roads linking the stadia to the
hotels, among others. Up till today,
it is regarded as the Confederation
of African Footballs (CAF) best-or-
ganised and most successful football
competition in that age category.
Formation of National
Sports Council
The government of the Republic
of The Gambia under President Jam-
meh is highly committed and stead-
fast in ensuring that sport is central
to its national development goals and
objectives. This led to the formation
of the National Sports Council (NSC)
by an Act of Parliament and approved
by the President himself in the year
2000. The NSC is tasked with the
regulation of the countrys National
Sports Associations; and amongst
other things, to ensure our smooth
participation in both local and inter-
national competitions, development
of our athletes and sports offcials.
A new national Sports Policy and
Programme was ushered in for the
period of 2010 to 2019, as a logical
sequel to the last policy which came
to an end in 2008. The new Sport
Policy and Programme of Action is
expected to build on the successes of
the last policy with a renewed empha-
sis and focus on the implementation
and commitment to excellence as the
guiding principle.
The policy, among other things,
will work for good governance and
necessary institutional framework for
effective management and effcient co-
ordination of sports; the codifcation
and clarity of roles, in cognisance of
the responsibilities and expectation of
the government, the National Sports
Council, sports associations and other
relevant stakeholders; to ensure that
physical education and sports become
an integral part of the school system;
the development of a strategic and
sustainable marketing partnership
across all sectors; private, public and
not for proft sectors with the sport-
ing fraternity; A structured approach
in mobilising fnancial resources for
the development of a national sports
infrastructure and master plan; and
the putting in place of a robust moni-
toring and evaluation, structure and
mechanism that provides for periodic
reports on the progress of implemen-
tation of these deliverables.
Old structures were dismantled
which led to the formation of region-
al, district and Development Sports
Committees. Through collaboration
with partners, and stakeholders, like
the Gambia National Olympic Com-
mittee, The Gambia government was
able to put in place mini-stadia in all
the seven administrative regions of
the country. The Gambia government
and the Banjul City Council also in-
vested heavily in the building of the
artifcial turf at the KG5 Mini-Stadi-
um in Banjul.
Aside the regular renovation and
32
maintenance at the Independence
Stadium, government has also under-
taken major works at the countrys
main multipurpose sports complex,
while also paying their partnership
agreement together with the funds re-
ceived from the International Athlet-
ics Association, for the new athletics
track.
US$40, 000 internation-
al golf championship
The president in 2011 donated a
cash amount of US$40,000 to the
Gambia Golf Association, which was
earmarked for organising an interna-
tional golf competition in The Gam-
bia as part of celebrations marking
our Independence. 50 foreign players
from around the sub-region and other
countries took part in the tournament.
That donation came on the heels of a
similar donation of US$ 10, 000 by
the Gambian leader, to the frst prize
winner of the 2010 Gambian Open,
which attracted foreign players from
the sub-region and beyond. The ges-
ture was not only a motivational one,
but also an investment coming from
the Gambian leader, which describes
him as a champion and patron with
regards to the development of sports
in the country.
The tournament is one of the rich-
est golf competitions in the sub-re-
gion. The move was a challenge and
encouragement to the Gambia Golf
Association, which was formed just
two years earlier in 2009, and it was
a challenge that helped to change the
future of the sport in this country. The
Gambia is on the verge of constructing
a frst-ever golf course to be owned by
the Association; and in order to catch
the talents at the grassroots level, pi-
lot projects have been put in place at
schools.
VP Njie-Saidy, speaking at the
time, said sport is not just a game but
also a game towards a vision. The
Gambian leader has encapsulated all
this in the Vision 2020 blueprint, to
ensure that The Gambia is a middle-
income country by 2020 and sports in
general can play a pivotal role in real-
ising this ardent objective, she noted.
Revival of wrestling
Wrestling used to be a traditional
and national sporting event of this
country and following years of dor-
mancy, the game is revived once
again. President Jammeh himself has
never hidden his admiration for the
sport, and leading by example, he has
sponsored several wrestling competi-
tions across the length and breadth
of this country. Truly, the sport is
once again on the rise in The Gambia,
thanks to this exemplary leader and
his leadership qualities. The Gambia
has over the years won several medals
at international level, with the high-
lights of it at the ECOWAS Wrestling
Championships in Niger and Senegal.
The Ministry of Youth and Sports
also played a crucial role in this and
has held a frst-ever national wres-
tling championship this year that
began with regional championships.
The Ministry has also given half a mil-
lion Dalasis to all the administrative
regions in the country to develop the
33
facilities at their mini-stadia and has
already confrmed that the national
wrestling championship will be an-
nual. The Government, in partnership
with FIFA has also managed to secure
funding for an artifcial football turf
in Jarra Soma and work is already un-
derway.
Youth empowerment
The Jammeh administration has
also played a crucial role in the devel-
opment of the youth. The government
of The Gambia is cognizant of the
importance of a skill-based society,
which has the potential to ensure un-
interruptible supply of our develop-
ment needs.
There is a great lot to point at in the
ever-enlivening crusade of uplifting
the status of the youth of this country.
The establishment of indispensable
institutions, like the National Youth
Council, the National Youth Service
Scheme, the National Enterprise of
Development Initiatives, the Youth
in Agriculture and Fishing Initiative,
etc., as well as the increasing weight of
support being exerted by the govern-
ment towards realising these goals, by
increasing youth representation at all
levels of decision-making, are all indi-
cations of the readiness of the leader-
ship of this country.
First, it was the groundbreaking
presidential nomination, for the frst
time in the history of this country,
of a youth into the National Assem-
bly. Now we are talking about youth
representation at all the local gov-
ernment councils across the country.
All this leaves The Gambia top in the
global level of youth empowerment.
The Jammeh administration has
realised that an enterprising youth
population accelerates its nations
development processes. On the con-
trary, a dependent youth popula-
tion is a burden; it hinders progress,
and contributes to the shaping of a
failed state. This is surely not what
The Gambia wants to settle down for,
hence its stance on the development
of a skillful youth population.
If we asked the question: why do
we desire imported goods over home-
made ones, very few people would
advance tangible reasons for it. The
Presidents International Award, for
instance, produces high-class house-
hold and offce furniture that march-
es, both in quality and in standard,
the normally expensive, imported
ones that we scramble for.
Scheme to address youth
unemployment
Recently, The Gambia govern-
ment, through its Ministries of Youth
and Sports, and Agriculture, in col-
laboration with the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP),
has been making efforts to concretise
the planned establishment of a replica
Songhai Centre in the country in its
bid to address youth unemployment.
The Benin-based Centre is an innova-
tive project that is active in the areas
of training, production, research and
development in agricultural entrepre-
neurship and agribusiness, and has
over the years trained a lot of youths,
all of whom are now job creators.
Its founder and director, Fr. God-
frey Nzamujo, recently concluded a
visit to the country, as well as the sites
The Gambia identifed for the project,
after which he advised on the way for-
ward.
We have seen how it assisted in
helping to turn young people from
the state of unemployment to job cre-
ators. We have also seen how it could
enhance our drive towards food self-
suffciency, Minister Jammeh said of
the Songhai Centre.
He added: So, we want to make
our young people believe that in agri-
culture through entrepreneurship you
can make a decent living. The Songhai
Centre has trained our youths and we
have learnt that the great number of
youths who have gone through Song-
hai have proven a lot than many of the
youths who were trained in our sister
countries.
Gambians can be optimistic that,
if the country contextualises such an
innovative agricultural centre, and
kick it running, all of her unemployed
youths could be turned into job cre-
ators, thus making the idea of the
back- way syndrome a thing of the
past.
34
Education: leadership declares
the space as the limit
T
he Gambias education
sector is one of those that
continue to enjoy high
government attention.
It is among the four critical sectors
education, agriculture, health and
infrastructure that have been pri-
oritised by the Second Republic given
their inter-related nature and how
collectively they can propel greater
economic advancement.
Massive investments that result
to the proliferation of schools at all
levels of the education system have
been characterizing the governments
interventions in the sector. For The
Gambian children, they have since
been assured by the leadership that
the space, but not the sky, is now their
new limit, giving them the endless
chance to achieve their goals and live
their full potentials.
Amadou Jallow, Senior Re-
porter, looks at how the sector
has transformed in the Second
Republic.
Before the advent of the July 22nd
Revolution, there were only few pri-
mary, junior and secondary schools
in the country. Those days were real
nightmares for students in that they
used to travel for kilometers and
spent hours trekking to school. When
the Jammeh regime came, an ambi-
tious agenda that saw the prolifera-
tion of schools across the country was
hatched. This is in line with the gov-
ernments objective of not only mak-
ing education relevant and qualita-
tive, but to also bring it closer to the
doorsteps. Who wouldnt remember
those days when students had to car-
ry their own furniture with them to
school? Those were hard enough and
that status quo had resulted to many
abandoning education because they
couldnt meet the expenses given the
level of poverty at the time.
The Jammeh administrations in-
terventions have since changed that
status quo for good. This is in line
with its desire to building a stron-
ger education system that promotes
learning, bearing in mind the funda-
mentals of education to development
and economic growth.
The consistent investments have
seen the number of lower basic schools
increased from 250 to 590; upper ba-
35
sic schools increased from 22 to 196
and senior secondary schools from
12 to 103. This signifcantly reduced
the average distance a child travels to
reach a school from seven KM in 1994
to now three KM, according to Educa-
tion Ministry statistics.
Thanks to these interventions, to-
day, student enrolment from lower
basic to senior secondary levels have
increased from 132, 591 in 1994 to
411, 443 in 2014. These achievements
have not only given the country an
advanced sector, but placed it among
nations around the world that have
attained parity in education.
The infrastructures have been
backed by various quality education
policies and programmes, designed
by the countrys Basic and Secondary
Education ministry.
The countrys lower basic school
completion rates have increased from
39 percent in 1992 to 66 percent in
2011, an expansion that mainly ben-
efted girls, a research conducted
by Ousmane Senghor, a senior pro-
gramme offcer at the Gambia Na-
tional Commission for the United
Nations Educational, Scientifc, and
Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has
revealed.
Among the strategies of the gov-
ernment in this area is the expansion
of basic education from six to nine
years, apparently meant to elimi-
nate the barriers to the completion
of primary education. The Ministry
has over the years also introduced a
strong monitoring mechanism to en-
sure that teaching and learning are
standardised. It focused on the de-
velopment of a strong student assess-
ment system and the effective use of
assessment data.
Transformations
Until 2002, primary education
lasted for six years and led to the
Primary School Leaving Certifcate
(phased out). But this changed that
year and a new unifed basic educa-
tion system was introduced covering
1-9 years, through an automatic tran-
sition with no examination at the end
of the lower basic cycle. The system is
divided into two cycles: lower basic
(Grades 1-6) and upper basic (Grades
79).
Secondary education was divided
into two junior secondary school,
which offered a three-year course
leading to the Junior School Leav-
ing Certifcate, and senior second-
ary school which offered a three-year
course, leading to the West African
Senior Secondary School Certifcate.
The APRC government has also
introduced another type of school
system called the basic cycle school,
which is a combination of the lower
and upper basic school (grades 1-9).
All Gambian students sit to The Gam-
bia Basic Education Certifcate Exam-
ination (GABECE) at the end of grade
nine in nine subjects. Admission to
senior secondary school is competi-
tive, but statistics show that the vast
majority of Gambian students attend
36
government schools. There is a grow-
ing number of private and interna-
tional private secondary schools in
the country offering Cambridge IGC-
SE/ O Levels or the WASSCE.
It goes without saying that the sys-
tem of Primary School Leaving Cer-
tifcate Examination had proved to
be effective even though with some
disadvantages. In response to the
demands of parents and communi-
ties to reinstall the PSLCE, the Min-
istry introduced two new assessments
that monitor learning to replace it:
The Early Grade Reading Assessment
(EGRA) was introduced in 2007 and
the National Assessment Test (NAT)
in 2008. These assessments opened
a new page in The Gambias educa-
tion system, and for the frst time,
assessment data were used to moni-
tor learning rather than to determine
individual consequences.
Regular background data on stu-
dents, teachers, and schools also
started to be collected, allowing for a
better understanding of the variables
that affect learning. These data per-
mitted deeper analyses of assessment
information, moving the focus from a
simple count of passes and failures to
policy analysis.
The purpose of the National As-
sessment Test (NAT) is to provide a
picture of student learning achieve-
ment in the core subject areas of the
national curriculum in lower basic ed-
ucation. This census is taken annually
by all students in grades 3, 5, and 8 in
government, private, grant aided, and
Islamic (madrassa) schools. School
results are made publicly available
at the national, regional, cluster, and
school levels.
The test was frst piloted in 2001,
following the phasing out of examina-
tions in grade 6, and was deployed na-
tionwide in 2008. In 2012, the Minis-
try of Basic and Secondary Education
introduced the NAT in grade 8 to bet-
ter monitor learning achievements at
the upper level of basic education.
The test blueprint is aligned with
the learning achievement targets of
the national curriculum. In grade 3,
NAT assesses students in three sub-
ject areas: mathematics, English, and
integrated studies. In grade 5, it as-
sesses students in four subject areas:
mathematics, English, science, and
37
social and environmental studies.
Teacher training
The low student learning lev-
els made educators to cast doubt on
teachers competence and skills. In
fact, a teacher survey conducted in
2010 showed that many teachers did
not have the required knowledge and
skills to boost student learning. As
a consequence, a nationwide train-
ing of all primary school teachers
was launched. The curriculum of
the countrys teacher training college
(The Gambia College) was revised to
ensure that teachers learn relevant
teaching skills. Teachers are now
trained to use literacy benchmarks
and learning achievement targets.
The number of teachers at the low-
er basic level increased from 3, 158 in
1994 to 7, 464 in 2014; upper basic
level shows an increase from 666 to 3,
154 and senior secondary from 460 to
1, 971. What is most signifcant is the
increase of the proportion of Gambian
teachers in senior secondary schools
which rose from 34% in 1994 to 68%
in 2014.
Before 1994, the system was heavi-
ly dependent on foreign teachers. This
situation has changed with the in-
creased training of teachers. The ma-
jority of teachers in the senior schools
are now Gambians. What is notewor-
thy is the fact that in 1994, out of ev-
ery three teachers in senior secondary
schools, only one was a Gambia. But
as of this year, out of three, two are
now Gambians.
One of the threats to rapid socio-
economic development is ignorance.
The APRC government will continue
its war against illiteracy in order to
achieve its triple objective of mak-
ing education not only accessible, but
also relevant and of good quality,
remarked President Jammeh in his
manifesto for the 2006 presidential
election.
He promised that his government
will construct more classrooms and
more schools as well as create condi-
tions to enhance the policy of Educa-
tion-For-All, with a view to providing
at least nine years of uninterrupted
basic education for all enrolled pupils
in the school system. He also prom-
ised that scholarships will be awarded
to deserving pupils to pursue fur-
ther education in higher institutions
both within and outside this country;
pledges that have all been fulflled.
Higher Education
The Gambias higher education
sector has also evolved signifcantly
with the advent of the July 22nd Rev-
olution. Not only did the sector see
the birth of the countrys frst univer-
sity, but also the proliferation of pub-
lic and private colleges as well as tech-
nical, vocational and training centres
across the country.
The University of The
Gambia
University education in The Gam-
bia kicked-off at the dawn of the Rev-
olution through a University Exten-
sion Programme with the St. Marys
University in Canada that graduated
the frst ever Gambian home-grown
graduates on February 16th, 1999.
This followed the enactment of the
University of The Gambia by an Act
of the National Assembly in 1999, for-
malising the programme.
The enactment, which was a bold
step to fulfll a longstanding desire
of the people of The Gambia and to
respond to several years of advocacy
both within and outside the country
for a university, ended years of inde-
cision on the university question.
The objective is to provide op-
portunity for degree studies in The
Gambia through the establishment of
a university with capacity for about
2000 students. Various commissions
and task forces had identifed the
need for degree level programmes in
the country in health and allied sci-
ences, including medicine, public and
environmental health, and nursing;
agriculture and natural resources;
economics and management sciences;
38
construction management; physical
and natural sciences including com-
puter science; and humanities and
social sciences, including education.
A cautious and incremental ap-
proach is being adopted to develop
these programmes, the initial focus
being on utilising the physical facili-
ties of classrooms and laboratories
in existing post-secondary institu-
tions in the country to offer degree
level programmes, while the latter
will maintain the courses and pro-
grammes of their current mandates.
A University Council was con-
stituted in May 1999 to oversee the
project. It commissioned a number
of studies including studies on the
University Conditions of Service, a
University Service Structure, and a
University Salary Structure.
Validation studies by South
Bank University, London, resulted
in the commencement of a 2-year
Higher National Diploma (HND)
programmes in Construction Man-
agement in The Gambia Technical
Training Institute (GTTI) in Septem-
ber 1999 under a franchise from that
University.
With assistance from the Ministry
of Health of Cuba, the pre-medical
programmes with an enrolment of
about 25 students also began in Sep-
tember 1999. A vice chancellor was
appointed by the University Council
and assumed offce in October 1999.
From December 1999, a recruitment
drive for academic staff began so as to
provide the university with academic
staff of its own.
Today, the University has graduat-
ed many young Gambians in various
felds of specialisation relevant to the
countrys development needs.
When the UTG main campus in
Faraba-Banta is complete, more disci-
plines relevant to economic develop-
ment will be introduced. Apart from
the UTG, we have encouraged the
establishment of many tertiary insti-
tutions for middle level skills devel-
opment programmes and thankfully,
these institutions are producing tech-
nicians for businesses and industry,
President Jammeh was quoted during
his 20th July 22nd anniversary state-
ment.
Today, the UTG is offering post-
graduate degree programmes in felds
such as African History, tourism and
so on. The UTG has also managed to
link with many top universities, col-
leges and other institutions of higher
learning across the globe.
Scholarship packages
Previously, relevant education
and its opportunities were mainly
reserved for the privileged students,
whose parents were either working
in reputable institutions or have close
contacts with authorities.
Opportunities like scholarships
were not announced over the radio or
advertised on newspapers for poten-
tial students to apply, but are mostly
given to students from socio-econom-
ically advantaged backgrounds.
The advent of the Jammeh admin-
istration discouraged this status quo
and increased scholarship packages
with equal access opportunity for de-
serving students, irrespective of their
parents partisan affliation.
In all his speeches at national
events and during his nationwide
tours, President Jammeh always as-
sure Gambian students that if they
concentrate on their education and
continue to make good performances;
the space will be the limit for their op-
portunities.
Since 1994, many Gambian stu-
dents have access to both internal
and external scholarships to pursue
courses in different felds of studies
and have also provided similar oppor-
tunities to several other young Gam-
bians to pursue courses at the Univer-
sity of The Gambia.
Schools built
Before the July 22nd Revolution,
students in many parts of the country
had to travel for kilometers to attend
school.
During the research fnding of this
information, some students and par-
ents said this even used to contrib-
ute to students underperformance
in examinations and tests due to the
long distances they trek to school on
a daily basis.
Where there was one school in
1994 now there are nine more schools
- most children have the opportunity
to continue their education in UBE/
SSE. The total number of schools
(including private schools) increased
from 284 in 1994 to 889 in 2014, ex-
cluding madrassas.
In 1994, senior secondary educa-
tion was just an urban phenomenon
with only six schools in Banjul and
Kanifng Municipality, three schools
in West Coast Region, none in North
Bank Region, one school in Lower
River Region, Central River Region
and Upper River Region. In 2014, they
increased across the country from six
to 32 in Banjul and Kanifng Munici-
pality, 3 to 39 in West Coast Region,
0 to 14 in North Bank Region, one to
fve in LRR, one to seven in CRR and
one to six in URR.
Below are some of the schools that
were built by the Second Republic:
39
Kaur Senior Secondary
School
Kaur Senior Secondary school was
among the frst schools built by the
Jammeh government during the early
days of the Revolution, in 1995, just a
year after the takeover. There was a
great need for this school and thats
why the government wasted no time
in dealing with the matter with an
equal sense of urgency. There are now
two senior secondary schools in CRR
North alone. This has brought im-
mense opportunities for the children
of the area to have access to second-
ary school education at home, thus
enabling them to help their parents.
Wassu
Wassu is the biggest settlement in
Niani, and it forms a very important
part of Gambian history. It has also
received a fair share of the Jammeh
Government developments. There
are multiple of schools in the whole of
Niani District including Niani Senior
Secondary School and Medina Basic
Cycle School.
In 1995, the frst school was built
purposely as a basic cycle school, and
then upgraded to a senior secondary
school. Armitage could not contain
the catering capacity for all. The is-
sue of guardianship, among others, as
some of the reasons for many people
in that region not being able to get
high school education, which has now
become history.
Karantaba Upper Basic
School
Karantaba Upper Basic School
is among numerous schools that
emerged as a result of the July 22nd
Revolution. Built in 2002, the school
has alongside it a well-built staff quar-
ters, which has contributed immense-
ly in maintaining teachers in that re-
mote place. The school serves some 12
villages.
Diabugu
Diabugu Senior Secondary School
is arguably the most expensive and
valued school structure in that part of
The Gambia that the Jammeh admin-
istration built. This village is in fact
the largest settlement in the whole of
the district of Sandu. This impressive
school, one of the largest in the coun-
try, cost D33 Million, and covers an
area of 250 square meters.
It has three blocks of nine class-
rooms, ftted with laboratories - phys-
ics, chemistry and biology as well as
workshops for wood, metal, technical
drawing and arts and craft. There is
also a standard football feld and a
basketball lawn. The school also has
a computer laboratory and a school
canteen. There are standard staff
quarters which enhance the work of
the teachers in the school.
Essau
Essau is just on the outskirts of Bar-
ra and prior to the coming of the July
22nd Revolution, access to secondary
education was a major constraint for
the people of the North Bank Region
(NBR). There was no high school in
the whole region before 1994 and con-
sequently in October 1995, the Essau
Senior Secondary School was built.
Being one of the frst schools built
by the AFPRC government in the
North Bank Region, this school has
been serving many villages, from Am-
dallai in the Lower Niumi District to
Sitanunku in the Upper Niumi Dis-
trict, and a number of satellite villages
in the area.
Albreda and Juffureh
These two communities are per-
haps the biggest villages in Upper Ni-
umi. A village as big as Albreda, for
instance, until 1994, did not have a
senior secondary school. Apparently,
40
it was among the benefciaries of the
spree of senior secondary school con-
struction projects at the dawn of the
Revolution. Albreda Senior Second-
ary School happens to be the frst
senior secondary school in the whole
of Upper Niumi District; it is well fur-
nished with laboratories, a library,
and a borehole - serving about eight
villages: Juffureh, Albreda, Mbata,
Lamin, Sika, Pakau Saloum and Kem-
bleh.
Siffoe Senior
As part of activities commemorat-
ing the July 22 Revolution, the Vice
President, Dr. Aja Isatou Njie-Saidy,
inaugurated on behalf of President
Jammeh the Siffoe Model Senior Sec-
ondary School in Kombo South, West
Coast Region.
Enrolment
The period witnessed an unprec-
edented increase in the number of
girls from 53, 657 in 1994 to 208, 221
in 2014. Enabled by policy interven-
tions such as the mothers clubs, the
Scholarship Trust Fund, which re-
sulted in the increase of over 150, 000
girls have accessed to BSE. Disaggre-
gating the numbers across the levels
of education shows that the lower ba-
sic schools witnessed an increase of
girls enrolment from 44, 298 to 140,
069 while the upper basic schools
increased from 6,676 to 44, 146 and
senior secondary from 2, 683 to 24,
006.
The increase in number of schools
means more children are able to at-
tend. Where one child was attending
school before 1994, three children are
now attending. Furniture used to be a
hassle before 1994 children were tak-
ing their own furniture to school. This
burden was taken over by government
and now furniture is one child to one
chair and one desk.
We are consciously setting the
agenda for the future, President
Jammeh was quoted as saying in his
statement on the eve of the 20th An-
niversary of the July 22nd revolution.
In my schooling days during the
First Republic, sometimes we would
be in the class room and start sleep-
ing, said one Landing Badjie.
Badjie, who now works as a quali-
fed teacher, still keeps the memories
of the 1990s when he used to en-
ter into the classroom with a sweaty
warm uniform owing to the long dis-
tance he travels to attend primary
school in Kalagi. In fact during those
days, our parents provide the stools
we sit on in the classroom. We travel
with the seats to and from school on
daily basis. Until today, I can vividly
remember when I lost my stool and I
had to sit on the foor during classes,
he recollected.
I used to attend senior second-
ary education in Bwiam where I was
staying. But when the Second Repub-
lic built a senior school in my village
(Mayork), I transferred to live with
my family, one Sulayman Jammeh
said.
Sulayman said the provision of a
senior school in his village has also
contributed to the reduction of rural
urban drift as many students now live
with their families while attending
school from the lower basic to senior
secondary school levels.
The best educational opportunity
that I like about President Jammehs
administration is his Empowerment
of Girls Education Project, one
Edrisa Bojang, a gender and develop-
ment student at the Management De-
velopment Institute (MDI) said.
Edrisa attended Darsilami Upper
Basic School, which was built by the
Jammeh administration and attended
Siffoe Senior Secondary School, also
an APRC-constructed school. One
thing that made Edrisa fascinated
about the presidents Girls Education
Project is that the initiative has given
the opportunity to a larger percentage
of Gambian girls access to education.
He said now there is high competition
between boys and girls in schools with
the latter forming majority in his class
at MDI.
Aja Neneh Darboe from Basse
Mansajang said the July 22nd Revolu-
tion has brought lots of development,
citing its free education policy for
girls as impressive. This has helped
parents who used to have fnancial
constraints to take their children to
school, she said. During the First
Republic, there was only one senior
school in the whole URR, but when
the Jammeh administration came,
a senior secondary school was built
in Diabugu in the Sandu district and
many lower basic schools were built
too.
Mariama Camara from Fatoto in
the Kantora District, Upper River Re-
gion also attested to the fact that dur-
ing the First Republic, many parents
couldnt send their children to school
because putting food on the table for
them was the priority. She said thank
God, this has changed as peoples live-
lihoods have improved remarkably
through the numerous pro-poor proj-
ects by the president.
The testimonies and the analysis
above are a pointer that the Jammeh
administration has indeed revolu-
tionised the sector beyond all imagi-
nation. With its Vision 2020 fast ap-
proaching, it is envisaged that even
greater advancements in the sector
would have been attained by that year.
41
Babili Mansa-
The No.1 advocate of
women advancement
T
he Gambian leader, His
Excellency Sheikh Pro-
fessor Alhaji Dr Yahya
AJJ Jammeh Nasirudeen
Babili Mansa, is the number one ad-
vocate of women advancement and
promoter of gender equality, not only
through offcial means, but also at a
personal level.
News Editor Mariatou Ngum
assesses.
The Government of the Second Re-
public under President Jammeh has
shown a high sense of commitment
to supporting the cause of Gambian
women, children and the vulnerable,
which has earned him global recogni-
tion.
This is why from day one when he
assumed the leadership of this coun-
try, he immediately increased the
number of women in Cabinet and
since then women have always consti-
tuted a high percentage at any point in
time. In addition to this, The Gambia
boasts of the longest serving female
vice president in the world (Aja Dr.
Isatou Njie-Saidy who also holds the
responsibility of the Cabinet portfolio
of Womens Affairs.
The Gambia is also on track to-
wards achieving MDG 3, which ad-
vocates for the promotion of gender
equality and empowerment of women.
It is important to note that The Gam-
bias progress toward the attainment
of MDG goals is anchored on the fact
that our government has given wom-
en their rightful share of positions in
the decision making process in which
girls education is prioritised.
The advent of the 22nd July revo-
lution has indeed ushered in tremen-
dous development in all sectors of the
Gambian society, especially in the
area of women empowerment.
Since the early days of the revolu-
tion, the empowerment of Gambian
women has been a key priority in the
development master plan of the Sec-
ond Republic.
The Women Empowerment Proj-
ect launched in 2008, constitutes a
magnifcent project, as it showcases
another meaningful step in the efforts
deployed by government towards
providing the necessary environ-
ment, infrastructure and facilities for
Gambian women to learn and acquire
skills, access resources and fnance,
as well as network at both local and
international levels, thus harnessing
their collective potential to create and
develop a vibrant platform for busi-
ness and production.
In July 2010, The Gambian lead-
er, Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Ya-
hya Jammeh was conferred with the
Pride of African Women Award by
the Women Advancement for Eco-
nomic and Leadership Empowerment
in Africa dubbed WAELE, a Pan-Afri-
can women organisation, in recogni-
tion of his good governance, as well as
43
his strides in the empowerment and
advancement of African women.
The president was also offcially
decorated at the same occasion by the
founder and president of WAELE, Dr
Basirat Nahibi, as the Grand Patron
of the organisation, with a member-
ship spread over all the regions of the
continent. All these developments
came hard on the heels of a visit to
The Gambia by Dr Nahibi and a high-
powered delegation from WAELE to
applaud the Gambian leader for his
outstanding women empowerment
initiatives, which prompted them to
designate him as the Grand Patron
of WAELE, as well as announce their
intention to award him the aforemen-
tioned prestigious accolade.
The president has never relent in
championing the course of women
and working towards increasing their
success in key areas like the inclusion
of women in the functional structures
of government, especially at deci-
sion making level, girls education,
the drastic reduction of maternal and
child mortality rate, the protection
and promotion of womens rights,
with legislative instruments that do
not only guarantee protection, but
stipulate stringent penalties for those
who perpetrate violence against wom-
en.
The APRC Governments stance
on the empowerment of women can-
not be over emphasized. This was
also highlighted in November 2009,
during the Beijing +15 meeting held
in the Gambia. The main objective of
this meeting is to discuss and strat-
egise on the implementation of the
Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA).
The launching of the Gambian
Womens Federation in 2010 also wit-
nessed the launching of the African
Union Womens Decade 2010-2020
in The Gambia. The launch of the Na-
tional Womens Federation brought
together thousands of Gambian
women from all spheres of human
endeavors, including farmers, entre-
preneurs, decision and policymakers,
craftswomen, politicians and activ-
ists, amongst a host of others.
The Federations goals is to pro-
vide a platform for womens effective
participation in national development
through institutional strengthening,
improved communication and part-
nership amongst women groups both
within and outside The Gambia. The
formation process used a bottom-up
approach, leading to series of consul-
tations for the establishment of man-
agement structures at village, ward,
district, regional and national levels.
Dressed in traditional white
gowns, the women marched past the
Gambian leader, whose government
has always championed their cause,
culminating in the formation of the
Womens Federation.
In his launching statement, Presi-
dent Jammeh hailed the women for
their steadfastness and for taking a
giant stride in coming together under
one umbrella as part of the women
empowerment process. He noted,
with delight, that the women of the
country have never failed to respond
to his calls for support, and have al-
ways been at the forefront of national
development since the advent of the
July 22nd Revolution.
At the Elysee Summit in Paris,
France, the First Lady of the Republic,
Her Excellency Madam Zineb Yahya
Jammeh highlighted the presidents
drive towards women empowerment
as exemplifed by his support and en-
dorsement of the candidature of the
incumbent prosecutor of the Inter-
national Criminal Court, (ICC), Fatou
Bom Bensouda.
During this years celebration of
the International Womens Day, the
First Lady recognised the potential
of womens contribution to national
development, thus informed that an
elaborate institutional, policy and
legislative framework has been devel-
oped to promote the empowerment of
women and girls.
She cited the creation of the Min-
istry of Womens Affairs, National
Womens Council and its secretari-
at (Womens Bureau), The Gambia
Women Federation and other related
structures as testimonies to the com-
mitment of the government in the
empowerment of Gambian women.
President Jammehs government,
she went on, has created many initia-
tives and support mechanisms which
include the provision of farm imple-
ments, inputs and other support ser-
vices to women in agriculture, schol-
arship schemes for girls as well as
Operation Save a Baby and free ma-
44
ternal health care for expecting moth-
ers, among others.
Madam Jammeh hailed President
Jammeh and his entire government
and the vice president for the immense
support directed to the empowerment
and development of Gambia women.
Personal supports by the
Gambian leader
The sponsorship for the girls edu-
cation through PEGEP and the Girls
Education Trust Fund have signif-
cantly contributed towards the attain-
ment of gender parity in education.
Through the Jammeh Foundation
for Peace, several projects have been
implemented in the areas of health,
education, agriculture, and environ-
mental management, which have
yielded several benefts to women and
girls.
He also initiated a Womens Em-
powerment Programme for girls;
womens participation in state mat-
ters, decision-making and politics has
improved over the years since the ad-
vent of the Second Republic.
Thus his efforts in empowering
Gambian women are worth praising
as it steps up the development pro-
cess of the nation.
Protection of women
against abuse
The president of Republic of the
Gambia and his government never
tolerate violence against women such
as rape and other forms of abuse di-
rected against women. Perpetrators of
such act faced the full force of the law.
President Jammeh has set up a
mechanism for addressing violence
against women through the ratifca-
tion of international and regional le-
gal instruments such as the Conven-
tion on the Elimination of all Forms
of Discrimination Against Women
(CEDAW), the Protocol to the Afri-
can Charter on Human and Peoples
Rights on the Rights of Women in
Africa, the Beijing Platform of Action
and the enactment of the Womens
Act 2010.
This year we have seen the com-
ing of the Domestic Violence Bill and
a Sexual Offence Bill by the govern-
ment of The Gambia which are also
signifcant in addressing violence
against women and girls.
All these instruments recognized
the signifcant contributions of wom-
en and girls in the socio-economic de-
velopment of The Gambia.
The Gambia government through
the Department of Social Welfare and
the law enforcement authorities con-
tinue to support victims through the
enforcement of law as well as actively
involving traditional institutions in
the fght against all forms of violence.
Due to their consistent follow-up on
cases of violence, there are convic-
tions on gender-based violence. A na-
tional plan of action has been devel-
oped as a fellow-up to the study on the
commercial and sexual exploitation of
children in 2004 to address the issues
raised and increase sensitisation cam-
paigns regarding early marriage, sex-
ual exploitation and related issues.
The Gambia ratifed the AU Sol-
emn Declaration on Gender Equality
in Africa in expression of its commit-
ment to the empowerment, welfare
and development of women and girls.
The government of The Gambia
is resolved to see that all women and
girls are given fair and equal treat-
ment at both our socio-cultural and
political levels as in tandem with
programmes aimed at combating
violence against women. This is the
vision of His Excellency the presi-
dent who continues to promote the
implementation of policies and pro-
grammes that engender the empow-
erment of women and girls, as well as
advocate for the equality of the sexes.
This would ensure that gains we have
already registered are entrenched and
sustained, leading us to our desired
goals of the eventual elimination of
violence against women, said the
First Lady of the Republic, Her Excel-
lency Madam Zineb Yahya Jammeh,
at the two-day Elysee Summit in Par-
is, France.
First Lady Jammeh said that in-
stitutions within the government of
45
The Gambia such as the Department
of Social Welfare, the Womens Bu-
reau, the Police Child Welfare Unit
and the Ministry of Justice have
jointly and severally conducted se-
ries of initiatives to address violence
through preventive measures, servic-
es, care and treatment of survivors of
gender-based violence, multi-media
campaign on the print and electronic
medias as well as the strengthening of
the capacities of the police child wel-
fare offcers.
Agriculture among other
sectors
Women constitute more of the la-
bour force; they are always seen very
active in the agricultural sector most
especially in the production of rice.
The Gambian rural women like
other rural women in developing
countries participate in crop and live-
stock production, provide food, water
and fuel wood for their families and
engage in off-farm activities to diver-
sify their families livelihoods.
Gambian women carry out vital
functions in caring for their children,
elderly people and the sick. The gov-
ernment of The Gambia in recognition
of these immense contributions of ru-
ral women in both local and national
development as encapsulated in the
Womens Acts 2010 revised in 2012,
takes into account their special needs
at all levels of development planning
(institutional, programme and policy
levels).
As part of efforts to address the
challenges faced by Gambian women,
the Gambia government since 1994
has been providing support to women
farmers through the agricultural ex-
tension services, provision of mecha-
nised farming equipment through the
personal donation of the president of
the Republic, establishment of mar-
kets outlets for local produce, training
and agricultural development proj-
ects, such as Lowland Agricultural
Development Project (LADEP), Rural
Finance and Community Initiative
Project (RFCIP), the Small Holder In-
tegrated Project (SHIP) and the Gam-
bia National Agricultural Investment
Plan (GNAIP).
Apart from their struggles in the
rice feld they also participate actively
in most of the development activities
of the country including tourism, and
also as mothers and household keep-
ers among others. They are running
major businesses in the trade, export
and import sector. They are indeed
great in all aspect of the development
of our motherland, The Gambia.
In the just concluded nationwide
tour with a strong call for Gambian
farmers to engage in large-scale ag-
ricultural production for the country
to move from predominantly subsis-
tence farming to commercial farm-
ing, The Gambian leader was never
relent in praising and appreciating
the important role women continue
to play in the implementation of his
programmes and policies, describing
them as a catalyst to national devel-
opment.
He said he has enormous conf-
dence in women to the extent that he
can entrust them with any responsi-
bility and yet go to sleep. Ill continue
to empower women because they are
honest. In the next fve years, by the
will of Allah, you will all see a greater
change, President Jammeh prom-
ised.
Again, during the launched of
Ecowas Federation of Business Wom-
en and Entrepreneurs (FEBWE)
Gambia Chapter in 2012, the vice
president told the gathering that the
government under the able leadership
President Jammeh has undertaken se-
ries of initiatives to create an enabling
environment that enhance womens
economic growth and employability
through the development and imple-
mentation policies, programmes and
projects.
46
VP Njie-Saidy pointed out that all
these activities are geared towards en-
couraging more and more women to
venture into commercial and indus-
trial sectors of the countrys economy.
Operation Save A Baby
initiative and OFLAGAM
Operation Save a Baby is a chari-
table committe e initiated by the First
Lady, H.E. Madam Zineb Yahya Jam-
meh in December 1999. It was the frst
project of the First Lady, said the for-
mer speaker of the National Assembly
Fatoumatta Jahumpa Ceesay.
Operation Save a Babys main ob-
jective, she said, is to compliment the
efforts of the Government within the
health sector particularly in the Ma-
ternity sub-sector.
The funds of Operation Save a
Baby are generally raised from dona-
tions by institutions and individuals.
The most popular activity of Op-
eration Save a Baby is the First Babies
of the year, whereby cash prizes and
baby gifts are given to the frst babies
of the year. There are generally four
categories: First baby of the year, frst
baby girl of the year, frst baby boy of
the year and frst twins of the year.
In the frst year, this event cov-
ered only the referral hospital in Ban-
jul, Royal Victoria Hospital and now
called Edward Francis Small Teach-
ing Hospital.
47
Apart from the cash prices and gifts given on New
Years Day, scholarship funds are also set up for the frst
babies. The First Lady normally presents the gifts and in
her absence, the Vice President would present it.
The most important work of Operation Save A Baby
is the purchase of maternity related equipment and medi-
cations for the maternity wards throughout the country
but mainly Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital,
Basang Hospital, APRC Hospital in Farafenni, Brikama
Health Centre etc. Maternity related equipment, such as
incubators, malaria drugs, pediatrics blood bags, surgical
and disposable gloves nasagostic tubes etc have been pur-
chased in the past for various hospitals and health cen-
tres, FJC revealed.
Her Excellency the First Lady, Madam Zineb Yahya
AJJ Jammeh through OFLAGAM and Operation Save a
Baby, has contributed towards improving maternal and
child health survival and development.
It could be recalled that in 2002, thirty-seven African
First Ladies met in Geneva at a meeting facilitated by the
UNAIDS and the International AIDS Trust (IAT).
This historic meeting saw the establishment of the
Organisation of African First Ladies Against AIDS
(OAFLAA), representing a collective voice for those
infected and affected by the disease in Africa.
Afterwards, the OAFLAA has become a force
to be reckoned with providing the required
leadership and political will; and ensuring a
positive change in the lives of those living with
HIV.
The Gambia, under the auspices of the Offce
of the First Lady, H.E Zainab Yahya Jammeh, has
been part and parcel of this laudable initiative
from its inception.
Her Excellency, the First Lady of the Republic of
The Gambia launched OAFLAA Gambia Chapter (OAF-
LAA-GAM) in April 2004, at a ceremony attended by Her
Excellency, the Vice-President, Dr. Ajaratou Isatou Njie-
Saidy, Ministers, Women Leaders around the country and
a cross section of the Gambian community.
These commitments were further boosted when on July
21st 2010, the First Lady launched the Campaign for
the Acceleration of Prevention of Mother-to-
Child Transmission (PMTCT) and com-
memorated the attainment of 70, 000
antenatal women tested under the
PMTCT programme.
Since then OAFLAA-GAM,
under the leadership of the
First Lady initiated and im-
plemented a number of pro-
grammes and projects across
a wide range of areas, all
geared towards the improve-
ment of the status of women
and children in the country.
For women empowerment The sky is
the limit
The Womens Bureau since 1994 have formulated and
implemented series of policies and programme framework
for the socio economic empowerment of women and girls
notably the National policy for the Advancement of Wom-
en and Girls 1999-2009, Gender and Women Empower-
ment policy 2010-2010, the Womens Act 2010, Sexual
Offences Act 2013 and Domestic Violence Act 2013, says
Binta Sidibeh, the executive director of Womens Bureau.
The implementation of these legislative and policy
framework, she said, has registered signifcant success in
the areas of girls education, legal reform and social issues,
mediation and peace building, increase women in deci-
sion making position, enhance
women self esteem,
maternal health,
48
increased awareness on gender
and access to productive resources
through the implementation of sev-
eral programmes and projects such
as the Women in Decision Making
Project, Women Economic Empow-
erment Project, Mainstreaming Gen-
der Project, Spanish African Women
Empowerment Project as well as the
ECOWAS Gender and Development
centre project.
The executive director of Womens
Bureau stated: Since 1994 to date
the Womens Bureau have provided
support to strengthening women
economic empowerment through the
provision of more than 85 milling
and threshing machines, 6 power til-
lers and also supported more than 60
vegetable garden, almost 1800 urban
and rural women benefted from soft
loans from Womens Bureaus Micro
Finance window. The construction
of a Multi Purpose Market Complex
to establish business links amongst
women producers is also signifcant
milestone in the economic empower-
ment of women.
In order to improve and sustain
gains made health service delivery,
the Women Bureau with support
from the ECOWAS Gender and Devel-
opment Centre contracted BAFROW
for the treatment, rehabilitation and
reintegration of 29 women who were
suffering from obstetric fstula by
providing them with skills training as
well as seed money to utilize the skills
achieved. The project also provided
scholarship to girls in vocational and
technical areas one of whom is cur-
rently studying at the Kwame NKu-
rumah University in Ghana. Effort
to increase womens participation in
large-scale commercial agriculture
is indeed a sound policy decision in
achieving the 2016 food self-suffcien-
cy development agenda.
The Womens Bureau have also
conducted several researches such
as the Socio economic Conditions
of Gambia Women Study on Gender
Base Violence, Capacity Assessment
of Women in Decision Making, Light
Assessment NGOs and CSOs, Desk
Review and capacity assessment of
eight line ministries and the National
assembly in Gender mainstreaming,
Analytical Study on the identifcation
of the Gender Discriminatory provi-
sion and Gender inequality Gaps in
the Gambia as well as reporting on
the Beijing platfrm for Action, thew
CEDAW and the AU Solemn Decla-
ration on gender Equality in Africa
which help in framing the Bureau so
as to address the Gaps identifed by
the various studies.
The Bureau has also conducted
series of sensitizations and capacity
building training for both government
49
offcials and the women at the grass-
roots such as the Gender Budgeting
training for Cabinet Ministers, Na-
tional Assembly Members and other
senior Government offcials.
Training were conducted for wom-
en in various areas such as entrepre-
neurship, horticultural production,
group formation and management,
advocacy and lobbying skills, problem
solving, food processing and book
keeping and fnancial management,
she revealed.
Government will continue to
support initiatives in this direction
and resources will be mobilized to
strengthen and build capacities of
women farmers to enable them invest
more in commercial agriculture in the
value chain approach
The Bureau we will also continue
to invest in 48 women district farms,
improve infrastructure for food pro-
cessing and preservation through the
value chain approach. All the 96 trac-
tors habe been asdsessed and those
without plough will be provided with
one and we hope this will go a long
way in enhancing women access to
farm implements and inputs, Binta
Sidibeh assured.
Our able vice president and minis-
ter of Womens Affairs Aja Dr Isatou
Njie-Saidy has also reiterated that the
sky is the limit as far as her aspira-
tion for women empowerment is con-
cerned. While answering questions
from students from various schools in
the country under the United States
Girls Power Programme in 2012, VP
Njie-Saidy pointed out that as women
and girls constitute half of the coun-
trys population, they are an impor-
tant human resource component that
need to be tapped to the fullest for any
meaningful development.
She said: As they constitute half of
the countrys population, any sensible
or wise government would tap those
human resources. And that is exactly
what President Jammeh has done.
He focuses his policies on women
and girls and doesnt segregate be-
tween the two sexes but knows that
women and girls were left behind for
a very long time and that situation has
to be redressed, so that at par he can
address them both.
She further stated that the involve-
ment of women and girls in the socio-
economic development of the country
is paramount, saying development ex-
perts have revealed that it is effcient
and effective, as it trickles down to the
rest of the society.
In 2013, ADE Mamondane Le-
koetje, the resident coordinator of the
50
United Nations system in The Gam-
bia commended government of the
Gambia for its strong push for wom-
en empowerment, saying the coun-
try is on the right path to unleashing
the potential of women in national
development.
The governor of West Coast Re-
gion, Aminata Siffai Hydara dur-
ing the celebration of International
Womens Day opined that for Africas
development to be realised, women
must take the lead and their voices
must be heard. She commended
the Gambian leader for the empow-
erment she has given to Gambian
women, making reference to her per-
sonal appointment as the countrys
frst female governor. Women are
participating in all spheres of devel-
opment and we will continue to re-
new our commitment to that effect,
she assured.
The national women mobiliser
of the ruling Alliance for Patriotic
Reorientation and Construction
(APRC), Isatou Jiffanga Jarju, also
hailed the Jammeh government for
putting women empowerment at the
core of its development agenda.
The deputy speaker of the Na-
tional Assembly and chairperson of
the National Women Council, Hon.
51
Fatou Mbaye, said the policies for
women and girls are not only relevant
to personal development, but also to
national development. She said The
Gambia under President Jammeh has
facilitated more women participation
in decision-making, noting that the
government continues to be commit-
ted to their advancement.
There has been tremendous
achievement in 20-years of President
Jammehs leadership, who we the
women called not only Babili Mansa,
but Avocat des Femme of women,
because he is the defend cause of
women empowerment, he is there-
fore our Avoca not only for Gambian
women but the whole of Africa, said
the former speaker of the National
Assembly Fatoumatta Jahumpa Cee-
say commonly known as FJC.
FJC cited the just concluded Wom-
en Africa Forum held in the Gambia,
revealing that part of the outcomes of
the forum was the admiration the del-
egates have for President Jammeh for
his stance and policies on gender is-
sues particularly in connection to the
welfare of women and the girl child.
So I think there has been tremen-
dous progress. I am among the success
stories of the revolution as a woman,
and there are many other women folk
with similar success stories thanks
to the 22 of July 1994. There are
a good number of Gambian women
manning key decision making posi-
tions in President Jammehs govern-
ment and Gambian women holding
important international portfolios, in
the likes of; Fatou Bom Bensouda and
Ann Theress Ndong amongst others,
she noted.
Today we have the longest serv-
ing vice president, Dr Aja Isatou Njie
Saidy, all these are because women
are better managers, thats why we
still have her there and we have been
having women in the diplomatic feld
as ambassadors.
She went on to say that under
Preident Jammeh, there are women
councilors, MPs, governor among
others.
FJC thus quoted President Jam-
meh as saying: I will always be with
women because they always con-
stitute the highest percentage in all
gatherings in fact women form the
majority in all positive developments
that are happening in this country.
President Jammeh would always
congratulate Gambian women for
their sense of patriotism and dedica-
tion to the development of our moth-
erland the Gambia, said a former
speaker of the National assembly. She
then quoted one of President Jam-
mehs statements were he said: Allah
has assured me the support of women
because of the honesty, dedication
and loyalty of Gambian women. If you
(women) were not behind us I wonder
whether we will have anything to cel-
ebrate today. As long as I live, women
will continue to be united and loyal to
the country. For Gambian women the
sky is the limit.
I therefore want to cease this op-
portunity, to felicitate His Excellency,
the President Shiekh Professor Alhaji
Dr Yahya Jammeh on the occasion
of the 20th anniversary of the peace-
ful and prolifc July 22nd Revolution.
Congratulations Mr. President for 20
years of remarkable socio-economic
development, said FJC.
She concluded that you cannot
talk about the success stories and
achievements of President Jammeh
without mentioning the women, be-
cause he has really empowered us and
emancipated us, giving us our inde-
pendence, respect and dignity so that
we are known and seen everywhere in
the world.
52
The dramatic evolution
of the health sector
O
ver the past two decades,
the Revolutionary gov-
ernment, through its
Ministry of Health and
Social Welfare and other develop-
ment partners, has been relentless
in its efforts to achieving Universal
Quality Health Coverage for All in The
Gambia. Since the advent of the July
22nd Revolution, the health sector
has leapt from mere basic healthcare
service delivery to a comprehensive
well-structured system.
The interventions in the sector are
best anchored on the fact that health
is everything and without it no devel-
opment can take place. This makes
the health sector one of the most in-
dispensable sectors to national de-
velopment. And this also explains the
logic why the Jammeh administration
has been consistent with its interven-
tions in the sector. Colossal sums of
money have been already invested
in it as a way of modernising it and
meeting the demands and expecta-
tions of the fast growing population.
Twenty years on, the Daily
Observers senior reporter, Mo-
modou Faal, takes a closer look
at the dramatic evolution of the
sector under the Second Repub-
lic.
Over the years, the Jammeh ad-
ministration has placed huge empha-
sis on the scaling up of services and
reaching out to the communities,
especially hard-to-reach areas, cou-
pled with strengthening of basic and
comprehensive healthcare services to
53
meet the targets of the Programme for
Accelerated Growth and Employment
(PAGE), the Vision 2020 and the Mil-
lennium Development Goals (MDGs).
The strategy employed here is Uni-
versal Coverage universal access
to quality healthcare delivery at the
doorstep of every Gambian.
During the colonial era, there
were only eight health facilities in the
country of which two were hospitals.
This fgure in the First Republic had
increased to a mere 28 facilities still
with only two hospitals.
With the coming of the July 22nd
Revolution, this fgure phenomenally
catapulted to 91 health facilities, out
of which six are hospitals. This indi-
cated that the regime built four new
major referral hospitals that are stra-
tegically located to ensure Universal
Coverage. Currently, projects are
well underway to construct four new
health facilities to be completed in
2014.
As part of the continuous efforts
to achieve Universal Coverage, vi-
tal life-saving equipment has been
installed at the Edward Francis Small
Teaching Hospital and other places.
The implementation of the Uni-
versal Coverage has also seen the re-
cent deployment of 17 Gambian medi-
cal doctors who were trained at the
University of The Gambia to hospi-
tals and major as well as minor health
centres across the country.
Under the good leadership of the
Jammeh administration for the frst
in the history of The Gambia the
Ministry of Health and Social Wel-
fare has developed a strategic plan
for the Ministry.
The gains of the Second Republic
in the health sector were recently at-
tested to by the outcome of the De-
mographic Health Survey (DHS) and
others. The DHS revealed that infant
and under-fve mortality rates were
75/1000 and 99/1000 live births re-
spectively in 2005, but in 2013, these
indicators were 34/1000 and 54/1000
live births respectively. These fgures
indicate that The Gambia has for the
past six years registered reduction in
infant mortality by 54% and under-
fve mortality by 45%.
Maternal mortality rates were esti-
mated at 1050 per 100, 000 live births
in 1999, but this dropped to 433 per
100, 000 live births in 2013, indicat-
ing a 59% reduction over the past 14
years, according to the same survey.
54
Immunisation
Under the Second Republic, The
Gambia has registered very high im-
munisation rates above 90% for all
the antigens for children. Whilst sev-
en traditional antigens were offered
on the routine immunisation in the
First Republic, in the Second Repub-
lic, this has increased to 13 antigens,
which include the very important
HIB, Penta, Rotavirus and Measles
Second Dose. The Gambia is among
the frst countries in Africa to intro-
duce these vaccines into their routine
immunisation schedule.
The Gambia had in 2013 success-
fully conducted a nationwide vacci-
nation against Meningitis A in 2013
and several immunisation days for
Polio vaccines. Today, The Gambia is
a Polio-free nation.
MDG Goal 4
In the area of MDG 4 child
health, the country has met the tar-
gets for both infant and child mortal-
ity indicators, according to statistics.
The infant mortality rate has dropped
from 93 per 1000 live births in 2005
to 81 per 1000 live births in 2010 and
in 2013 respectively.
Immunisation rates showed that
set target for the proportion of one-
year-old children immunised against
measles are on track and that fnd-
ings of the 2013 Demographic and
Health Survey shows that 88 percent
of children under fve are immunised
against measles .
The Jammeh government, it would
be recalled, has championed the for-
mation of the African Public Health
Emergency Fund (APHEF) which is
managed by World Health Organisa-
tion (WHO).
This Emergency Fund is currently
being utilised in the form of fnancial
and technical support for those coun-
tries with cases of Ebola in the West
African sub-region.
Social Welfare
The government through the Min-
istry has also registered huge success-
es in the provision of services for pro-
moting and protecting the vulnerable
members of the society, especially
women and children in diffcult cir-
55
cumstances and those with disability.
Very recently, a National Social
Protection Policy and Implementa-
tion Plan was developed and launched
to strengthen Gambias gains in social
protection. The government of The
Gambia has also ratifed the UN Con-
vention on the Rights of Persons with
Disability. The Gambia government
continues to provide free mobility aid
and artifcial limbs to disabled per-
sons.
Through the Ministry of Health
and Social Welfare, the government
has established a One-Stop Centre
Care Services to Victims of Gender
Based Violence which is aimed at
offering comprehensive services in-
cluding temporal housing, counsel-
ling, legal, and healthcare services all
within the centre. It has established
two shelters for children, one home
for the elderly, and a helpline for pro-
tection of children and persons in dif-
fcult circumstances.
In addition to this, an inter-agency
handbook on child protection, child
protection manual and after-arrest
procedures for children in contact or
in confict with the law was devel-
oped and trainings were conducted
for stakeholders. Child Justice Com-
mittee has also been established and
supported.
Efforts to revamp Primary Health
Care
The Gambia Primary Health Care
Strategy, which was a product of the
First Republic, is currently being
studied by the Ministry for a pos-
sible revamp. The system involves
establishing community-based and
community-supported health sys-
tems with strong emphasis on mak-
ing village communities self-reliant in
the provision of drugs and rendering
essential health care to the people,
through Village Development Com-
munities, Village Health Workers
(VHWs) and Traditional Birth Atten-
dance.
The Gambia has made giant
strides in the area of Primary Health
Care in the country. PHC services
used to be the best in the sub-region
and with its revitalisation, many com-
munities in the country will beneft
from the programme, Minister Omar
Sey stated recently during a health
meeting in Bwiam.
With six years to the attainment of
Vision 2020, it is envisaged that the
country would have had a more ad-
vanced healthcare delivery system.
56
2
0 years on, the advent of
the 22nd July Revolution in
1994 under the leadership
of His Excellency, Sheikh
Professor Dr. Alhaji Yahya AJJ Jam-
meh, Nasirul Deen Babili Mansa has
served as a turning point in the uni-
versal access and availability to elec-
tricity services to all corners of the
country.
Electricity, which was seen as a
luxury meant for only the middle class
and rich prior to 1994 is now acces-
sible by all, regardless of class.
The countrys energy sector
(NAWEC), still remains a high prior-
ity in the development agenda of the
AFPRC/APRC administration, cogni-
sant of the fact that no meaningful de-
velopment is possible in the absence
of a vibrant energy sector.
Twenty years on, senior re-
porter Alieu Ceesay assesses
some of the gains registered in
this crucial sector.
Since assuming the responsibility
of leadership on 22nd July 1994, the
government has and continues to in-
vest massively in this critical sector
over the past twenty years, with the
acquisition of new generators and
building of new power stations at
Kotu, Brikama and other parts of the
country.
These investments are dwarfed
by the ever-increasing request for
electricity for both domestic and in-
dustrial uses. Notwithstanding, the
government under president Jammeh
continues to pursue policies and strat-
egies to expand electricity generation
to ensure more reliable and afford-
able electricity supplies for domestic
and industrial use.
To this end, the visible number
of power generation and distribu-
tion projects since the advent of the
22nd July Revolution has been em-
barked upon with the collaboration of
the government and its development
partners.
These projects include the West
Coast Region Electrifcation Project,
the Venezuela project, which entails
the installation and rehabilitation
of transformer stations, conductors
and distribution panels with the frst
phase commissioned and operational.
The Rural Electrifcation Expan-
sion Project, which has also been high
on the governments development
agenda, also formed part of the strat-
egies to ensure that electricity supply
reaches every Gambian across the
length of the country. Its objectives,
among others, are to improve Power
Generation, and Transmission sys-
tems in the rural areas.
However, the Brikama Power
Project, fnanced by the government
of The Gambia is producing electric-
ity into the network; the International
Development Bank funded Brikama
(II) 20 Mega Watts Power Supply
(Wartsila) has increased NAWEC
power generation capacity from Bri-
kama.
The US$6 Million Energy Devel-
opment and Access Expansion Project
being supported by OPEC Fund for
International Development (OFID) is
also on course. The scope of the works
for this important project includes
design review, material procurement,
construction, installation and com-
missioning of a 32 Km 33 KV line, 33/1
1Kv Feeders and low voltage networks
to ten villages (Bafuloto, Makumbaya,
Kubarikko, Galoya, Kubuneh, Kunku-
A turning point in
22nd July Revolution:
national access to electricity
58
jang Jattaya, Mandinari, Kerewan,
Darusalam, and Daranka). The con-
tract was signed with Global Trading
Group N.V and construction.
The Gambian leader and the gov-
ernment have always been passionate
about energy generation, production
and expansion. It has taken the chal-
lenge to increase the installed capac-
ity across the country.
Kabada Electrifcation
project
Cognizant of the importance of
electricity in the day-to-day lives of
the rural people, the government
under the visionary leadership of
President Jammeh has come up with
projects that seek to fulfll the long
awaited pledge made by the presi-
dent to the people of The Gambia.
Among them, are the locals of Kabada
area in the Lower River Region, who
never dreamt of having electricity at
their doorsteps during the 400 years
of British rule and post-Independence
government. The project includes the
extension of the medium voltage from
Soma and the installations of 3 by 50
Kva transformers for the electrifca-
tion of four villages (Sare Musa, Mis-
sino Sano, Bajonki, and Sambunbu).
Today, people as far as in Koina,
Basse, Farafenni, Soma, Bansang,
Janjangbureh, and the Fonis, just to
name a few are enjoying electricity
supply, thanks to the visionary and
dynamic leadership of the Jammeh
administration.
To further ensure availability, af-
fordability and sustainability of en-
ergy supply to its citizenry in general,
the government promotes diversifca-
tion of energy sources.
To this end, government has ap-
proved the Renewable Energy Law
in December 2013, which provides
incentives for both local and foreign
investors to invest in The Gambias
energy sector. This is evident by the
increased number of foreign investors
in the country today, coupled with the
conducive environment created by
the government.
In their quest to further extend
services to other rural communities,
the National Water and Electricity
Company (NAWEC) had not long ago
unveiled two brand new generators,
earmarked for NAWECs rural elec-
tricity expansion project, which is ex-
pected to cover 44 more communities
in the provincial across the country.
The dual generators of 2.7 and 2.9
megawatts, respectively will be sta-
tioned at Farafenni and Basse, as part
of NAWECs rural electricity Phase 2
Expansion, costing US$20M. It is go-
ing to prolong the number of hours
for the people of rural Gambia to en-
joy electricity supply at least 20 hours
in a day.
Offcials said it is the frst time that
NAWEC is sending heavy fuel genera-
tors to the rural Gambia; and that 24
hours electricity is assured once the
generators begin operation. It was
also disclosed that an extra US$10M
has been secured for the Bansang
Electricity Expansion Project 2,
which NAWEC offcials said would
soon be unveiled.
The overall objective, offcials
pointed out, is to reduce the number
of power stations in rural Gambia, so
that electricity becomes more cost-
effective and more sustainable.
The Energy minister, Dr. Edward
Saja Sanneh underscored the im-
portance The Gambia government
attaches to the energy sector, noting
that the provision of higher capacity
engines will further strengthen the
stability of electricity in the country.
The Energy minister maintained
that the extension of electricity to an
extra 44 communities in rural Gam-
bia is a barometer of governments
commitment to have higher coverage
of electricity across the country. He
thus saluted the Gambian leader for
providing what he called space that
has given NAWEC the opportunity to
expand and strengthen the coverage
across the country.
59
With this reliable energy to be-
gin in the rural areas and as we are
striving for this Vision 2016, I think
providing electricity to those places
will encourage investment or the cre-
ation of agro-businesses and using
technology in meeting our food self-
suffciency drive, he opined, adding
that in the long run, it would help the
country to meet its poverty reduction
MDGs targets goals.
Ebrima Sanyang is the Managing
Director of NAWEC and he recalled
before the advent of July 22nd Revo-
lution most of the people were virtu-
ally living in dark, even the urban side
of the country. Thanks to the revolu-
tion now even in the urban sector ev-
erything has been transformed into a
complete city status. The July 22nd
Revolution has actually impacted in
all aspects of the energy sector of this
country and we believe that transfor-
mation is gathering momentum year
in, and year out. Energy services, par-
ticularly electricity is getting closer
and closer to the doorsteps of every
Gambian, access to electricity service
is becoming easier for Gambians, the
coverage before the July 22nd Revo-
lution was maybe less than 12%, but
from 1994 to date about 45% of coun-
try is covered with electricity servic-
es.
With more and more projects in
the pipeline, MD Sanyang is hopeful
that the Vision 2020 objectives are
achievable, which will transform the
whole country into a city-state. How-
ever, the government of The Gambia
and NAWEC is working to make elec-
tricity cost effective and reliable for
all Gambians. Up to the advent of the
July 22nd Revolution, there were be-
tween 12 to 15 Mega Watts of power
when only a small portion (middle
class and the rich) of Gambians were
enjoying electricity services, but today
the total installed capacity, including
the provinces amount to about 100
Mega Watts of power, providing ser-
vices to the poorest farmer in the vil-
lage. Today, the rural electrifcation is
no doubt helping to transform those
that are poor.
Sanyang, who has spent over two
decades in the company, said there
has been a rapid increased in the
power generation infrastructure with
Kotu Power Station expanded by two
folds. He also stated that there is a new
power plant built by a private partner
of the government in 2006; and an-
other one built by the government in
2011. As we speak, before end 2016,
we expect to augment the current ca-
pacity by another 30%, due to the in-
tervention by the government.
Before the advent of the Revo-
lution, there were only few lines of
electricity around the Greater Banjul
Area, but today its a different sce-
nario, which was a farfetched dream
for Gambians, prior to 1994. Trans-
mission lines at the time were about
maybe not more than 60 kilometers,
but today we are talking about 200
kilometers of transmission lines. In
terms of distribution to homes and
business activities before the advent
of the Revolution was 200 kilometers
of distribution, but today we are talk-
ing about close to 800 kilometers of
distribution networks nationwide.
This massive improvement within 20
years under President Jammeh has in
no small ways helped in boosting the
customers base of NAWEC, which be-
fore 1994 was just around 20, 000 to
30,000 customers (electricity and wa-
ter combined), but today the company
has a customer base of over 125, 000,
of which 104, 000 are all on the Cash
60
Power System. I think the gains in
the electricity sector are visible by ev-
ery Gambian. It has helped in not only
boosting the socio-economic activities
in the Greater Banjul Area, but as far
as Soma, Farafenni, and even here in
Basse, the elated Ebrima Jallow of
Basse said.
Today, foreigners and Gambians
are motivated to move or stay in the
provincial areas to start their busi-
nesses, due to availability and reli-
ability of the energy sector. Instead
of staying only within the Kombos,
they are found in all provincial towns
engaged in different activities, as
a result of the rural electrifcation
project. We fnd it ok here, because
whatever is in the city is here. So, I
am really going on with my work and
thank God, things are going well, a
Nigerian running a mobile shop in
Basse intimated.
Prior to 1994, to see a student in
the provincial areas studying under
electricity or drinking cold water
would have been described as a mir-
acle at the time, but today students
dont need candles to study. And as
well, the Jolas and Fulas in Foni and
Basse can drink cold water at any
time of the day, as if they are in Ban-
jul.
The expansion of the electricity
has also helped in ensuring effective
health service delivery across the
country, in the sense that drugs and
medical related equipment are now
properly stored in the provincial ar-
eas, unlike the past when certain
drugs couldnt be kept in certain plac-
es, due to the lack of electricity.
One will defnitely accept that the
availability of electricity in the rural
areas has greatly improved the lives
and livelihoods of Gambians, as it has
attracted the proliferation of Banks
in rural Gambia. A lot of small-scale
industries in the country are now
fourishing, such as carpentry, tailor-
ing, wedding, video clubs, etc. that are
found across the country, as a result
of the vibrant energy sector.
US$31.9 grant from
Ecowas
The government of The Gambia
and the Economic Community of
61
West African States (ECOWAS) in
December, 2013 signed a US$31.9M
grants agreement, earmarked for the
formers energy sector. Reached at
the Golf Hotel in Abidjan on the side-
lines of the 71st Ordinary Session of
the Council of Ministers of ECOWAS,
the grant is provided by the ECOWAS
Emergency Regional Programme for
Improved Electricity Supply Facility
(EERPIEF).
The other two countries that bene-
fted from the grant are the Republics
of Mali and Sierra Leone, respective-
ly, which received US$54.34M and
US$21.8M.
The project seeks to improve
electricity supply within these three
countries in the sub-region. The sign-
ing ceremony was witnessed by The
Gambias high-powered delegation,
including the then minister of Energy,
Teneng-Ba Jaiteh, who appended her
signature on the agreement, on behalf
of The Gambia.
In the governments national de-
velopment blueprint, the provision of
adequate and uninterrupted energy
supply to underpin development ac-
tivity remains a major policy objec-
tive. It is an indisputable fact that the
sector is being confronted with some
challenges, but The Gambia stands
out as a role model among many other
African countries in terms of accessi-
ble and reliable power supply.
About REP
Research has indicated that the
Rural Electrifcation Project in The
Gambia started in 1993, just before
the advent of the 22nd July Revo-
lution when Electricite de France
(EDF), prepared an electrifcation
master plan for the Greater Banjul
Area (GBA) and the rural areas, which
basically envisaged the electrifcation
of towns within 80-km radius from
two proposed central power stations
in The Gambias rural centres of Man-
sakonko and Bansang.
The project would consist of 6
power stations, supported by 11kv
transmission systems; and is hoped
that it will form the basis for develop-
ing a national grid across The Gambia.
The new project will extend power to
new areas and consolidate supply in
others.
Lahmeyer International (LI) was
thereafter commissioned by NAWEC
in 1997 to prepare an Engineering
Study for economically feasible rural
electrifcation projects, based on the
EDF conclusions and recommenda-
tions of the 1993 master plan. How-
ever, it is an undeniable fact that it
was during the 2nd Republic that the
Rural Electrifcation became a real-
ity to the people of country when the
government under President Jam-
meh launched the rural Electrifca-
tion Project in 2007, which built new
power plants in all the major provin-
cial towns.
Another feature of the project was
the construction of extensive trans-
mission and distribution networks in
several villages and towns in the rural
areas. Electricity services were signif-
cantly improved with most localities
experiencing in excess of 12 hours of
electricity per day, 6hrs in the morn-
ing and 6hrs in the evenings.
As part of the ongoing strides by
the Jammeh administration to fur-
ther enhance the livelihoods of Gam-
62
bians especially the rural people, the
government of The Gambia through
the Ministry of Energy and the Na-
tional Water and Electricity Com-
pany (Nawec) in 2011 commissioned
a state-of-the art power plant with a
generating capacity of 9 megawatts, at
the national utility companys power
station in Brikama.
Offcially commissioned by the
president of the Republic, His Ex-
cellency Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr
Yahya Jammeh Nasirul Deen Babili
Mansa, whose offce was at the time
overseeing the Ministry of Energy,
the power plant was the frst phase
of a 30 megawatt power project that
was expected to provide electricity to
the West Coast Region (WCR) and the
Greater Banjul Area. The frst phase
9MW power plant was fnanced by
the Islamic Development Bank (IDB)
at the tune of US$17.15 million.
It was part of the numerous efforts
by the government of the Jammeh
administration to add vibrancy to the
energy sector with a view to ensur-
ing that the vital electricity amenity is
taken to the doorsteps of the citizenry
for improved livelihood. The commis-
sioning of this frst phase project was
described as a milestone in the energy
sector that it is of the belief that there
is a direct relationship between a
countrys economic development and
the availability of electricity services
to its populace. The electrifcation of
the entire country is well on course
and that would serve as a catalyst
for increased productivity, improved
health services, as well as viable eco-
nomic activities, all of which contrib-
ute to rapid socio-economic growth
and development.
Regulation
The regulation of the electricity
sector in The Gambia falls under the
purview of the Public Utilities Regula-
tory Authority (PURA). Following the
approval of the National Energy Poli-
cy in 2005, and the enactment of the
Electricity Act, the electricity sector in
The Gambia has seen signifcant im-
provements. The monopoly NAWEC
(National Water and Electricity Com-
pany) earlier enjoyed in the gen-
eration of electricity ended with the
opening of the generation market to
the private sector. NAWEC, however
still maintains its monopoly in the
distribution and transmission sectors.
Electricity Generation
NAWEC still maintains its Kotu
Power Station, which is the nerve cen-
tre of NAWEC operations as the major
generating power house supported by
a number of stand-alone power sta-
tions in the major provincial towns.
The National Water and Electric-
ity Company (NAWEC) is a compa-
ny wholly owned by the government
mandated to provide electricity and
water to industries and Gambians.
It has its origins from Gambia Utili-
ties Corporation, which was the frst
public cooperation on electricity and
water services in the year 1972, when
the Gambia Utilities Corporation Act
created the GUC.
GUC was formally dissolved in
1993 and the Utilities Holding Corpo-
ration (UHC) inherited the assets and
management of GUC. The operations
were outsourced to Management Ser-
vices Gambia Ltd (MSG) initially,
but in 1996 NAWEC was created as a
public company registered under the
Companies Act of 1955. NAWEC is
involved in generation, transmission
and distribution of electricity all over
The Gambia. NAWEC operates sever-
al facilities for both power generation
and water production and treatment
at the following locations:
Its GBA Power Stations are Kotu
Power Station, and Brikama Power
Station, while the Rural Power Sta-
tions are in Barra, Kerewan, Kaur,
Farrafeni, Soma, Bansang and Basse.
To this end, the 22nd July Revo-
lution is indeed worth celebrating by
any imagination for the massive de-
velopment ushered in the energy sec-
tor in the past 20 years. Happy 20th
July 22nd Anniversary!
63
Clean drinking water,
key to improved livelihood
A
ccess to clean and safe
drinking water is unar-
guably one of the most
critical basic amenities
worthy of investment. Water is as in-
dispensable as air is to living. It is key
to healthy existence, and this explains
why world leaders in the Millennium
Year did not hesitate to stress in goal
7 for the world to halve, by 2015, the
proportion of the population without
sustainable access to safe drinking
water and basic sanitation
Globally, the target on sustain-
able access to water (88 per cent) has
been surpassed by one percentage
point according to the World Health
Organisation (WH0) and the United
Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF)
progress report on MDG 2012.
However, the report stated that Af-
rica is off-track on this indicator giv-
en that more than 40 per cent of the
worlds population without access to
drinking water is in Africa.
Contrary, The Gambia is one of
the few African countries that have
surpassed MDG targets for access to
sustainable clean drinking water hav-
ing hit more that 80 percent coverage
since 2009. This is thanks to sound,
consistent and pro-poor policies and
programmes of the Jammeh admin-
istration that has since prioritised ac-
cess to water at the dawn of the Revo-
lution in 1994.
Twenty years on, Daily Ob-
servers senior reporter, Modou
Kanteh, analyses the interven-
tions and gains of the Second
Republic in the water sector.
At the birth of the Revolution, the
64
new administration saw the urgent
and great need to salvage communi-
ties from the hardships they had been
going through in the area of access to
clean drinking water. With the Bri-
kama April 1994 incident which saw
hundreds of locals take to the streets
to protest the decision against priva-
tizing public water taps fresh in the
minds of the new leaders at the time,
it became apparent that issues sur-
rounding water had to be addressed
with all immediacy.The intervention
by the Revolution in Brikama and
other places soon set the government
on track for huge public investment in
the water sector.
Whereas there are signifcant ru-
ral-urban disparities in access to im-
proved water sources in many African
countries, The Gambia deployed a
strategy of reaching out to rural and
peri-urban communities through the
rural water project.
Through its partnerships with in-
ternational institutions like the Afri-
can Development Bank, the European
Union, and Japan, the government of
The Gambia had pumped millions of
Dollars into the sector, aimed at en-
suring that citizens have access to safe
and clean drinking water.
Japan, for instance, had partnered
with the government of The Gambia
to support rural communities, includ-
ing those in the Lower River Region,
with solar-powered water projects.
The Asian nations intervention had
fallen in line with The Gambia gov-
ernments resolve to proving access
to its 1.7 million people by the MDG
target year of 2015.
In addition to this, the European
Union also intervened in 2006 with
a project called the Rural Water Sup-
ply Sector Support (RWSSS) that was
calculated to increase access to safe,
clean and potable drinking water sup-
ply and basic sanitation for people liv-
ing in the rural and peri-urban areas.
The EU had contributed 6, 8 million
for a project that kicked off at the end
of 2006 and wrapped-up six years lat-
er (in 2012).
Outcome of the project
According to relevant statistics,
the project facilitated the provision
of 80 large diameter wells equipped
with hand pumps; installed 25 solar
powered water supply systems; ex-
tended nine peri-urban water supply
systems; improved operational and
maintenance arrangements for water
supply facilities, amongst others. A
total of 164 new water supply systems
were installed throughout the length
and breadth of the country beneft-
ting approximately 113, 500 rural and
peri-rural residents, according to sta-
tistics.
After the projects phasing out in
2012, the African Development Bank
(AfDB) that year had signed two grant
agreements with the Gambia govern-
ment totaling US$7 million to im-
prove access to clean drinking water
for people in rural areas of the coun-
try and cut hygiene-related deaths in
65
those areas, particularly among chil-
dren.
The African Development Fund,
the AfDBs concessional or soft loan
arm, provided US$5 million and the
remaining US$ 2 million Dollars was
to be provided by the AfDBs Rural
Water Supply and Sanitation Initia-
tive Trust Fund.
The move was a partnership purely
anchored on the need to enable The
Gambia government increase access
to adequate services in rural areas,
educate and empower populations
and signifcantly improve their living
conditions.
The Gambia Rural Water Supply
and Sanitation Project was to build
capacity and provide safe drinking
water, as well as promote hygienic/
safe handling of drinking water, per-
sonal hygiene and sanitation practices
in rural areas.
Access to adequate and affordable
water and energy is fundamental and
necessary for the attainment of Gam-
bias national development objectives,
as enshrined in the Programme for
the Accelerated Growth and Employ-
ment, and Vision 2020, the Fisheries
minister, Mass Axi Gye, who had then
under his Ministry the Department
of Water Resources, stated in March
2014 during the graduation ceremony
of the 2012/2013 intake of the entry
level meteorological and hydrological
technician course.
The Gambias 49th Independence
Anniversary also witnessed the com-
missioning of three rural water proj-
ects, each fnanced at a tune of D5.5M,
in the Lower River and Central River
Regions. The commissioning of the
solar-powered boreholes, which are
part of the bigger government scheme
to provide safe drinking water to
40, 000 people in 100 communities
across the country, were hailed by the
rural dwellers as timely.
Jointly funded by The Gambia gov-
ernment and Islamic Development
Bank (IDB), this rural water supply
project aims at transforming the lives
of the people living in rural communi-
ties, while boosting the nations quest
to attain 100 percent access to clean
drinking water.
For the inhabitants of the ben-
efciary villages of Kiang Jiffarong in
LRR, Kudang and Ndawen villages
in CRR, the commissioning of these
projects came as a big relief in that it
would henceforth enhance their liveli-
hoods.
Minister Mass Axi Gye at the com-
missioning affrmed that the projects
are part of governments commitment
to providing clean and safe drinking
water to the citizens, particularly the
rural dwellers. He hailed the Gam-
66
bian leader for his foresight and po-
litical commitment to the countrys
development, noting that today, The
Gambia has made signifcant progress
in terms of providing clean drinking
water to her citizens.
Whilst no government on earth
can fulfll all the needs of her people,
the minister noted, the government
of The Gambia is committed to bring
more development initiatives closer
to the doorsteps of its people.
The importance of these water fa-
cilities on the economic lives of the
rural dwellers cannot be less stated.
For instance, prior to the installation
of a solar-powered water system in
Ndawen community in Central River
Region, according to offcials, it used
to take women there about 18 hours to
fetch water. But with the commission-
ing of a borehole now, it takes them
only an hour to fetch water.
Given all these achievements, it is
indeed apt to state that The Gambia
has triumphed in the water sector and
made signifcant gains in the attain-
ment of the MDGs target for water.
In fact, offcials have also insisted that
the country has surpassed the MDG
targets for water thanks to a great
political commitment, support from
development partners and the consis-
tency and calculated priorities in its
overall development agenda.
According to Gambias Poverty
Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) 2,
which is now replaced by the Pro-
gramme for Accelerated Growth and
Employment (PAGE) 2012-2015, the
key water sector challenge is to pro-
vide for sustainable development and
management of water resources to
meet higher demands of domestic wa-
ter supply and sanitation, expand ir-
rigated agriculture to strengthen food
security as well as sustain environ-
mental integrity in the face of increas-
ing abstractions and climate change.
From 1994 to date, the govern-
ment of The Gambia has built several
water treatment centres around the
Grater Banjul Area through its Na-
tional Water and Electricity Company
(NAWEC).
Agriculture has also been boosted
in many parts of the country as a re-
sult of governments proliferation of
water projects. Almost every com-
munity in rural Gambia is engaged
in horticultural gardening, thus, im-
proving the livelihood of farmers.
The government of the Gambia
has also created the enabling environ-
ment that allows non-governmental
oraganisations to provide communi-
ties with water projects.
67
T
here is a serene competi-
tive environment in The
Gambias ICT sector today
compare to pre-1994 July
22nd Revolution, which has created a
wide range of employment opportu-
nities for citizens of the country. The
Gambia Government, being aware of
the sectors ability to transform its
economy, strategically placed itself
on the right side of the ICT history, by
unbundling vital areas of the ICT sec-
tor and allowing healthy competition.
This has created a wide range of em-
ployment opportunities, especially in
the technical felds thereby building
our human resource base, and pro-
viding citizens a wider choice.
A mild research on the ad-
vancement registered in this
sector by the Daily Observers
Senior Reporter Musa Ndow
revealed that Information and
Communications Technology
(ICT) can be a great tool for de-
velopment and advances in the
use of technology can improve
economic opportunities for the
poor, increase delivery of ser-
vices to the underserved, im-
prove governance, and beneft
social change.
In the Gambia, however, statistic
has indicated that access and use of
ICT and the Internet and broadband
has improved signifcantly in the last
20 years of the progressive devel-
opment of the Second Republic un-
der the leadership of His Excellency
Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya
Jammeh Nasirudeen Babili Mansa.
Information and Communica-
tion Technology (ICT) is constantly
evolving and affects many aspects of
everyday life. Recent examples of its
impacts include increased business
sector productivity enabled by ac-
cess to price information for market
participants, newly gained access to
fnancial services through ICT-based
mobile banking in the Gambia. The
many applications of ICT over the
past decades have shown its transfor-
mative potential in the Gambia.
The government of The Gambia
under the dynamic and result-orient-
ed leadership of Presiden Jammeh
has realized the important role ICTs
play in the socio-economic develop-
ment of any nation. ICTs have helped
improve peoples lives, improved pro-
ductivity and facilitated development
in peoples and society in the Gambia.
Investment in ICTs has been central
in the overall investment strategy of
The Gambia Investment and Export
Promotion Agency (GIEPA), a na-
tional agency responsible for promot-
ing and facilitating Investment, Busi-
ness and Export Development and
Support to MSMEs and regulation of
designated export processing zones in
The Gambia.
It is a statutory body established
through an Act of Parliament under
the legal framework of The Gambia
Investment Promotion Act, 2001 and
The Free Zones Act, 2001. This agen-
cy said special incentives are available
for such undertakings in the ICT sec-
Capturing ICT
for Development
69
tor of the country.

The new ICT Park in the
offng
The governments commitment to
the development of the ICT, accord-
ing to Her Excellency, Aja Dr Isatou
Njie-Saidy during one of her offcial
engagement, said this is underpinned
by its relentless pursuit of achieving
the vision of making the country an
ICT hub.
The government has already
identifed the location for an ICT park
after a thorough feasibility study and
we will be delighted to host your com-
panies at this site, she disclosed dur-
ing that offcial engagement.
With the advancement women and
girls at the forefront of the govern-
ments agenda, the veep said it has
made gender integral crosscutting
activity in all pillars of the National
Information and Communication In-
frastructure (NICI) policy.
Evolution of the ICT Sec-
tor and ICT Use in the Gam-
bia
The penetration of and access to
ICT has grown rapidly in the Gam-
bia over the past two decades. This
development was driven by explosive
growth of private sector participation
and enabled by reform geared toward
increased competition. The increase
in access also refects demand for
communication services from even
the poorest people. The diffusion of
some technologies, such as broadcast-
ing and mobile voice telephony, has
outstripped the provision of other ba-
sic infrastructure in developing coun-
tries like the Gambia.
The Government of the Gambia
under the leadership of His Excellen-
cy Sheikh Professor Alhaji Yahya AJJ
Jammeh has connected the Gambia
to the world of Information and Com-
munication Technology (ICT). This is
in line with his vision to provide the
requisite infrastructure and create the
enabling environment to ensure that
ICT services are within the reach of
each and every Gambian at anytime,
anywhere and at affordable prices.
Under President Jammehs gov-
ernment, ICT plays a crucial role in
all sectors of the countrys economy,
boosting agricultural productivity and
in providing the health sector with the
necessary ICT infrastructure to im-
prove delivery of services.
In the same vein, the Ministry of
Information Communication and
Infrastructure (MOICI) is exploring
ways and means of integrating the
ICT needs of disadvantaged groups in
society, while facilitating the develop-
ment of ICT to support education de-
livery.
Recognizing the driving role that
ICT plays in bringing about sustained
economic growth and expansion of
trade, MOICI is working in partner-
ship with the private sector and do-
nors within a liberalized and competi-
tive market, one that offers consumer
choice.
The Government of President
Jammeh has brought lots of develop-
ment in the ICT sector and from 1994
to date several ICT projects have been
realized. Twenty years now, Gambi-
ans have witnessed the proliferation
of not only radio stations and print
media houses, but also the advent of
the National Television (The Gambia
Radio and Television Services) and
GSM mobile operators, among a host
of other projects.
The Gambias Internet
Initiative Experience
In its quest to develop easy and
cost effective information access, the
United Nations Development Pro-
gramme in 1997 launched the Internet
Initiative for Africa (IIA), a three-year
regional project which aims among
other things, to establish and enhance
internet services and build capacity in
Sub-Saharan African countries as a
means of strengthening their econo-
mies and social development reforms.
The Gambia became one of the
frst countries under the leadership of
President Jammeh to join the band-
wagon of the information superhigh-
way under IIA, with the Gambia Tele-
communications Company Limited
(Gamtel), at the time, providing 50%
of the US$1M needed for its imple-
mentation, on behalf of the govern-
ment.
The Gambias Internet Initiative
became a reality in September 1998
with the launching of an Internet
backbone and gateway. At the time,
the Gambia boasts of a backbone cov-
ering the entire country on a 2 Mega-
bytes per second platform, with nodes
in 12 major cities and 512 kilobytes
per second direct access to the rest of
the world via Teleglobe, Canada.
With Gamtel taking the leading
role, it started the provision of In-
ternet Services to the entire nation
in October 1998 and Quantum Net
became the frst private company to
offer Internet services in November
1998 with a high-speed connection to
Internet backbone. Medical Research
Council (MRC) follow suit by estab-
70
lishing a high-speed access in Novem-
ber 1998 and currently operates as a
commercial Internet Service Provider
(ISP).
Aside from all these, the Gambia
can today boost of its accessibility to
Internet, which structures are visible
everywhere in the country for people
to see for themselves. Today we have
so many Internet service providers
compare to 16 years ago.
Prior to implementing IIA project
in the Gambia in 1998, Gamtel was
providing Internet Services via a low-
speed X.25 access to CompuServe On-
line and Delphi in UK. Not only was
this system slow and unreliable, it
could only support 10 concurrent us-
ers of the total user base of 250 at the
time.
Barely a year after the launching of
Internet services in 1998, by President
Jammeh, the user base grew up to
over 1200 dial-up users. The Internet
user base growth rate was expected to
remain the same for the next year or
two before gradually reaching market
saturation.
On December 19, 2012 up to 500
international policy-makers, regula-
tors, operators and service providers
from across the world converged in
Banjul for the historical launching of
the Africa Coast to Europe Submarine
Cable (ACE).
The ACE Consortium, which is led
by France Telecom-Orange, is made
up of 16 members from Africa and
Europe. The ACE project has a design
capacity of 5.12 Tbps and is supported
by the new 40 Gbps wavelength divi-
sion multiplexing (WDM) technology.
This makes it possible to increase the
capacity as required and adapt to the
latest technological improvements by
upgrading station equipment without
any submarine cable modifcations.
The system also facilitates connectiv-
ity with terrestrial fbre optics cable.
The US$700 million cable project
will ultimately extend over 17, 000
kilometers from Brittany in France to
Cape Town in South Africa at depths
close to 6,000 meters below sea level,
linking Europe to Africa with high-
capacity broadband connectivity.
When we look at what has trans-
pired from 1998 to date in the Gam-
bia under President Jammeh, we have
to give ourselves a pat on the back for
the commendable achievements and
growth in the country, with govern-
ment spearheading accessibility to
Internet resources as a tool for na-
tional development. It has been a
tough road, sometimes frustrating but
results have been achieved and will
defnitely be much higher this time
around.
In the Gambia today, under the
APRC government there are a num-
ber of Internet Service Providers
(ISP) licenses issued by the Ministry
of Information and Communication
Infrastructure. This has improved
access to Internet and its related
services. Internet cafes are booming
71
and providing limited and affordable
access to the Internet in rural areas,
hence the need for multi-purpose ICT
centres.
In 2010, the Ministry of Informa-
tion and Communication Infrastruc-
ture (MOICI) launched its four-year
strategic plan, a new framework de-
signed to further advance its ongoing
commitment to provide The Gambia
with advanced telecoms infrastruc-
ture. This process was given a further
boost later on with the launched of
the governments overarching Pro-
gramme for Accelerated Growth and
Employment (PAGE).
The Ministry encourages and pro-
motes the use of ICT in all spheres of
government service delivery process-
es to facilitate and sustain effciency.
For example, MOICI is responsible
for implementing an e-government
strategy. A wide-ranging e-govern-
ment project proposal has been devel-
oped to give special consideration to
the rural communities.
The Ministry is the executing agen-
cy of the UNDP-backed e-government
Web Portal, a gateway to government
information linking all government
ministries, which became fully opera-
tional in 2011. At the same time, an
e-government data center for the pro-
vision of email and web services has
also been completed.
Telecommunications
Telecommunications in the Gam-
bia includes radio, television, fxed
and mobile telephones, and the In-
ternet. It is one of those service in-
dustries in which The Gambia has es-
tablished celebrated success and this
service industry is at the same time, a
fastidious one particularly in relation
to technological innovations and stra-
tegically pre-emptive maneuvers.
The free fow of information is a
pre-requisite for the attainment of Vi-
sion 2020. It allows people greater ac-
cess to a diversity of information and
ensures greater popular participation
in sustainable human development.
The long-term objectives for telecom-
munications are to consolidate. The
Gambias achievements in the area
of telecommunications by integrating
the country into the Global Informa-
tion Infrastructure (GII) via the glob-
al information highway, 20 years ago
makes The Gambia a major center for
date processing and training and has
also made telecommunication servic-
es accessible to every household and
business in the country.
The Telecommunications Act of
2009 has strengthened an enabling
regulatory environment of the tele-
communication sector that has wit-
nessed the establishment of four GSM
mobile operators, one fxed network
operator and more than six Internet
Service Providers, (ISP).
In August 2008, a 3G license was
issued as the fourth entrant into the
mobile market. The presence of four
mobile operators (Gamcel, Africell,
Comium, and Qcell) could not have
been possible without governments
continued pursuance of its liberaliza-
tion and privatization policies in or-
der to attain its Vision 2020, which
is aimed at making the Gambia a pri-
vate sector led and knowledge based
economy.
The impact of GSM in the Gam-
bia cannot be overemphasized and
is much felt in rural areas that have
drastically increased mobile density.
As at now, the mobile subscriber base
is 570,000 equaling 38% of the popu-
lation and is bound to increase. This
fgure including basic telephony, reg-
isters a total access to telecommuni-
cation services of 629,000 depicting
41.9% tele-density. The Gambia has
only one fxed line operator, Gamtel
with 59,000 subscribers and 12,000
of which are wireless end users.
Gamtels fbre optic pro-
gramme focusing on rural
Gambia
The rolling out of the rural ter-
restrial fbre project is not linked to
72
the cross-Gambia project. The Cross-
Gambia fbre project was installed
between Senegal and the Gambia and
connects from Karang through Barra,
Banjul, Serekunda, Brikama, Man-
dinaba, and Jiboroh and terminates
at Seleti in the southern region of Sen-
egal (Cassamance).
Both Gamtel and Sonatel signed an
agreement for recognizing the project
and an implementation unit was set
up with terms and conditions for the
construction, maintenance and op-
eration of the cross Gambia.
The rural terrestrial fbre project is
part of the ECOWAN project, which
involves the Gambian government
working in collaboration with the
IDB, which has set aside funds for the
project. Although there is counterpart
funding set aside that Gamtel can
use, most of the fnancing has been
secured by the Gambian government
with the Islamic Development Bank.
The project has started and scheduled
to last for two years.
The government sees data service
delivery as part of the national de-
velopment agenda in the context of
Vision 2020 and our commitment
to make the Gambia Africas Silicon
Valley. In a quest to fulfll these objec-
tives Gamtel has numerous projects
to upgrade and expand the national
network infrastructure, such as the
replacement of an existing 400km of
fbre on the south bank and build-
ing of additional fbre network on
the north bank. This will also include
building of additional fbre networks
in the form of rings to provide ad-
equate capacity and enable effective
security countrywide.
A total of 817km of fbre is to be
built for the entire project, Babucarr
Sanyang, managing director of Gam-
tel said in one of his interview.
Radio and Television
The media has a major role to play
in the creation of a well-informed and
self-reliant population. The realiza-
tion of this objective of Vision 2020
calls for the multiplication, diversif-
cation and decentralization of the me-
dia. Mass media has been harnessed
as an instrument for pluralistic in-
formation, education, entertainment
and mobilization of people for nation-
al socio-economic development, thus
paves the way for the proliferation of
many radio stations, both community
and commercial in the country.
Cognizant of these important role
of journalists and media as a whole in
the promotion and protection of rights
and freedoms in any society which
serves as a means to ensure peace, so-
cial justice, security and the advance-
ment of national development, the
73
Gambia under the leadership of His
Excellency Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr
Yahya Jammeh in the last 20 years of
progressive development witnessed
the proliferation of private and com-
mercial radio stations. This amply
demonstrates the government of the
Gambias commitment to social jus-
tice, mutual respect and freedom of
speech.
There are fourteen commercial
FM radio licenses issued by the Min-
istry of Information and Communi-
cations Infrastructure most of them
concentrating in the Greater Banjul
Area, coupled with the existence of
fve other community radio stations
across the country compare to pre-
1994 Revolution when there were no
more than three radio stations.
This would not have been possible
without governments devotion to
freedom of speech and expression, in
all its forms, including the right of as-
sociation, and right to speech, as far
as you do not infringe the rights of
others.
The Gambias frst private com-
mercial radio station was Radio Syd
and this was before the July 22nd
Revolution. At the time, it was broad-
casting from a vessel when it frst
came to the Gambia. Two medium
wave channels are utilized under the
state owned Gambia Radio and Tele-
vision Service (GRTS) to broadcast
various local radio programs and syn-
chronize with external foreign chan-
nels for supplementary broadcast-
ing compare to today when there are
more than 19 radio stations and more
than six Newspaper companies in the
country.
74
West Africa Regional
Communications Infra-
structure Programme
(WARCIP)
Also another signifcant projects
brought in by the Second Republic
were the West Africa Regional Com-
munications Infrastructure Pro-
gramme and the ECOWAS Wide Area
Network (ECOWAN) project. The
WARCIP project is ushering in an in-
frastructural revolution in the Gam-
bia, allowing the country to connect
to the Africa Coast to Europe (ACE)
submarine cable, while the later is
contributing to the modernization
and expansion of the national tele-
communications infrastructure.
The ACE submarine communica-
tion cable which landed in the coun-
try in September 2011 began service
in July 2012, connecting a host of Af-
rican countries across the West Coast
of Africa from France down to South
Africa in what could be one of the
longest undersea connections on the
continent, stretching for more than 14
000 km.
ECOWAS Wide Area Net-
work (ECOWAN) Project
The ECOWAN project is contrib-
uting to the modernization and ex-
pansion of the national telecommu-
nications infrastructure. This project
addresses also critical connectivity
gaps, by extending communications
and Internet services, and provides
a regional e-governance platform for
interconnecting ECOWAS local of-
fces, member states and institutions.
The project also includes the pro-
vision of a government-wide area net-
work to enhance e-government con-
nectivity service. To this end, MOICI
has been gradually developing a data
centre, which will eventually evolve
into a National Data Centre (NDC) for
the Gambia. The current facility which
hosts the government email service
and web portal will be expanded in
order to host several e-government
services for various sectors under se-
cured cyber environment.
The ACE Project
In President Jammehs 20-year
presidency, the Telecommunications
sector continues to be given high pri-
ority for the fact that there could be
no meaningful development in to-
days world without proper telecom-
munication infrastructure.
This was why government made
the bold decision of investing in the
Africa Coast to Europe (ACE) subma-
rine project to ensure a faster and reli-
able communication to facilitate busi-
ness, education, health and research.
So! It is without a doubt that the Af-
rica Coast to Europe Submarine Cable
will make a huge national difference
to the landscape of the overall Infor-
mation Communication Technology
(ITC) ecosystem not only in the Gam-
bia but also in other West African
countries where the submarine cable
has or will be launched.
On December 19, 2012, the Africa
Coast to Europe project was launched
in Gambia with up to 500 internation-
al policy-makers, regulators, opera-
tors, vendors and service providers
from across the world in attendance.
The project will crucially facilitate
communication within the sub-region
and by extension contribute to the re-
alization of the African Union (AU)
Programme on Infrastructure Devel-
opment in Africa (PIDA), as agreed
upon by the AU Heads of States and
governments in Addis Ababa Ethiopia
in January 2012.
Also worthy of mentioning is that
the ACE project will create additional
opportunities to modernize and en-
hance our telecommunication infra-
structure and inclusion in the global
75
information society and acknowledge
economy.
Relating this development to our
context, the project fttingly comple-
ments governments vision to trans-
form the Gambias communications
infrastructure into the state of-the-art
technology. By the same token, it ac-
cords neatly with the Build on Broad-
band initiative launched by ITU, se-
quel to the Connect Africa Goal One,
which seeks to interconnect all Af-
rican capitals and major cities with
ICT broadband infrastructure and
strengthen connectivity to the rest of
the world in the future.
I must emphasize that the launch-
ing of the ACE cable system in the
Gambia is a welcome development
that will certainly put the country at
the center stage of the global commu-
nications landscape, the vice presi-
dent and minister of womens affairs,
Her Excellency Aja Dr Isatou Njie-
Saidy said at the launching ceremony
on behalf of the president.
IXP
In June 2014, the Ministry of In-
formation and Communication Infra-
structure (MOICI) under the African
Union Commission (AUC) African In-
ternet Exchange Services (AXIS) Sup-
port Project unveiled the countrys
frst-ever Internet Exchange Point.
This project was initiated in collabo-
ration with local telecoms operators
and Internet service providers.
The SIXP establishes an Internet
exchange point that would keep In-
ternet traffc local, thereby reducing
the pressure on costly international
bandwidth.
Girls in ICT expanding
horizons and changing at-
titudes
The Girls in ICT initiative of the
International Telecommunication
Union (ITU) is a global effort to raise
awareness on empowering and en-
couraging girls and young women to
consider studies and careers in ICTs.
The initiative is committed to cele-
brate and commemorate the Interna-
tional Girls in ICT Day on the fourth
Thursday of every April as established
by the ITU membership which is al-
ready in line with the Gambia govern-
ments commitments to empowering
and supporting Girls in ICT.
RLG Communications
The Gambia has recently witnessed
the offcial launching of its frst mo-
bile phone and laptop assembly plant
in the Gambia called RLG.
This state-of-the-art technology
center, housing the latest computer
and mobile phone repair equipment
with high speed Broadband Internet
and Data Connectivity, besides the
product range, the company is also
engaged in capacity building and
training programs including its Mo-
bile Phone Repair Training Program.
RLG is a Ghanaian-owned Lim-
ited Liability Company, subsidiary
of the Agams Holdings, engaged in
the production of communications
equipment such as mobile handsets,
electronic notebooks, tablets, lap-
tops, LCD TV monitors among other
host of accessories. In the Gambia it
is headed by Papa Yusupha Njie as its
executive director.
The group is engaged in the pro-
duction and sale of communications
equipment such as mobile handsets,
electronic notebooks, tablets, laptops,
LCD TV monitors and other accesso-
ries.
We are in the business of pro-
viding quality products at an afford-
able price. Our focus continues to
be based on the principles of creat-
ing those needed jobs for our young
brothers and sisters and in doing that,
we believe we will create an ecosys-
tem where the customers buying our
products and services feel that by do-
ing so, they would be part of creating
new jobs or keeping their own broth-
ers and sisters employed.
Statistics show that one of our
biggest challenges in Africa where a
majority of the population are young
people is the issue of youth unem-
ployment forcing our young people
to die trying to get to the so called
greener pastures that they might have
actually left behind especially if the
right training and jobs opportunities
are created.
It is the business of every respon-
sible citizen to play their part in any
way they can to address these issues at
hand. It is not just an African govern-
ment issue any more. By buying prod-
ucts locally assembled, coupled with
our 1 year warranty and upgrades of
products for customers to newer mod-
els and other innovative ideas that we
are about to bring to the market, I
believe we are clearly demonstrating
that we are a company for the people
and supported by the very people we
serve hence the term proudly yours. It
is a great pride to produce local and
consume local and sell internationally
with quality and price as our focus,
Papa Yusupha Njie Executive Director
Rlg Gambia told the Daily Observer.
In her inaugural speech during the
commissioning of the RLG-Gambia
branch, the Vice President, Her Ex-
cellency Aja Dr Isatou Njie-Saidy said
in this day and age, no nation can
develop meaningfully without em-
bracing Information Communication
Technology. According to her, it is
against the background of this recog-
nition that government continues to
accord high priority to ICT by invest-
ing in human capital formation, cre-
ating the necessary infrastructure and
the enabling environment for this in-
dispensable part of our development
process, also noting that the event
was an integral part of the countrys
ICT agenda.
Papa Yusupha Njie, Executive Di-
rector, RLG Gambia also spoke at the
event stating they have been working
with RLG Ghana to setup a Gambian
subsidiary called RLG Communica-
tions Gambia Ltd which is aimed at
building a 1st class mobile phone and
computer assembly plant, following
in the footsteps of the assembly plant
in Ghana and the upcoming one in Ni-
geria .According to him, the plant has
the capacity to produce 500 phones a
day and 200 laptops with a high focus
on quality of service.
I want to make a passionate call
to the Gambian people and our fellow
African brothers and sisters in rally-
ing support for Rlg, which is a true Af-
rican brand, proudly centered on its
people. I say, give us a chance to prove
ourselves and make a difference. We
must promote what we own. That is
how the Chinese and the Americans
have done it and they have become
household names in our own Afri-
can markets and beyond. Yes we may
make mistakes but tell us how we can
do it better rather than discourage us.
It took the Chinese and Japanese
many years to break into the western
markets but with the support of their
people, they did it. In Rlgs case, we
76
have managed to sell our products
right across the continent and beyond
in a short space of time with a great
focus on improving on quality as we
grow. We are asking for your prayers
and support but we are also saying
promote us by buying Rlg so that in
the next few years we would all be
proud of something that belongs to
all of us Proudly Yours In terms of
new initiatives and services, the set-
ting up of self-employment initiatives
for our trained young people, through
fully-equipped mobile phone sales
and repair kiosks strategically located
around the various municipalities in
the country is something that we are
very passionate about, said Njie.
This new sales and service Kiosks
being inaugurated across the country
allows the trainees to move directly
into the world of employment allow-
ing RLG to be very close to our cus-
tomers in providing and maintaining
our warranty services. This will allow
us to make sure that you can buy RLG
products all around the country and
get the same level of service from any-
where you buy our products.
Some of the sales/service kiosks
are equipped with solar panels to al-
low for the servicing of Rlg equip-
ment directly from the kiosks espe-
cially those in the rural areas like the
one in Basse. We also have mobile
solar chargers with the kiosks that
can charge up to 20 mobile phones,
laptops, at a time, bringing in more
revenue for the young entrepreneurs
in allowing the community to use the
service for a small fee. Our ambition
is to create 1000 jobs over the next
5 years through these kiosks right
across the country and the sub region
and beyond.
Indeed, making a difference in peo-
ples lives by virtue of what we do is
reason enough to be optimistic about
the future of this country through our
young people.
Introduction of smart-
phones
Smartphones may have gotten
boring but theyre still the most in-
teresting tech around. It became fash-
ionable lately and the market for it
still remains incredibly competitive.
They are the major extensions on nor-
mal cellphones.
Amassing this new revolution of
smartphone technology to our own
user context in the Gambia, one would
realized that the July 22nd Revolu-
tion has played a vital role in trans-
forming the Gambia from analogue to
digital country. Suffce to say that this
has advance the communication land-
scape of the country at a very quick
pace, enabling some people to have
the ability to talk to you, and answer
questions, and even watch movies by
using smartphones.
Of course this wouldnt have been
possible for any nation without her
government creating the right poli-
cies and acceptable user friendly en-
vironment, couple with its high speed
internet. The availability and acces-
sibility of high speed and stable in-
ternet, in the Gambia today has even
made smartphone use in the Gambia
an envy of all.
Prior to implementing IIA project
in the Gambia in 1998, Gamtel was
providing Internet Services via a low-
speed X.25 access to CompuServe On-
line and Delphi in UK. Not only was
this system slow and unreliable, it
could only support 10 concurrent us-
ers of the total user base of 250 at the
time. So if that speed of internet still
persists in the Gambia no one would
have been dreaming of using smart-
phones to access internet even at the
remotest village in the Gambia.
When we look at what has trans-
pired from 1998 to date in the Gam-
bia under President Jammeh, we have
to give ourselves a pat on the back for
the commendable achievements and
growth in the country, with govern-
ment spearheading accessibility to In-
ternet resources as a tool for national
development. It has been a tough
road, sometimes frustrating but re-
sults have been achieved and people
are happily benefting from it in all
facet of life.
Gambia can boost of a fast and reli-
able communication system to facili-
tate business, education, health and
research either on your smartphones
or your desktop computers. So! It is
without a doubt that the Africa Coast
to Europe Submarine Cable when
fully operational can make a huge na-
tional difference to the landscape of
the overall Information Communica-
tion Technology (ITC) ecosystem not
only in the Gambia but also in other
West African countries where the sub-
marine cable has or will be launched
and also booms the cellphone market.
The importance of smartphones
capability does not only end at the
Internet access, or at document edit-
ing but also have the ability to inter-
pret and decipher information like
that from a quick response code that
may be on a products packaging and
Gambians are enjoying all these ser-
vices thanks to the July 22nd Revolu-
tion which has ushered in an unprec-
edented development in the Gambia.
77
The transformation of Gambia
tourism and culture
In 21st Century
O
ver the past twenty
years, The Gambias
tourism industry has
become increasingly im-
portant in the countrys drive to cre-
ate wealth and employment. A critical
assessment has indicated a positive
turn around in this proftable industry
since the advent of the AFPRC/APRC
government, led by His Excellency the
President, Sheikh Professor Dr. Al-
haji Yahya A J J Jammeh Nasirudeen
Babili Mansa.

Read on this piece entitled
The Transformation of Gam-
bia Tourism and Culture in
21st Century, by Daily Observ-
er Senior Reporter Yunus S Sa-
liu to know the transformation
and achievements that befell
this most lucrative and viable
sector in the Gambias economy
since the inception of the Revo-
lutionary government led Presi-
dent Jammeh.
Since then the sector has gradually
turned The Gambia in to a distinctive
tourism destination in the African
continent offering high quality expe-
rience for its visitors in a responsible
and sustainable manner. This is pos-
sible due to the importance attached
to the sector by the government as a
fundamental pillar crucial to the de-
velopment of the countrys economy
and critical to poverty reduction, a
key objective of the government.
President Jammeh, who remains
the number one supporter and pro-
moter of tourism in Destination Gam-
bia, continues to help in spreading the
tentacles of the countrys tourism in-
dustry far and wide to source markets
hitherto out of the sectors reach.
Supported by his dynamic and able
Minister of Tourism and Culture and
her team of offcials, as well as the
Gambia Tourism Board among other
stakeholders, the industry can today
boast of tourists from different parts
of the world such as United States of
America, Western and Eastern Eu-
rope, Scandinavia and West African
Sub-Region leading to a high number
of tourist arrivals to the destination
unprecedented in the countrys his-
tory.
The ongoing developments in the
industry are limitless since the advent
of the Second Republic. Thus, the
industry has grown beyond expecta-
tions in terms of its operations, creat-
ing over 30,000 jobs for the countrys
citizenry, while generating self-em-
ployment opportunities for Gambians
and non-Gambians resident in the
country.
This has resulted in enhanced in-
come generation and substantial de-
crease in poverty levels, while con-
tributing signifcantly to the Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) by 16 per-
cent.
With its signifcant contribution to
79
the countrys GDP, the tourism sec-
tor has increasingly become a major
pillar of the Gambian economy and a
crucial factor in the countrys socio-
economic development programme,
thanks to the sound tourism policies
that have been formulated over the
past twenty years, as well as the mix of
unique attractions and facilities that
complement the genuine warmth and
hospitality of the Gambian people.
Thus, The Gambia is known to at-
tract tourists from diverse places in
the world and remains one of the most
competitive destinations in Africa.
It is worth noting that the Tourism
Ministrys policy under the leader-
ship of President Jammeh encourag-
es inter and intra African tourism and
travel, which does not only enhance
individual national economies, but
also brings people and governments
of our countries closer together, while
accelerating rapid socio-economic de-
velopment.
Transformations in the
Tourism sector
For reasons of its potentiality, tour-
ism in the Gambia has in the recent
past undergone tremendous transfor-
mation and this is mainly because of
the changing dynamics at global level,
which has necessitated the option of
certain reforms at both global and na-
tional levels in order to meet the chal-
lenges and to stay competitive.
This is all the more relevant in the
context of developing sub-regional
tourism, as the country strives to be in
the forefront in terms of sharing best
practice and experience borne out
of the fact that this country has over
the years laid a solid foundation for
its tourism sector, and accumulated
a wide range of expertise in terms of
tourism management and planning as
well in Responsible Tourism Develop-
ment (RTD).
In the area of RTD the country has
registered a lot of strides which in-
cluded the development of an articu-
lated functional Eco-tourism policy
and a tourism master plan as a blue-
print for sustainable tourism develop-
ment; being host to the Internation-
al Centre for Responsible Tourism
(ICRT)- a think tank for Responsible
Tourism Development; institutional-
izing an interactive and unique part-
nership between the public and pri-
vate sectors in terms of Responsible
Tourism partnerships.
Tourists visit the Gambia for dif-
ferent purposes. Many others come
for business, sports, conferences, and
educational visits. Since the incep-
tion of tourism in the early 60s, the
Gambia has witnessed a tremendous
development in the sector, such as the
establishment of several hotels and
resorts of different categories like fve
star hotels; motels; lodges; and count-
less number of restaurants and bars
throughout the length and breadth of
the country. Indeed, all of these are
geared towards the provision of qual-
ity tourism package characterized by
high standard facilities and services.
The transformed Gambia Tour-
ism Board (GTBoard) under the ae-
80
gis of the Ministry of Tourism and
Culture (MoTC), led by Honorable
Fatou Mass Jobe-Njie, is mandated
to control the affairs and activities of
hotels, bars and restaurants and other
stakeholders in the development of
tourism; the GTBoard is responsible
for the promotion of quality tourism
products through the encouragement
of Eco-tourism, cultural tourism and
conference tourism, among others.
In this regard, Cultural Tourism
continues to play a very important
role in the development of tourism in
the Gambia.
The growing cultural contact
between The Gambia and African-
Americans took a new dynamic de-
velopment as the Miss Black USA
competition was held here in Banjul
in 2006 not quite long after The Gam-
bia hosted the AU Summit when all
the African Heads of State converged
in this country of peace and tranquil-
ity. Furthermore, the biennial Inter-
national Roots Homecoming Festival
whose 11th edition was recently held
in May of this year, and the Kanilai
International Festival as well as other
numerous annual cultural festivals
continue to add value to the countrys
tourism industry.
The preservation and rejuvenation
of the eco-tourism sector, including
the likes of Makasutu Cultural Forest,
Sindola Lodge, Sandele Eco Lodge,
Sitanunku Lodge, Abuko Nature Re-
serve, Chimpanzee Park to name a
few, are playing signifcant roles in
the promotion of Gambian tourism.
As parts of the development and
achievements of Gambia tourism
and hospitality sector in The Gam-
bia, there came the Gambia Hotel
School now transformed to the Gam-
bia Tourism and Hospitality Institute
(GTHI). This is an institution that of-
fers qualifcation to cover more than
one hundred different positions in the
hostelry and tourism industry and as
well gives and opportunity to students
from level 9, for specifc courses to
level 12.
Moreover, in spite of the British
81
Foreign Offce travel advice in No-
vember 1994 that was based on the
changed of government by the Revo-
lution in July 22nd 1994 and of the
Danish government, the number of
tourist arrivals to Destination Gambia
continue to grows and increases from
the 1993/1994 fgures and today the
country receives far over hundred of
thousand visitors annually.
Gambia, A Conducive En-
vironment For Investors
Since the advent of the Second Re-
public under the dynamic leadership
of President Jammeh, destination
Gambia has become a second to none
for investors as the country provides
a conducive and highly attractive in-
vestment environment. The govern-
ment continues to work with genuine
investors who are not just driven by
the desire to make proft alone, but
also keen to contribute to national
development through their business-
es.
In view of the peace and tranquility
that the destination is known for, dif-
ferent partnerships have been forged
with other government Ministries and
tourism stakeholders geared towards
creating the necessary synergies that
would ensure a coordinated devel-
opment process that would further
enhance tourism and all its ramifca-
tions.
Agriculture and tourism are the
key drivers of the countrys econom-
ic growth. The diversifcation of the
tourism sub sector through the es-
tablishment of Eco-tourism projects
across the country is also bringing a
lot of benefts to the various commu-
nities.

Peace And Tranquility
Indeed, the glorious peace and
tranquility that exists in the Smiling
Coast of Africa (the Gambia) contin-
ues to contribute in no small mea-
sures to the gains that have been
registered over the past twenty years,
thanks to the support the sector con-
tinues to enjoy from the President of
the Republic by creating the enabling
environment for the optimum devel-
opment of tourism.
The tourism industry contributes
signifcantly to the socio-economic
and human development of the coun-
try. The Gambia is described both lo-
cally and internationally as a safe des-
tination for tourists. This is so, mainly
because of the nature of the country.
The Gambia is blessed with warm and
hospitable people. The Gambia is lo-
cated on the South Atlantic seaboard
and is endowed with an all-year round
mild climate with no rains in winter.
C u l t u r e
As tourism continues to witness
series of development since the begin-
ning of the Second Republic, so has the
Gambian culture and arts registered
also signifcant progress. His Excel-
82
lency the President of the Republic of
the Gambia has made the promotion
and development of culture as one of
his governments priorities.
Being the number one promoter,
he has done a lot to uplift the sector
through the Ministry of Tourism and
Culture and the National Centre for
Arts and Culture.
In the past 20 years of the AFPRC/
APRCs two important legislations
that have been passed to promote
Gambian culture, is the National
Centre for Arts and Culture Acts 2003
and the Gambia Copyright Act 2004
that replaces the 1915 Colonial Law
on intellectual property. These two
legislations were a great stride in the
governments bid to strengthen the
countrys cultural heritage.
The NCAC Act has extended and
widens the powers for culture admin-
istration in The Gambia. Secondly,
before these years under review, there
was only the National Museum, but
today, the country can boast of sev-
eral Museums such as the Slavery
Museum at Albreda/Juffureh; Arch
22 in Banjul; the Museum at the Was-
su Stones Circles site established in
2000 and Kerbatch Stones Circles in
Central River Region in 2005.
There is also a Museum at Fort
Bullen in Barra established in 2013.
In addition to these are community
museums such as the Katchikally
Crocodile Pool Museum in Bakau;
Tanji Village Museum and the Genieri
Village Museum in Kiang.
The country is also recognized in
terms of its sites that are inscribed in
UNESCOs prestigious World Heri-
tage List, which continues to boost the
countrys tourism industry. In 2003,
The Gambia got its frst UNESCO
World Heritage Site listed. This is a
prestigious rank as far as monument
sites are concerned.
Through diligence and commit-
ment, the National Centre for Arts
and Culture successfully got in-
scribed, Kunta Kinteh Island formerly
James Island and related sites in the
Albreda/Juffureh complex, Fort Bul-
len and the Six Gun Battery inside
State House into the UNESCO World
Heritage list because of their out-
standing universal value in terms of
their relevance to the Trans-Atlantic
Slave Trade.
The development and recognition
never got to an end as three years
later-2006 to be precise, The Gam-
bia has Kerrbatch and Wassu Stones
Circles in Central River Region listed
in the UNESCO World Heritages Site.
They were jointly listed with sites in
Senegal (Sine Ngayen and Wanar)
due to their trans-border properties,
a fne example indeed of how culture
can be used to bring together and ce-
ment the good relationship between
the two countries.
President Yahya AJJ Jammeh, his
Cabinet and the Ministry of Tourism
and Culture, need to be congratu-
lated for the great achievements that
brought numerous recognition and
respect to the country in terms of its
cultural heritage.
To further outline the achieve-
ments made in by the Jammeh admin-
istration, its important to highlight
the strides made in the preservation
of the countrys cultural masquerades.
These include the Kankunrang Mas-
querade which was also proclaimed
by UNESCO as A MASTERPIECE of
the Oral and tangible heritage of hu-
manity in 2009.
This development has resulted in
the establishment of Kankurang Mu-
seum in Janjangbureh in the Central
River Region (CRR), which will soon
be offcially open. This museum apart
from adding to the number of existing
museums in the country, will inter-
pret the signifcance of the Manding
Masquerade and the rites associated
therewith.
Festivals
To further promote cultural tour-
ism and enhance the promotion and
development of Gambian culture, and
to further create cultural awareness,
President Yahya Jammeh pioneered
in 1996, the institutionalization of
the recently celebrated 11th edition of
the International Roots Homecom-
ing Festival. The festival accorded
83
Africans in Diaspora whose ancestors
were taken and forced into slavery in
the Americas and the Caribbean dur-
ing the slave trade some hundreds of
years ago, the opportunity to reunite
with their African brothers and sis-
ters.
This year marked the 11th edition
of this famous international festival
with cultural manifestations, tradi-
tional revival, and pilgrimage to Juf-
fureh the homeland of Kunta Kinteh
where he was captured as a slave.
In 2001, His Excellency added to
the feathers of the international fes-
tival by also instituting the Gambian-
African Kanilai International Festival,
which is meant to promote our cul-
tural heritage and enhance cultural
diplomacy. Different countries from
the sub-region invited by His Excel-
lency participate in the celebration of
our authentic African culture in an at-
mosphere of peace.
To date cultural festivals contin-
ue gaining ground and are events to
reckon with in the country.
Today, there are different com-
munity festivals like ones held in San-
yang, Dankunku, Bureng, Njawara,
Kartong and Sukuta Dembadu among
a host of other communities that or-
ganizes similar festivals annually.
All these festivals have the bless-
ing and full support of His Excellency
by way of logistics and fnance and
in terms of technical expertise from
the Ministry of Tourism and Culture
through the National Centre for Arts
and Culture.
Obviously, traditional and cultural
festivals under the present adminis-
tration have really witnessed a great
improvement and development over
the past two decades compared to the
First Republic.
Another key area that registered
great development is the 2008 estab-
lished copyright offce. The Gambia
can now pride itself of a Copyright
Society Board (CSB). The idea be-
hind the establishment just like in
other countries is to make Gambian
creators (artistes) among others to
beneft from their sweat by receiving
royalties for their works. For this, the
government of the Gambia is worthy
of being applauded because for far
too long, the works of creators had
been used without any form of pay-
ment. With the payment mechanism
put in place in the Gambia, it will help
to alleviate poverty, create jobs for
the youth and motivate artistes to be
more creative.
Indeed, development in this sector
cannot be completed without men-
tioning the artistic works in fne arts,
design, and fashion as they are all do-
ing extremely well. There have also
been signifcant developments in the
recent past in the book and publishing
industry in The Gambia. There were
days in the past that a book cannot
be printed in the Gambia, talk less of
publishing it, but all of these are now
a thing of the past as we are all living
witnesses to one or two books being
launched or published frequently as
Gambians now have the opportunity
to write their own stories.
Under the MoTC via NCAC many
associations were established and
brought together in the areas of mu-
sic, theatre, flm production, book
production, to enable them stand for
their collective interests.
In 1996 when Alliance Francaise
was opened, it provided exhibition
space for Gambian artists to showcase
their painting, drawing, sculpture,
photography, and so on. There are
various private galleries founded and
owned by Gambians across the coun-
try.
For the years under review, the
sector participated in different inter-
national arts exhibitions and hosted
numerous artists from Senegal, Sierra
Leone, Nigeria and Finland, amongst
others using the arts to promote
friendship between people of differ-
ent background.
With the peaceful and viable envi-
ronment created by the government
of The Gambia, individual and private
organizations in their capacity contin-
84
ue to organize series of events.
Among the key events as relat-
ing to tourism and culture is fashion
show. Fashion show in the last fve
years in the country has become a
signifcant event that showcases and
exposes local Gambian talent in tai-
loring, modeling, cast, photography
while their associations become much
stronger in terms of capacity building
to improve their technical knowledge.
The Gambia for the time ever has
been represented at the Clap Ivoire
Film Festival held in 2013 and also
participated in the festival held at the
Ivorian capital, Abidjan, October this
year. This is another plus to the sector
and the budding Gambian flm indus-
try. It should be noted that flms pro-
duced by Gambians are now winning
international prizes and with this de-
velopment, the Gambia flm industry
is now planning to organize National
Film Festival 2014.
Government has always supported
Gambian artists and sponsored them
to various countries like Venezuela,
Taiwan, and South Korea to showcase
the Gambias traditional culture and
music. Indeed, the Gambian cultural
sector has been elevated and more is
envisaged in the coming months and
years.
Tourism and Culture
Facilities, Accommodation
and Resort
There are lots of tourism and cul-
ture facilities situated in different
and wonderful locations across the
country and they are numerous for
everyone to enjoy and relax-in. This
includes hundreds of lodges, hotels,
camps and resorts.
Among them are Laico Atlantic
Hotel and Resort; Berefet Cultural
Camp; Kombo Beach Hotel; Mansea
Beach Hotel; Sandele Eco Retreat;
Makasutu Culture Forest; Luigis
Complex; Ngala Lodge; Sheraton
Gambia Resort and Spa; Senegambia
Beach Hotel; Kairaba Beach Hotel;
Coco Ocean Resort and Spa; Njawara
Cultural Camp; Ocean Bay and Red
Croc Hotel and Resort; The New Co-
conut Residence Hotel; Dunes Re-
sort; Sindola Safari Camp; Golden
Beach Hotel; Kombo Beach Hotel, Si-
tanunku Lodge; Sindola Safari Camp
and among others.
Parks and Wildlife
Some other fascinating among
the facilities is Gambia parks and re-
serves, which lovers of the nature can-
not afford to miss. There are a lot to
enjoy at parks and wildlife especially
to those that are interesting in plant
and animal.
Among the available parks, which
are highly recommended for nature
and outdoor lovers are Abuko Nature
Reserves; Niumi National Park; River
Gambia National Park; Tanji Bird Re-
serve; Bao Bolong Wetland Reserve;
Chimpanzee Park; Tanbi Wetlands
National Park; Kiang West National
Park.

Tourist Markets
One of the important components
of tourism product is craft market and
the craft vendors are enjoying a due
consideration from the government
through Ministry of Tourism and Cul-
ture and Gambia Tourism Board in
particular on product development.
As development and sustainable
tourism are concerned the Ministry
of Tourism and Culture together with
the GTBoard attached great impor-
tance to the development of the local
economy and promotion of local arts
and culture. The craft markets under
the umbrella of Gambia Craft Mar-
ket Federation are Brikama; Bakau;
Fajara; Cape Point; Senegambia; BB;
Banjul and Wadna Craft Markets re-
spectively.
Tourism and Culture As-
sociation
With peace and unity that exists in
the sector which gives way for devel-
opment and achievement, different
umbrella associations were formed;
among them are
Association of Small Scale Enter-
prises in Tourism (ASSET); Gambia
Craft Market Federation; Gambia
Hotel Association (GHA); Tourism
and Travel Association of The Gam-
bia (TTAG), Gambia Music Produc-
ers Association; Film Producers As-
sociation; Writers Association and
Gambia Association of Professional
Photographers (GAPP) among others
Events, Festivals and
other activities
Food and Beverage Festival; Inter-
national Roots Homecoming Festival;
Interntional Kanilai Festival; Fishing
Competition; The Gambia Beach Boo-
gie (Skydiving); series of Fashion and
Beauty shows/parades; Futampaf
rites to passage; series of cultural per-
formances. Other activities include
boat trips on the River Gambia; mas-
querades; sports examples are golf-
ing, cycling, swimming etcetera.

Attraction and Heritage
sites
Some of the Gambia Heritage sites
listed in the UNESCO World Heri-
tages site are Kerrbatch and Wassu
Stones Circles; Kankunrang Mas-
querade proclaimed as A Masterpiece
of the Oral and Tangible Heritage
of Humanity; James island (former
Kunta kinteh Island); Fort Bullen and
the Six Gun Battery inside the State
house among others. Places of attrac-
tion include Museum for Slavery at
Juffureh; Museum for Chieftaincy at
Arch 22nd Banjul; Katchikally Croco-
dile Pool and more.
85
T
ransportation; whether by
air, land, sea, railway or
cable is an integral activi-
ty in our everyday life, giv-
en that it would be almost impossible
for life to go on without it. It is defned
by many scholars as the movement of
people, goods and services from one
place to another. Its importance has
since been underscored, especially
in measuring its contributions and
impact on the socio-economic de-
velopment of societies. Since time
immemorial, transportation has al-
ways been a key contributor to the
economic lives of the people as the
general public depends on it to move
from one place to another in search
of different things.
But with time, especially with the advent
of technology in the 21st century, trans-
portation system of countries become even
more organised given its potential nature in
engineering economic growth. Many a coun-
try have embraced and institutionalised
public transport system for many reasons.
This is because a reliable transportation sys-
tem is a catalyst to national development in
that it fosters growth; creates employment;
bridges communication gaps and bring
people closer; enhances the socio-economic
lives of the people; facilitates trade linkages;
and ensure that the average travelling com-
munity accesses a reasonable transportation
fare.
In The Gambia, public transport sys-
tem (land) started in 1976 after the parlia-
ment passed an Act creating The Gambia-
Libya Arab Public Transport Corporation.
This Act, however, was amended during
the 1987/1988 fscal year and consequent-
ly, it brought about the establishment of
the Gambia Public Transport Corporation
(GPTC). The major aims of the Corporation
as prescribed by the legislation were to op-
erate and maintain the public transport ser-
vices of The Gambia for the conveyance of
passengers and goods.
The company started its operations with
only one shareholder, the Gambia govern-
ment, with three million shares. The owner-
ship remains the same but the structure in
terms of the number of shares has changed
following the merger of the former Gambia
Injecting new life into
Gambias transport sector:
GTSC, a capital government investment
86
Ferry Services Ltd with GPTC in 1993.
Prior to its collapse, The Gambia Public
Transport Corporation (GPTC) was a great
revenue booster to the national economy
through a feet of buses that ply the length
and breadth of the country with depots in
major provincial towns. The services of the
GPTC had to a great extent enhanced the
livelihood of the people, in that the public
was able to travel far and near at an accept-
able fare.
Through its Blue and White German
made Man Buses, the GPTC was a choice
for many a Gambian given that the services
were not only reliable, but the buses were
speedy. For instance, during the hay days
of the company, a farmer or civil servant
in Kiang Nema or Jarra Soma in the Lower
River Region could wait until after taking
his lunch on Sunday and then go to the bus
stop to catch up with the 5pm bus to Kombo,
and yet be able to go to work the following
morning without being late. This was how
reliable the company was.
But sadly, after years of effective servic-
es, the company gradually started degrad-
ing due to what many concluded was grave
mismanagement that led to the aground
of many of its buses. With of no use to the
general public and the government since it
failed to fulfll the very mandate that estab-
lished it, the National Assembly was forced
to repeal the Act that put it in place.
The November 19th 2012 decision by
the lawmakers apparently paved the way
for winding down the Corporation and in
the process, cut losses accrued to the public
purse.
Re-launch of public transport in
2013
Just barely seven months after the law-
makers landmark decision to repeal the
GPTC 1976 Act, the government of The
Gambia announced the re-launching of
a new and fresh public transport system
through the Social Security and Housing
Finance Corporations (SSHFC) bankrolled
Gambia Transport Service Company on
June 7th, 2012.
The 50 state-of-the-art buses, of Ashok-
Leyland (one of the most reputable bus
and truck manufacturing companies in the
world), according to the offcials, have been
specifcally designed for The Gambia.
The re-launch of this system was greet-
ed with great joy from the general public,
who missed the presence of a reliable pub-
lic transportation system. It came at a time
when the travelling community was being
exploited thanks to shylock type of commer-
cial drivers whose transport fare structure
was seriously erratic and disorganised.
The Gambia Transport Service Com-
pany (GTSC) is a new company owned by
Social Security and Housing Finance and
Corporation (SSHFC). It was established
in January 2013, with operations started
precisely on 22nd July. The essence is to re-
launch public transport service for the gen-
eral public. It was conceived by the govern-
ment through SSHFC and all the necessary
support was given.
We have 35 (green coloured buses) for
normal public transport, 10 (white coloured
buses) for school and 5 (blue coloured luxu-
rious buses with fat TV screen, air condi-
tion) for private service, the general man-
ager of the Company, Seedy Kanyi told The
Observer in a recent exclusive interview.
Reliability and affordability
It is a glaring fact that reliability, afford-
ability and effciency are key things that are
crucial in the management and operations
of a transport company as they connect very
well to its success. The difference between a
good public transport system and the com-
mercial type system is that the former puts
all these three things into consideration in
its operations, whereas the latter more or
less cares less about them. But if the words
of the man at the helm of the GTSC are any-
thing to go by, these things are given higher
priority in their operations.
We have competitors taxi but rather
in a very disorganised form. People have
been taken for a ride and have always been
complaining about fare structures even
though The Gambia National Transport
Control Association (GNTCA) is trying to
put things in place, but they are facing some
challenges. We are charging lower than oth-
ers and ours will be consistent and not errat-
ic or based on demand and supply. We are
an organised body with set tariffs which we
must go by. The buses are new and manu-
factured in 2013. We are assured of reliabil-
ity and durability. The timing of the buses
are also good because the general road con-
ditions are also good, he added.
Designed for Gambia
Given that the durability of the buses
also has to very much do with the prevailing
conditions of the country vis--vis the infra-
structure and weather, thus, the question is
whether they have been designed based on
those circumstances.
Kanyi explains: The buses are in a way
designed for The Gambia because when the
parent (SSHFC) company was working on
the modalities to reviving the public trans-
port system, different options were consid-
ered and Ashok Leyland happened to be a
better option. One or two visits were made
to the manufacturing company and discus-
sions were held and a technical team was
sent by the manufacturing company to The
Gambia to assess the road conditions and
the general weather conditions before they
started assembling the buses. So in a way
they were actually designed for The Gam-
bian conditions.
Kanyi is also of the view that the re-
launch of this transport system also comes
along with enormous economic benefts, but
singled out that it would create access to the
so-called remote areas through effective and
effcient transport system.
We want to make sure that wherever
one is, he or she should be able to afford to
move from that village to another to trans-
act businesses. So generally it will facilitate
economic development and trigger it. You
can call it the new factors of production. In
every developed or developing country, they
can comfortably move forward if the pub-
lic transport whether air, land, sea is taken
cared off, he underscored.
The culture of Maintenance and
sustainability
Regular maintenance or preventive
maintenance plays an important role for
the survival of any company of this nature.
Apparently, experience has shown that the
culture of maintenance is lacking in most
institutions, thus taking its huge toll on the
survival of those institutions. One cannot
merely handle an investment or anything in
the interest of public with total negligence to
maintenance.
Yes GPTC did survive for decades, but
inadequate maintenance also contributed
to the grounding of its buses, thus leading
to the eventual collapse of the Corporation.
Although too soon to jump to conclusion
with its successor vis--vis maintenance,
but it appears that the new company seems
to have understood that it needed a highly
equipped engineering unit to take care of
the regular maintenance of the buses for
sustainability.
Through a memorandum of under-
standing with the manufacturers, we got a
well stocked state-of-the-art spare part store
that we can use for the foreseeable future.
We may be one of the frst to have a brand
new mobile workshop truck so that in case
of minor breakdowns, can be deployed to
fx the problem. We have gotten the trained
manpower for this area. There is no fear of
grounding the buses because of the lack of
spare parts, he disclosed.
Boosting economic activities
along the route
Apart from the fact that the new company
would create a lot of employment opportu-
nities and expedite the overall development
of the country, what is also remain critical to
mention is the fact that it will greatly spur
economic activities along the various routes
in the country, especially at different bus
stations. It will encourage women and rural
dwellers to engage in petty trading in most
major stops in the provinces, thus boosting
their livelihoods and lessen the impact of
poverty. More importantly, it will also inject
a new life into major provincial towns like
Soma, Basse, Farafenni, Bansang, Brikama-
Ba, and Sibanor amongst others. In the hay
days of the defunct GPTC, these destina-
tions used to experience a surge in economic
activities as the passengers aboard will use
the opportunity to buy things at these stops
to keep for their long journeys.
So indeed the establishment of The
Gambia Transport Service Company is in-
jecting a new life into the public transport
system of the country with immeasurable
economic benefts.
87
to justice since 1994
Judiciary and access
E
ver since on the fateful
day of July 22nd 1994,
when President Yahya
A.J.J.Jammeh Babili
Mansa Nasirul Deen arrived on the
political scene, with a litany of gran-
diose promises, his performance has
kept an alarming and unprecedented
pace of social and economic develop-
ments.
Among his main priorities in 1994
was to clean The Gambias from the
fringes of dirt left by three-decade
rule of the former government of Sir
Dawda K. Jawara.
A new era of freedom, account-
ability, transparency, probity, rule
of law, social and economic develop-
ments was born. Soon Accountabil-
ity, Transparency and Operation No
Compromise became the by-words in
the new-fangled process and the judi-
ciary, which prior to the 1994 revolu-
tion was a puppet and a dead-silent
arm of the previous government was
transformed.
Twenty years on Sidiq B.
Asemota assesses the progress
made in the area of judiciary.
Judiciary as the third arm of
the government plays an essen-
tial role towards achieving sus-
tainable human, political and
socio-economic development of
any successful country.
Its primary role to dispense or ad-
judicate justice without fear or favour,
affection or ill-will in accordance with
the Constitution and other laws of the
land cannot be over-emphasised. Be-
ing aware of the role of the judiciary,
President Jammehs administration
has invested heavily in the judiciary;
and as a result, this very third arm of
the government has undergone mas-
sive transformation since 1994 to
date.
Under the Jammehs regime, no
one is above the law, including top
government offcials, who were hith-
erto regarded as the untouchables or
sacred cows.
Soon after the July 22nd Revolu-
tion, President Jammeh got down
to business, judges from the Federal
Republic of Nigeria, Sierra-Leone
and Ghana arrived to set up Com-
missions of Inquiry. For example,
the Late Honourable Justice Omar
Alghali Commission of Inquiry, Hon-
ourable Justice Robin-Coker Com-
mission, to probe past fnancial im-
proprieties and Land Administration.
Other Commissions of Inquiries were
also set up, like the Fertiliser Com-
mission, chaired by Justice Nkea (as
he was then was).The Commission of
Inquiry into Tax Evasion and Corrupt
Practices in 2012, chaired by Justice
Mama Fatima Singhateh, the erst-
while Attorney General and Minister
of Justice. And during the transition,
a constitutional review commission
was also set up and the judiciary got
the frst and adoring Supreme Court
of The Gambia.
With exponential developments in
all facets. What is more fascinating
is that these gains are echoed widely
by the people, as the President stands
and continues to serve as a symbol
and embodiment of hope, harbin-
ger of momentous political changes,
89
whilst his propagandists, detractors
and prophets of doom have been
proven wrong by having taste of his
lofty goals and visions.
THE CONSTITUTIONAL
EPOCH: The June 1843 letters pat-
ent established The Gambia as a sepa-
rate colony, creating an executive and
legislative council. The former was to
advise and assist the governor, while
the latter to make laws. In 1902, the
protectorate was created. The statutes
of general application applicable to
The Gambia were laws that were ap-
plied in the U.K, prior to 1888; and
ordinances enacted in Banjul from
1881 were equivalent to the acts of the
British Parliament.
The Gambia had two previous con-
stitutions of 1965 and 1970.The 1997
constitution is home-grown, a prod-
uct of a nationwide referendum by
universal adult suffrage in accordance
with the constitutional referendums
Act cap3:02 Vo1. Laws of The Gambia,
1990. The 1997 constitution is widely
regarded as one of the most progres-
sive and revolutionary constitutional
provisions in the English- speaking
West Africa.
The Constitution of the Republic of
The Gambia, established the judiciary
consisting of the entire body of courts
in The Gambia and the machinery
that governs them, as an indepen-
dent third organ of the government;
and constitutes a vital element for the
functioning of our democratic system
of governance, upholding the rule of
law and safeguarding fundamental
rights of the people.
The 1997 Constitution was made to
stand the test of time, as compared to
the dysfunctional constitution of 1965
and 1970.The Supreme Court of The
Gambia emphasised the supremacy of
the constitution, as the supreme law
of The Gambia, as compared to the
two previous ones which were piece-
meal with limited provisions.
However, under the 1970 constitu-
tion, it was known that the Parliament
consists of the President and a House
of Parliament. But under the exist-
ing constitution, the 1997 Constitu-
tion, it is known that the National As-
sembly consists of members elected
from constituencies, demarcated by
the Boundaries Commission and fve
members nominated by the President.
Under the colonial administration,
the courts consisted of the district
90
tribunals, one Magistrate Court in
Banjul and another High Court (then
called) Supreme Court in Banjul. Ap-
peals from this Supreme Court went
to the West African Court of Appeal
and from there to the Privy Council in
London, which was the fnal Court of
Appeal for British Colonies.
This system persisted until 1961,
when the Court of Appeal was estab-
lished in The Gambia by the Gambia
Court of Appeal Act No.5 of 1961 to
hear appeals from the High Court.
This Court of Appeal replaced the
West African Court of Appeal in The
Gambia. Appeals were then laid from
this court to the judicial committee of
the Privy Council. The appeals to the
Privy Council stopped with the com-
mencement of the 1997 Constitution,
which established a Supreme Court as
the fnal Court of Appeal in The Gam-
bia. Thanks to the Revolution and be-
hold the dome shaped structure the
Supreme Court Building was built in
1999.
One of the remarkable features of
the 1997 Constitution of the Republic
of The Gambia is that it expressly de-
fnes and prescribes the constitution
of the laws of The Gambia. The laws of
The Gambia are prescribed in Section
7 and they are as follows-(a)The 1997
Constitution itself.(b)Acts of the Na-
tional Assembly made under this con-
stitution subsidiary legislation made
under such Acts.(c)Any orders, rules,
regulations or other subsidiary leg-
islation made by a person or author-
ity under a power conferred by this
constitution or any other law.(d)The
existing laws, including all decrees
passed by the Armed Forces Provi-
sional Ruling Council;(e)The Com-
mon Laws and principles of equity;(f)
Customary Law so far as concerned
members of the communities, to
which it applies;(g)The Sharia as re-
gards matters of marriage, divorce
and inheritance among members of
the communities, to which it applies.
The power to issue a Commission
of Inquiry is vested in the president
by Section 200(1) and (2) of the 1997
Constitution. The functions and pow-
ers of the commission are prescribed
by Section 202 of the 1997 Constitu-
tion. It must be noted that the com-
missions of inquiries that were set up,
prior to the 1997 Constitution were
treated as lower courts or tribunals;
and were subjected to the supervi-
sory jurisdiction of the High Court.
This is because, the commissions of
inquiries Act under which they were
set up did not create a right of appeal
from the fndings of the commission
to the Court of Appeal. And it must
be noted that several commissions of
inquiries have been established since
1994, with the main objective of H.E
The President to curb and stamp out
corruption and other vices in society.
The Offce of the Ombudsman in
The Gambia is established by Section
2(1) of the Ombudsman Act 1997 of
the Constitution. Also, the Alterna-
tive Dispute Resolution Secretariat
is established by Section 99 of the
Alternative Dispute Resolution Act
2005(ADR Act) to facilitate amicable
resolution of disputes, by enforcing
the ADR Act. ADR aims to increase
access, particularly of the disadvan-
taged to justice, decongest the courts,
reduce delays, support and comple-
ment court reforms and reduce the
cost of litigation. The Act provides for
court annexed ADR. As a matter of
fact, the performance of the Alterna-
tive Dispute Resolution (ADR) since
inception, is indeed a cause to cel-
ebrate by all peace-loving Gambians,
considering the current trend of af-
fairs in our courts and the approach
of some people to the conventional
methods of legal system of litigation,
contrary to the spirit and letter of our
deeply-rooted cultural norms and val-
ues.
However, the concept of introduc-
ing and establishing the Alternative
Dispute Resolution (ADR) in our court
systems is indeed a welcome develop-
ment. Conventional system of litiga-
tion is a foreign culture to the country
and Africa at large; it splits relations,
encourages individualism and dis-
torts good relations. ADR has more
advantages than the conventional
litigation in courts, because it encour-
ages and promotes the spirit of peace,
unity and friendship among families
and communities. The method has no
doubt yielded positive impacts in our
courts and communities, especially in
reducing the backlog of cases in our
courts, restoration of peace, unity and
sanity within families and parties.
Research has shown that both the
developed and developing countries
are resorting to traditional method
of dispute resolution on the grounds
that it is more economical, less ex-
pensive, easily resolved and encour-
ages true values of humanity. In addi-
tion, it contributes positively towards
achieving sustainable development in
all aspects of life. The Gambia is well-
known for its peaceful nature and the
good spirit of co-existence among its
citizens. The Gambian leader is a man
of peace and a strong advocate of Pan-
Africanism; hence his vision for intro-
ducing the ADR in our court system.
As of now, over 581 cases have
been handled by the Alternative Dis-
91
pute Resolution Secretariat (ADRS)
since its inception in 2008, Penda Gi-
bril, the institutions chief executive
director revealed.
Another important gain is the es-
tablishment of the National Agency
for Legal Aid (NALA) for providing
legal services for suspects, who are
being tried for capital offences (Rape,
Manslaughter and Murder), which is
a hallmark of President Jammehs re-
gime.
The Codifcation of the Laws of
The Gambia, with the production
of the Revised Laws of The Gambia,
2009, is a most welcome achievement
of President Jammeh unending list of
successes recorded in the 2nd Repub-
lic.
The Childrens Court and Indus-
trial Tribunal are some of the beauties
of the 1997 Constitution and presently
the Childrens Court are actively func-
tioning in Kanifng, Brikama ,Basse,
whilst the Industrial Tribunal is func-
tioning in Kanifng and Banjul.
Decentralisation of Judi-
ciary and the Courts:
The courts play a pivotal role in
the functioning of a countrys legal
system, as the courts bear the pri-
mary role of enforcing the law i.e. in
the common law tradition. It is the
bearer or guardian of the law. It is
the main forum for the resolution of
disputes between individuals; and be-
tween states or agencies; and private
persons. The inherent character of its
nature and role is emphasised by the
1997 constitution.
One of the successes recorded by
the APRC/AFPRC regime after the
takeover was to strengthen the insti-
tutions of administration and enforce-
ment of law in The Gambia. These in-
stitutions include the courts and other
adjudicatory authorities, the Attorney
General Chambers & Ministry of Jus-
tice, the Gambia Police Force, Na-
tional Intelligence Agency, the Gam-
bia National Guard, National Drug
Enforcement Agency, other Agencies
with police powers, the National Law
Reporting Council, the Gambia Law
Foundation, the Gambia Law Reform
Commission, the Gambia Bar Asso-
ciation, the General Legal Council,
Legal Practitioners, the Ombudsman
and Alternative Dispute Resolution
Secretariat.
According to the Chief Justice,
Honourable Justice Ali Nawaz Chow-
han, the successes are indeed count-
less. You cannot count, you just
count, count and count; and the list
is endless. We are moving forward
and progressing all around by the
dynamic leadership of the president.
In the last twenty years, the APRC/
AFPRC under the leadership of H.E
Sheikh, Professor,Alhajie,Dr Yahya
A.J.J.Jammeh Babili Mansa Nasirul
Deen has manifestly brought justice
to the doorstep of everyone in The
Gambia. The APRC regime in the in-
terest of effective and effcient admin-
istration of justice have built courts in
all the regions of the country, as com-
pared to the advent of July 22nd Rev-
olution, where people used to travel
all the way from Basse to Banjul to
seek for justice, due to the non-avail-
ability of courts in the provinces, he
recalled.
The High Courts and Magistrate
courts, the most important courts
in the country in terms of access to
justice have increased and improved
over the years, considering the body
of staff, structure and personnel, scale
of activities, responsibilities, etc.
A well-functioning Cadi Appeals
court of The Gambia was established
in Banjul. Cadi courts are also estab-
lished in Banjul,Kanifng,Bundung,
Brikama, Kerewan and Basse.
Prior to the July 22nd Revolution,
the only Magistrate Courts in Banjul,
Kanifng and Brikama were in dire
state, but now they are rehabilitat-
ed, expanded and given new lease of
life. Thanks to July 22nd Revolution,
Magistrate Courts are now estab-
lished in all the regions: in the North
Bank Region, there are Magistrates
Court sittings in Kerewan,Essau/Far-
afenni; in the Lower River Region,
there are Magistrates Court sitting in
Mansa Konko,Soma and Pakalinding,
whilst in Central River Region North,
92
there are Magistrates Court sittings
in Janjanbureh,Kaur,Kuntaur and in
Central River Region South, Brika-
maba; and Basang Jareng caters for
residents in those areas. While High
Court are now established and func-
tioning in Brikama and Basse.
The establishment of The Gambia
Law School in 2011 by H.E the Presi-
dent in Banjul has greatly impacted in
having home-grown lawyers, which
hitherto, only few travels outside the
country to pursue this noble profes-
sion.
According to the Chief Justice, Ali
Nawaz Chowman, he is happy to pre-
side over the oath taking and roll sign-
ing ceremonies of the new inductees,
called to the Bar. They were educated
in the Law College established in Ban-
jul by H.E the president. Soon there
will be enough new practitioners to
cater for the needs of this profession
throughout the country.
The judgments of the Gambian
courts remain unreported for many
decades until later 1980s. Law Report
constitutes the authentic authorita-
tive and accepted legal record of judg-
ments of the superior courts of The
Gambia. The compilation and publi-
cation of the judgments of Gambian
courts in cyclostyled copies as law re-
ports of The Gambia, which started in
1984 was redesigned to a well-bound
hard covers form 1994 to date. The
frst of such well-bound hard cover
report was followed by the 1995/1996,
1997-2001, 1960-1993 and 2002-
2008 editions.
The Chief Justice of The Gam-
bia and the head of the Judiciary,
Honourable Chief Justice Ali Nawaz
Chowhan, also used the opportunity
to congratulate, the Gambian leader,
his government and the smiling peo-
ple of The Gambia on the occasion of
the 20th Anniversary of the July 22nd
Revolution.
Sing along with me loud, let us
be straight, let us not wait, let us call
The Gambia great. It is great as its
people are dignifed, tolerant and are
ever smiling. It is great because it is
secured and there is the rule of law.
It is great for its hospitality for its
weather.
Taking into account all revolutions,
be it the American Independence, the
French Revolution, the glorious revo-
lution of Great Britain, the Industrial
Revolution, the 1917 Revolution in
Russia, the Chinese Revolution, all
came with lots of changes; and as the
Latin word used by the American say
`Novous Ardous Saclerum-A new or-
der takes birth. Similarly, the second
July 22nd Revolution has given birth
to a new and good order for the Gam-
bians. The Chief Justice, however, dis-
closed that the judiciary is conscious
of its role and since he took over, he
has emphasised on judicial discipline
and scholarship, which means observ-
ing court timings, clearing backlogs of
cases, giving erudite judgments, cour-
tesy and research.
While noting that the judiciary
has provided training for 35 Mag-
istrates and 26 Cadis in the areas of
Civil Procedure, Criminal Procedure,
judgment writing, etc., the judiciary
Supremo noted that he had always
ensured delivery of judgments on
fxed dates, discouraged adjourn-
ments, and ensured that readings of
judgments in court were completed.
CJ maintained that The Gambias
Judicial Training Institute is func-
tional, whilst plans are underway to
enhance its capacities and establish
its campus.
According to him, the dream and
quest to establish the best in-ser-
vice training institute for the Maliki
School, Cadis, the Common Law Mag-
istrates and Customary Law Practitio-
ners are also in the pipeline.
We are seeking the help of broth-
erly countries in this connection and
also for scholarships for the training
of our manpower abroad. A new Le-
gal Practitioner Bill is already drafted
for better professionalism and disci-
pline. The work on codifcation in the
much-needed area of customary law
has started after hiccups. We hope to
accomplish it with the help of the E.U.
The work on building a Gambian Case
Law website is moving ahead. A mod-
ern, effcient and responsible work-
ing system is being developed for the
judiciary and those in error are being
made accountable, he pointed out.
With the passage of the Consumer
Protection Act 2014, plans are afoot
to establish the Consumer Protec-
tion Tribunals, which will sit in every
Administrative Region to give conf-
dence to foreign investors, by help-
ing to provide a more predictable
business environment and to protect
consumer welfare. Childrens Court is
already functioning in Kanifng, Bri-
kama, Basse, while there are active
Industrial Tribunals in Banjul and
Kanifng.
We hope to add more judges in
the Superior Courts to cater for the
growing needs of the public. We
are moving forward and progressing
all around, inspired by the dynam-
ic leadership of the President, H.E
Sheikh, Professor, Alhaji,Dr Yahya
A.J.J.Jammeh.
On this happy occasion, let all of
us resolve that we will put in extra
hours of labour for working hard to
take The Gambia forward. Long live
the July 22nd Revolution, Long live
The Gambia.
93
The success story of
Gambias economy
T
he Gambia have a mixed
system of economy its
an economic system in
which both the private
sector and state plays a vital role in
directing it. The country under the
leadership of His Excellency the
president, Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr
Yahya Jammeh Nasirul Deen Babili
Mansa remains committed to its lib-
eral market policy or in another word
liberal macroeconomic system aimed
at increasing competition and allowed
the private sector to play a crucial role
in economic development.
The Gambian economy continued
to grow since 1994, with Agriculture
and Natural Resources as dominant
sectors in the economic advancement,
employing over 65% of the nations
total workforce at a growing Gross
Domestic Products (GDP).
The current state of the
economy
The Gambian economy is vibrant
and is growing at a rate of between
fve and fve and a half percent which
is one of the highest in Sub-Saharan
Africa. Looking at the comparative
analysis and what is happening in the
region and Sub-Saharan Africa and
the continent in particular, the Gam-
bian economy is on sound footing. Ev-
idence of this has been shown when
the economy built resilient against
2008 global fnancial meltdown in
which many frst world countries
sought bailouts to normalize their
economies.
Gambias major source of income
is taxes and mainly from the inter-
national trade which is external de-
pendent. Sound reforms and fscal
reforms were made in the past years
in a bid to respond to the challenges
such as decline in global trade.
As a small country, the current
state of the economy is viewed to have
resilient and higher possibility to
adapt and to respond to the challeng-
es. The good news about the Gambian
economy is that the expenditure on
key social sectors such as education,
94
health and agriculture are paying div-
idend with higher percentage of edu-
cated, skilled and trained personnel.
And looking at the outlook ahead,
the prospects are great, the building
blocks are solid and the foundation
has given confdence and trust which
allows the country to be able to sus-
tain the economy in the longer run
with the ultimate goal of eradicating
poverty and improving the lives of the
people.
As the current state of the Gam-
bian economy is viewed reasonable
and strong with robust reforms, the
economy continues to grow and build
resilience against global fnancial
slowdown. This however has made
the Gambian leader, in his 2014, State
Opening of the National Assembly,
reaffrmed that in order to realize
Gambias strong economic poten-
tial, therefore, the 2014 budget was
anchored on what he referred to as
consolidating macroeconomic stabil-
ity and accelerating the attainment of
governments development agenda in
partnership with the private sector.
Therefore, our economic devel-
opment strategy for 2014 budget is
based on three inter-linked priori-
ties, the president declared, as he ad-
dressed the National Assembly. This
three links were: High and sustain-
able economic growth; employment
creation and lowering net domestic
borrowing to 2.5% of GDP in 2014,
and to contain this ratio to near zero
percent in the medium term.
Comparing pre 1994
economy to date
There is a huge difference between
the current state of the Gambian
economy to that of pre 1994 before
the advent of the July 22nd Revolu-
tion. The level of economic, political
and social developments achieved by
the second republic in 20 years com-
pared to 30 years and 400 years of the
frst Republic and British rule respec-
tively, it has been described as vast
and phenomenal; with clear examples
such as, education, health, infrastruc-
ture tourism and agriculture. Access
to primary education is near univer-
sal in this country because the second
Republic understands that education
is the platform for all developments.
Since 1994, the frst ten years of
the Jammehs economic policy was
to build the social sectors, so all the
expenditures were geared towards
building social sectors. From there,
became a slight shift towards the pro-
ductive sectors, this is because the
econd republic have built the capac-
ity that is able to carry the economy
along and with a very high speed.
The health condition of the people
has improved because of more health
facilities. And this is key in not only
talking about the current growth
level, but sustainability and that is
the focus of the government to en-
sure that in the long term, we have
trained, skilled and well educated la-
bour force and a healthy citizenry. If
you guarantee these two things, then
you can guarantee sustainability. The
economy is not only about the current
growth rate, but the future prospects
and the foundation block being laid,
Gambias Finance Minister Kebba
Touray outlined in an interview with
the Daily Observer.
95
The level of economic
activities
The level of economic activities in
the Gambia has drastically improved
since 1994, as a result of good infra-
structures that were put in place by
the Jammeh administration. With
good road networks and sound re-
forms for investment, the Gambia has
established herself as a hub for inter-
national trade, thus, attracting inves-
tors from all over the world.
The economy has been growing
since 1994 and one of the major policy
shifts that the government has put in
place is the participation of the pri-
vate sector for which it described as
indispensible partner in the economic
development. The government since
1994 has concentrated on creating the
environment for the private sector to
take the lead in economic develop-
ment.
One of the major catalysts of this
increase is women empowerment.
And the commitment of government
to women empowerment has trans-
lated into increased economic activity
in all the key sectors of the economy
including agriculture, tourism, educa-
tion and health.
The introduction of D100 note by
the second republic has also contrib-
uted to the expansion of economic ac-
tivities in this country. Over the last
few years, economic activity again re-
newed its buoyancy in a context of a
global slowdown. Despite the global
fnancial turmoil in 2008, the nomi-
nal GDP continued to grow at an aver-
age rate with a marked acceleration.
A changing structure of the Gambian
economy appears notably with the
Service Sector being the main driver
and accounting for nearly 50% of
GDP, whilst Agriculture maintained
its contribution at over one-ffth.
Over the past years, Agriculture
contributed an average of 20.1% to
GDP and grew by an average 7% per
annum, with specifc years marking
major recoveries. Agricultural output
increased during the past years and
propelled by an excellent crop pro-
duction.
Vision 2020 & PAGE
As President Jammehs moderni-
sation reforms in the economy began
to refect on the lives of the growing
Gambian population, the government
therefore, deemed it prudent for The
Gambia to map out and develop an
economic reform strategy dubbed Vi-
sion 2020 development blueprint for
socio-economic advancement. This
economic policy among other things,
sought to raise the standard of living
of The Gambian population by trans-
forming the country into a dynamic
and less dependent nation.
The Government continued its
reform policies and in 2011,through
the Ministry of Finance and Eco-
nomic Affairs, it again developed and
implemented its new poverty reduc-
tion strategy, the Programme for Ac-
celerated Growth and Employment
(PAGE) which was to be implement-
ed from 2011-2015. The aim of this
economic policy was to signifcantly
reduce abject poverty and equally
enhance further, the productive base
of the economy through maximising
its growth potentials and also create
employment for the increasing popu-
lation. The Ministry of Finance and
Economic Affairs, through its perma-
nent secretary recently disclosed that
for the implementation of the PAGE
to be realised, the medium term de-
velopment blueprint of the govern-
ment, it is projected at 25 billion Da-
lasis.
Gross Domestic Product
The real Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) of The Gambia is projected at
7.5 percent in 2014, predicated on
robust expansion of agriculture and
services, particularly tourism, the
Central Bank governor revealed in a
press briefng in February 2014. This
was an indication that The Gambian
economy is gradually growing close to
potential. During the banks periodic
Monetary Policy Committee briefng,
it was indicated that infation was
forecasted to moderate to within the
target of 5.0 percent by end of De-
cember 2014, premised on prudent
implementation of monetary and fs-
cal policies. The Real Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) growth of the econo-
my for 2013 was estimated at 5.6 per-
cent compared to 6.1 per cent in 2012
96
and the contraction of 4.3 percent in
2011. Growth in the value-added of
agriculture was equally estimated at
14.8 percent, industry (7.0 percent)
and services (3.7 percent).
Domestic revenue, comprising
both tax and non-tax revenue, in-
creased by 10.6 percent to D5.2 bil-
lion, D4.6 billion of which was on
account of international trade taxes.
Grants, on the other hand, declined
signifcantly from D1.8 billion in 2012
to D725.1 million in 2013 as a result of
resilient economic policies that were
put in place by the Jammeh adminis-
tration.
Proliferation of banks &
the banking sector
As sound economic reforms con-
tinue to mirror on the lives of ordi-
nary Gambians and the Central Bank
of The Gambia (CBG) describing the
Gambias banking industry as very at-
tractive and sound, the proliferation
of Banks in the country has made it
possible for banks to stiffy compete
within the industry and in such a way
that catapulted the industrys total as-
sets to a staggering amount of D23.8
billion in 2013, higher than the D22.8
billion in 2012. Loans and advances,
accounting for 23.4 percent of total
assets, rose to D6.04 billion, or 9.4
percent from 2012.
The proliferation of banks has a
positive impact on the Gambian econ-
omy. For instance, in 2003, when the
Gambias fnancial system had been
widening, a total of about 9 banks
were registered within a short period
of time. The purpose was to give the
Gambians a choice in the industry.
This also explains that banks have po-
sitioned themselves here not for the
Gambia alone, but for the regional
market as well, while the country in
the long run is expecting to have an
Agricultural Development Bank.
The Monetary Policy Committee
(MPC) of the (CBG) in recent press
briefngs revealed that the bank-
ing industry in The Gambia remains
fundamentally sound, indicating
that the industrys capital and re-
serves increased to D3.06 billion in
December 2012, in comparison to
its D2.63 billion in 2011, mainly on
account of capital injection amount-
ing to D392.4 million. The industrys
earnings increased signifcantly from
D17.5 million in 2012 to D106.5 mil-
lion in 2013. Deposit liabilities also
rose to D15.05 billion, or 12.4 percent
over the previous year driven mainly
by the strong growth in demand and
saving deposits. Time deposits, on the
other hand, contracted, the liquidity
ratio declined slightly to 76.0 percent
compared to 78.0 percent in 2012, but
higher than the minimum require-
ment of 30.0 percent.
Micro-fnances
The second republics economic
reform does not only echo on the
banks, but equally enhances the pro-
liferation of small businesses across
the country. Micro-fnance is impor-
tant considering the Gambia business
land scope, predominantly small.
Since micro enterprises and some of
the small businesses cannot afford to
go through the formal banking sec-
tor to apply for loans to improve on
their businesses, therefore they turn
to micro-fnance institutions to get
assistance.
This is possible because the inter-
est rate at the end of the day becomes
less at micro-fnance level in terms of
collateral. This has made the govern-
ment to continue to give due attention
to the growth and development of the
Microfnance sub-sector as it has been
recognised as one of the most effec-
tive tools to alleviate poverty just as
outlined in the Vision 2020 develop-
ment blue print.
The purpose of creating enabling
environment for microfnance institu-
tions is to promote and support access
to fnancial services for the low income
households, rural and urban poor not
served by commercial banks. There-
fore the absolute goal of the Jammeh
administration was to achieve inclu-
sive fnance for the entire populace to
improve the livelihood of Gambians
by enabling people to invest in better
nutrition, housing, health and educa-
tion for their children as well as cop-
ing with diffcult times caused by crop
failures, illness or other calamities.
Gambias economic out-
look
The Gambias economic outlook
has been viewed to have performed
reasonably well, and looking at the
97
outlook ahead, the prospects are great
and rock-hard foundation of the econ-
omy has equally given confdence and
trust to the economy in a way it con-
tinues to build resilient against global
fnancial meltdown.
To maintain the momentum, the
International Monetary Fund (IMF),
therefore advised the Gambia gov-
ernment to embark on a tax reform
policy by shifting from the traditional
Sales Tax to the current Value Added
Tax (VAT). This is understandable to
some extend putting into account that
the Gambia is a tax-based economy.
IMF is with the frm belief that VAT
has the potential to create jobs and
improve the countrys revenue. How-
ever, this allows the country to be able
to sustain the economy in the longer
run with the ultimate goal of eradicat-
ing poverty and improving the lives of
the people.
Over the last few years and de-
spite failures in agricultural harvest
in 2011, recovery started in the same
year and the real GDP growth accel-
erated with expectation in economic
growth which began in 2013 and 2014
as a result of the recovery in agricul-
ture and strong performance in the
tourism sector.
So looking at the Economy, the
frst thing the government put in place
was to maintain fscal discipline, con-
sidering the resources and where they
come from. The government since
1994 has ensured that there was fscal
discipline by limiting the spending. So
when the recession hits in 2008, gov-
ernment of the Gambia averted much
borrowing, knowing that the more
you borrow, the more traps you put
your economy into as such loans will
be repaid with very high interests,
Touray added.
How Trade impact Gam-
bias economy
Trade is one of the Gambias most
important sectors and since 1994, the
Jammeh administration has been
mindful of the fact that in order for it
to prosper, there was the need to put
in places certain number of policies,
frameworks and instruments. The
government therefore started work-
ing with partners to put in place all
those necessary frameworks for busi-
nesses and prosperity at both national
and international levels, while on the
other hand encouraging businesses to
take advantage of the conducive en-
vironment to increase their produc-
tion. Government also continues to
help improve the quality of whatever
is produced in this country. The rea-
son is that in order to compete in the
international market you need to pro-
duce quality goods and services that
meets both national and international
standards. As a result, the Gambian
trade has drastically increased.
With continued reforms of policies
in the trade industry, the Jammeh
government remains optimistic of re-
ducing the size of the countrys import
thereby investing more into Agricul-
ture with a frm belief that some of the
products the country imports could
have been made right here at home.
Trade imbalance is understand-
able to some extent, given that the
countrys business sector is relatively
small with perhaps limited industries.
Since the countrys production capac-
ities are not that much huge, therefore
continue to reduce her import by size.

The volume of trade &
partners
The European Union (EU) remains
the Gambias major trading partner
both in terms of export and import
for many years, but recently, ECOW-
AS and Asia regions have become
key trading partners. I think Asia is
overtaking EU as the countrys major
trading partner, though EU remains
a very key partner. In terms of vol-
umes of trade, Asia has overtaken the
EU. So therefore, EU becomes num-
ber two and ECOWAS remains third,
Gambias former Trade minister, Ab-
dou Kolley said in a recent interview.
Gambias commitment
to free movement of goods
and services
The Jammeh administration is
seen as a model in implementing in-
ternational treaties and conventions
particularly in trade. The govern-
ment under his watchful eyes highly
remains committed to the free move-
98
ment of goods and services within
the ECOWAS region. This is because
government is with the view that
ECOWAS trade should have been far
more than it is now if certain proto-
cols that allows and easy free move-
ment of goods and services within the
region are observed by all member
states. The government of the Gambia
has repeatedly voiced out the need to
effectively implement the ECOWAS
Trade Liberalization Scheme the
trade policy meant to facilitate trade
among ECOWAS countries. For
that to happen companies should go
through certifcation processes and if
your products are certifed, then you
are legible to produce and export to
any ECOWAS country without paying
any duties or tariff.
This action, many believed could
have been a big boost in the trade.
However, moving between and within
the ECOWAS boarders still remain a
challenge with certain countries con-
tinuing to blatantly fout the rules.
But when they do that, we talk to
them, engage them and also involve
the ECOWAS commission who comes
in to mediate and remind countries
of their obligations to allow the free
movement of goods and services.
Kolley added.
Priority areas for Gam-
bias trade at international
market
The Gambias main exports are
groundnut, fsh and fsh products as
well as other Agricultural products.
The country in most cases have been
exporting these products in row forms
and therefore not getting the true val-
ue of the produce. The government
under Jammeh continues to devise
plans by encouraging businesses to
go into agro processes and transfor-
mation which will add more value to
the products of the country and in-
crease the value of the trade. Cogni-
zant of that fact that trade becomes
two things, value and volume, Jam-
meh remains vigilant of the fact that
one can export a small volume, but by
adding value to it, the trade value in-
creases and help to narrow down the
trade defcit that the country was ex-
periencing.
In respect to this, the Trade Minis-
try continued to encourage the people
to set up businesses in this country
and transform the goods that are pro-
duced here into fnish products with a
view to add more value and pay local
farmers better.
The Ministry of Trade keeps work-
ing with various ministries particu-
larly Health and Fisheries to see how
best to strengthen their laboratories
to be able to perform certain test to
ascertain the quality of food that are
produced in the country.
Statistics of employment
in the Gambia
The weak nature of the Gambia La-
bour Department has made it tough
to access the actual statistics of em-
ployment and unemployment in the
country. This situation has left the
Trade Ministry with no choice, but to
work with partners in strengthening
the department and also how to get
businesses to register with the depart-
ment and be supplying information.
However, this tend to explain that
data collection in the country still re-
mains a challenge and therefore the
type of statistics the country is having
are not exhaustive and it may not re-
fect the true level of employment or
unemployment in this country.
We are currently trying how best
we can strengthen our regional inte-
gration processes. In terms of domes-
tic legislation, we have put in place
most, if not all the things needed, so
now its how do we encourage the
Gambian businesses to take advan-
tage of these polices and reforms and
that is what we will be concentrating
our efforts on to working with the pri-
vate sector and form partnership and
alliances with other countries that are
willing and able to cooperate with us
so that we can increase and strength-
en the Gambian businesses, Kolley
reaffrmed.
Some key reforms
There had been numerous reforms
that took place in the countrys trad-
ing industry since 1994 and despite
the Gambias unwavering commit-
ment to a liberal market policy since
independence, the country, with the
advent of the second Republic, under-
scored the need to level the playing
feld for all businesses by establishing
the Gambia Competition Commis-
sion. Established in October in 2008,
the Commission has enacted regula-
tions and highly monitored to ensure
that businesses compete, but in a fair
manner. These allow businesses to
bid for government contracts without
colluding and conniving for prices.
The Jammeh administrations eco-
nomic policies continued with new
regulations and Agencies as gateways.
The Gambia Standard Bureau (GSB)
was established in 2010 by an Act of
parliament, tasked to look into qual-
ity and standards for both import and
local productions. Among the bodys
role is to develop and promulgate
standards and also to offer services in
the feld of metrology and conformity
assessment.
Since we are a country that ex-
ports, we should be mindful of what
comes to this country. I know in the
past many people have approached
me to say why dont we ban so and
so coming into this country? And I
would say well, before you can talk of
banning something, you need to have
a yardstick to measure whether that
particular thing meets your national
standard. And as long as you do not
have that, it is very diffcult to get up
99
like that and say we are banning this
particular thing, Kolley further ob-
served.
The GSB continues to develop
standards aimed at ensuring that in
all sectors of the economy, the coun-
try establish national standard that
meets international standards, which
will be used by businesses and regu-
latory bodies to enforce them and
ensure that Gambian people beneft
from them.
Food Safety and Quality
Authority
This body, established in July
2013, is billed to use the standards
that have been developed by the Stan-
dards Bureau to ensure that people
comply with them and produce or
import things that meet the standard
for the health of Gambian people. The
establishment of this vibrant institu-
tion has not only ensure quality food
standard, but also served as a credit
for Gambias modern approach to
food safety.
Gambia Consumer Pro-
tection Commission
In a bid to empower the Gambian
consumers, the Jammeh adminis-
tration through its Trade Ministry
enacted The Gambia Consumer Pro-
tection bill in April 2014. This law
seeks to help consumers to take their
health and quality issues into their
own hands within a guided frame-
work. The law was to complement the
governments existing policies that
aimed at ensuring a vibrant private
sector to support the development
programmes. It sought among other
things, to give confdence to those
wishing to invest in The Gambia, by
helping provide a more predictable
business environment and to protect
consumer welfare.
President Jammehs economic re-
form programmes continued to show-
case with the establishment of GIEPA,
which was mainly tasked to promote
destination Gambia and market the
country to the rest of the world in
terms of businesses, while encourag-
ing outsiders to invest in the country.
The body is also mandated to ensure
guidance and facilitate the establish-
ment of local businesses in the coun-
try.
Considering the Gambias small in-
dustrial base, the country continues to
have trade imbalance. This has made
it relevant to encourage investment in
the economy whereby both Gambia
and foreigners can come in and estab-
lish businesses and produce goods ft
for both local and international mar-
ket. The Agency, however, has been
commended for such a tremendous
work since its establishment in pro-
moting the Gambias investment.
Gambia Investment and
Export Promotion Agency
The Gambia Investment & Export
Promotion Agency (GIEPA) is the na-
tional agency established by an Act of
Parliament in July 2010. The Agency
is responsible for the promotion and
facilitation of private sector invest-
ments into The Gambia.
In offering investorfacilitation
services, the Agency acts as investors
frst point of contact as it provides in-
formation on relevant procedures for
setting up a business and helps form
the necessary network of contacts in
The Gambia for successful business
operations.
GIEPA advises and collaborates
with the government of The Gambia,
the private sector and civil society
towards developing a globally com-
petitive business environment. The
Agencys key functions centers on
promoting the exportation of goods,
developing and regulating The Gam-
bias only business park, formulating
investment promotion, export and
enterprise development strategies,
employment creation and wealth
generation through private sector
led growth as enshrined in the Vision
2020 as well as the PAGE.
Gambia Competitive
Commission
The Gambia Competition Com-
mission (GCC) was established on the
27th October 2008 under the fore-
sight of the Ministry of Trade and
Industry. Despite global rules in com-
petitive, the Jammeh administration
created this viable statutory govern-
ment authority to be responsible for
overseeing the fair provision of goods
and services by ensuring that all busi-
nesses adhere to the Gambias Com-
petition Act of 2007.
Now called the Gambia Consumer
Protection Commission (GCPC), the
act aims to promote fair business
competition and spells out prohib-
ited business practices in order to
provide guidance to frms, their legal
advisors and consultants. The statute
also gives explanations to the kinds of
queries that individuals might make
about the Competition Commission
and the Act.
Some of the restrictive practices
that the body aims to protect Gam-
bian consumers from are monopolies,
collusive agreements, cartels, restric-
tive practices, bid rigging, price fxing
etc., all in order to ensure a free trade
of goods and services in the various
markets. The GCC also deals with
whistleblowers, mergers and acquisi-
tions, applications for leniency and
provides a public procurement man-
ual and plan.
The Gambia Chamber of
Commerce and Industry
The Gambia Chamber of Com-
merce and Industry (GCCI) was
founded in 1967 with the purpose of
delivering vital business service to
members and the private sector in
general. It also acts as a lobby to in-
fuence business policy in order to
establish an environment that is fa-
vourable to business activity in The
Gambia. It came to existence as a re-
sult of the merger between the Gam-
bia Employers Organisation and the
Bathurst Chamber. It is a voluntary,
not-for-proft, private sector organ-
isation whose membership is made
up of companies from all sectors of
the Gambian business community i.e.
Trade & Commerce, Agriculture, In-
dustry, Tourism, Transport, Telecoms
services, Finance & Banking.
The advent of the second republic,
its reforms and regulations has re-
markably transformed this institution
to become more vibrant and respon-
sive to the needs of its members and
the entire private sector. In 2005 for
instance, the GCCI has restructured
its offce, created a fresh corporate
image and put in place strategic pri-
orities so as to be the true representa-
tive of the business community, while
on the other hand providing service
excellence to the members and con-
tributing to sustainable development.
100
F
or many people, it
was impossible, un-
thinkable, and yet
unconceivable that a
man of our time and part of the
world would discover the cure
for a disease that has plunged
the entire universe into a total
confusion in fnding a therapy
that can deal with it.
The mystery surrounding this
disease that there is no scientifc
cure for it since its frst epidemic
perplexed many people and left one
to wonder how a whole universe en-
dowed with so much knowledge and
resources coupled with the techno-
logical advances is still battling to
fnd the decisive cure for an ailment
that has until recently been seen as
a death warrant for anyone who falls
victim.
It makes no sense, but again the
stakes are high as far as fnding a
cure to arrest this debilitating dis-
ease the HIV/AIDS is concerned.
The world has got to a point
where mans self-centeredness and
ego has made millions of people
to suffer and endure unacceptable
costly circumstances. This can be
spoken of the HIV/AIDS treatment
programme in which a clique of
people who established multina-
tional pharmaceutical companies
would spare no effort to object to
any form of discoveries that on
one side is meant to save human-
ity; whilst on the other side, would
bring imminent disruption to their
multi-billion dollar investments.
A leaders audacity saves humanity
102
This explains all the more reason
why any attempt to come out with
a cure for the disease is met with
strong resistance from these power-
ful and infuential pharmaceutical
companies and other parties, bear-
ing in mind the great fnancial losses
that are to follow. Naturally, I think
any pronouncement of a cure for the
disease should be welcomed with
open arms regardless of who is the
discoverer, since the ultimate goal is
to get a cure once and for all so that
the untold sufferings of those who
fall victim can cease. But no! Since
that is detrimental to their interest,
they will stop at nothing to discour-
age it, thus leaving millions of peo-
ple with no options but to stick to
their Antiretroviral Drugs as the last
straw to guarantee continued life.
But how about an African man
who dares to pronounce that he
has discovered a cure for this ail-
ment? Wouldnt it sound ridiculous
to them? The answer is the obvious
because for far too long, the percep-
tion about Africa and African in-
vented initiatives is that it can only
come second to that of the so-called
advanced societies, especially on
something as critical as the discov-
ery of a cure for the HIV/AIDS.
But one man who stood up to
what he believes and defed all odds
is The Gambias leader, President
Yahya Jammeh. An African leader
of a small nation of 1.8 million peo-
ple, Jammeh defed all criticisms
that were directed at him when he
had the moral courage to announce
to the world that he has indeed dis-
covered a cure for the much talked-
about HIV/AIDS. That January 17th
2007 declaration took the world by
surprise, but to a greater extent in-
stilled so much hope in many peo-
ple.
But guess what! Even before the
president could rest from his long
secret research using Gods en-
dowed knowledge leading to this
discovery, critics took to the inter-
national media and social media as
medium to reject it. But the presi-
dent didnt only confne himself to
the satisfaction of the herbal treat-
ment; instead he also incorporated
the conventional way of treatment
by taking the infected blood samples
of the patients for laboratory tests in
foreign hospitals before and after
the end of the treatment. The re-
sults are amazingly unbelievable
that the virus has been cleared from
the human system, thus proving his
skeptics wrong.
Other breakthroughs
The discovery of the HIV/AIDS
also came with it other herbal medi-
cal breakthroughs by the president
he was also able to fnd an effec-
tive treatment for debilitating ail-
ments like asthma, hypertension,
sickle cell anemia, infertility and so
on.
Today, after seven years of per-
sistence, The Gambian leader could
beat his chest hard to say that what
was thought to be a mere fight of
the imagination by his critics have
been proven otherwise as thousands
of people beneft from his treatment
yearly.
What has made his treatment
programme even more touching and
completely different is that it is be-
ing provided to patients free, at the
presidents own expense . Patients
are being treated without racial,
tribal, regional and other consid-
erations, it is purely humanitarian.
The venture could have been a very
lucrative business for the benefactor
given the number of patients that
rush for the periodic treatment each
time it is announced, but he chose
the opposite, for the fact that the
restoration of the health of the sick
is more rewarding and meaningful.
There are so many discoveries
presently and I think those who are
following the HIV/AIDS treatment
would understand why now even the
word incurable has been changed
to curable. But the president was
the frst to use this word. Now when
we hear various media outlets report
different institutions or individuals
having the herbs to cure, I think it is
now accepted worldwide that HIV/
AIDS is no more incurable. The
question is when will they also re-
lease their medical herbs for people
to beneft, stated the director gen-
eral of the Presidents Alternative
Treatment Programme (PATP), Dr.
Tamsir Mbowe, who has been over-
seeing the administration of the ini-
tiative.
The demand
The demand for Jammehs treat-
ment has increased among patients
both within and outside The Gam-
bia, largely due to its effcacy and
rapid results. This led to the institu-
tionalisation of the crusade through
the establishment of the Presidents
Alternative Treatment Programme
(PATP). Headquartered in Bakau,
the Programme that also created
employment for people and pro-
vides treatment to patients on a reg-
ular basis.
I cannot tell you the exact num-
ber, but approximately more than
23, 000 people have undergone the
treatment, disclosed Dr. Mbowe in
an interview with the Daily Observ-
er .
I always say that we have the
medical politics if you do any-
thing for humanity, God pays you.
If you do it for money, then you
wait for the money. The president
has proven himself and the results
speak the truth. As you could see
the HIV/AIDS especially, he was
able to prove that the medical herbs
were for the elimination of the virus
itself and based on the laboratory
results from different countries. It
has proven that there is no question
or doubt about the treatment. For
the infertility, the babies will speak;
for the hypertension, they will show
you the results, Dr. Mbowe stated.
For Mbowe, a seasoned doctor
who also defed all the criticisms
against him when he defended the
treatment at the very start, Presi-
dent Jammeh has inscribed his
footprints in the annals of medical
history.
In medicine if you do a great
job, you must be noted. So I think
the medical history will defnitely
note him down as the frst medical
practitioner to come up with these
medical herbs that have eliminated
the virus from the human system,
he stated.
103
Democratic institutions
T
he advent of the Sec-
ond Republic has ush-
ered in the establish-
ment of numerous
democratic progressive insti-
tutions and other policy pro-
grammes meant for achieving
sustainable development of the
country. Such democratic in-
stitutions were products of the
1997 Constitution of the Gambia,
which came into being through
the 22nd July 1994 Revolution,
headed by President Jammeh as
Senior Reporter Sanna Jarawa
investigates.
The 1997 Constitution best de-
scribed at both local and interna-
tional as one of the most model and
progressive constitutions in Africa
and beyond, is the supreme law of
The Gambia, which serves as a source
of inspiration for all the other laws
and policy directives of the country.
The constitution made provisions
for creation and establishment of the
National Council for Civic Education
(NCCE), which was established by
an act of the National Assembly in
1998, as per contained in section 198
of the said Constitution. Provisional
Independent Electoral Commission
(PIEC), established by section 6 of the
PIEC Decree 62 of 1995, now the Inde-
pendent Electoral Commission (IEC),
established by an act of the National
Assembly as per section 42 of the 1997
Constitution. The Offce of the Om-
budsman, established by an act of the
National Assembly as cited in section
163 of the 1997 Constitution, amongst
others are all established during the
Jammeh administration.
The Supreme Court of the Gambia
was also established by an act of the
National Assembly pursuant to sec-
tion 125 of the cited constitution. This
particular development put an effec-
tive end for Gambians having to travel
to either lodge an appeal or have their
appeals heard by the Privy Council in
the United Kingdom. The cost of such
an expensive litigation for an average
Gambian and its impact on dispensa-
tion of justice for all, regardless of our
statutes in live is immense.
The Bill of Rights of Gambians as
per cited in Chapter 4, sections 17 to
33 of the said constitution, which em-
powered Gambians to channel their
rights within the limits of the law,
with a view to promote and protect
human rights, interest and welfare of
Gambians and beyond. Its called the
bill of rights, because of the bundle of
rights, duties and responsibilities of
Gambians it guarantees and assured
for implementation at all times.
The Commissions of Inquiries es-
tablished by an act of the National
Assembly as per contained in section
200, with the mandate of inquiring
into activities and conduct of public
offcers, in line with promoting the
products of the Second Republic
104
spirit of democracy, good governance
and principles of the rule of law.
The most beautiful aspects of the
judiciary achievements brought by
the 22nd July 1994 Revolution is
further exhibited in the creation and
establishment of the National Assem-
bly, which replaced the Parliamentary
system of government. The parlia-
mentary system of government more
or less amounted to fusion of powers
of the three arms of government, such
as the executive, judiciary and legis-
lature. This fusion as its applicable,
in other jurisdictions like the UK,
contravenes the concept of good gov-
ernance, democracy and principles
based on the rule of law.
On the other hand, the National
Assembly system assured of checks
and balances between the said three
arms of government. Its devoid of
situation wherein ministers form part
of the Legislative House, representing
electoral divisions of the country.
The National Youth Service
Scheme established by an act of the
National Assembly, pursuant to sec-
tion 195, has the objective of having
Gambian youth to effectively and ef-
fciently participate in sustainable de-
velopment of the country. The Act has
detained provisions on role and obli-
gation of youth in the development of
the country.
The Special Criminal Court as per
section 134 of the Constitution among
others created established by the Sec-
ond Republic through either an act of
the National Assembly or policy di-
rectives cannot all be captured in this
write up. They all have detained laid
down rules and regulations governing
their operations, all meant to promote
and protect ideals of democracy, gov-
ernance and rule of law, compared to
any other country across the globe.
Mass media is also not left out on
the list of achievements registered by
the AFPRC/APRC government. The
role of the media as far as holding the
government responsive and account-
able to the people of the Gambia has
a detailed constitutional provision.
However, statistics revealed that, a
total of 25 radio stations have been
established under the APFPRC/APRC
government. Five out of this num-
ber are community based, while 19
are commercial radio stations spread
across the country.
A total of 6 print media were es-
tablished and four out of this are
currently in active operations. This
brought about contrasting the fgure
with what was tenable in the First
Republic, when the only active radio
station was Radio Gambia, otherwise
called Radio Banjul. The establish-
ment of the frst TV station of the
country, coupled with putting it on
satellite accessible across the globe.
The expansion of Radio Gambia with
nationwide coverage among other im-
provement programmes therein.
NCCE
The National Council for Civic
Education is the frst such institution
examined with a view to highlight its
purpose, functions and scores made
over the years since its inception to
date. Section 199 of the cited consti-
tution provided among others in the
exercise of its functions, the Council
shall be apolitical and, save as may be
provided by an Act of the National As-
sembly, shall not be subject to the di-
rection or control of any other person
or authority.
Its mandated to raise the political
and civic consciousness of all citizens
to assume political and civic respon-
sibilities and duties. Its also assigned
with the responsibility to bring about
change in attitude that will emphasise
the spirit of self-reliance and self-suf-
fciency.
To enhance public awareness and
concerns on issues relating to national
development, the Council also has an
assignment to relating to rural com-
105
munities, particularly women and
youth with a view to have them sensi-
tise, empowered and enable them ca-
pable of defning their own destinies
and effectively participate in national
decision-making processes, including
Civic and Political Leadership.
The council was headed by a chair-
man and has been presided over by
series of chairpersons, and Momo-
dou Joof, a senior broadcaster of the
Gambia Radio and Television Servic-
es (GRTS-Radio), is the current chair
of the council. He shared his views
with us about what he called the im-
portance of having the council in the
country and its impact on the promo-
tion of democracy, good governance
and principles of the rule of law.
For the season broadcaster, the act
empowered the NCCE to create and
sustain awareness of constitutional
democracy for the achievement of po-
litical, economic and social stability
through civic education as per pursu-
ant to section 199 of the 1997 Consti-
tution.
The NCCE comprises of a fve
member council, such as the chair-
man and four others appointment by
the president and the council operates
through two main departments such
as administrative and programmes
department. With respect to its civic
education programme, Joof cited
mandates of the council and its com-
mitment to what he called national
governance programme and enlight-
en of citizens about the role and re-
sponsibilities of the different arms of
government, such as the executive,
legislature and the judiciary.
He added that, the council enlight-
ens the public on issues relating the
use of legal mechanisms and other
instruments for confict prevention
and resolution; these are often done
through educating the general public
about existence of some the consti-
tutional provisions to that effect and
also provide information to the public
about issues relating to international
affairs. This included the concept of
world citizenship and other relevant
matters at both local and internation-
al.
The NCCE uses a variety of media
and delivery systems as part of activi-
ties implementing its constitutional
mandates. The system of such deliv-
ery covered both formal and informal
channels and other means of com-
munications that are used in deliver-
ing civic education messages to the
people of The Gambia. The formal
channels included radio, television,
print media, forums, trainings, semi-
nars and workshops. Folklore drama
groups, school and community out-
reach activities form the basis of the
informal channels, Joof stated.
Achievements registered
The civic council boss take stock of
the past, the present and future pro-
grammes implemented and planned
for implementation covering the pe-
riod January to August 2014. He cited
two major face-to-face community
sensitizations held, frst on citizen-
ship, democracy, decentralization
and fundamental human rights as per
stated in the 1997 Constitution of the
Gambia.
The exercise covered a total of 45
communities in the LRR, CRR and
URR. The second community sensiti-
zation was held on the principles and
objectives of the 1997 Constitution of
The Gambia and a total of 120 select-
ed communities in the URR and CRR
were covered.
The council conducted trainings
for over hundred and twenty fve
community leaders in the LRR, CRR
and URR on the Local Government
Act 2002. Training programmes con-
ducted for 18 schools selected nation-
wide about the need for establishment
of civic clubs in schools, which gave
birth to the existence of such clubs in
various schools across the country.
Radio talk shows also top the scores
of the council as Joof said, a total of
ffty four slots of radio talk-shows in
nine selected radio stations, namely;
Star FM, City Limits, FM-B, Janneh-
koto FM, Bwiam Radio, Soma Radio,
Paradise FM and Bansang Radio and
Unique FM- Basse among others all
on democracy and Good Governance.
PIEC
The Professional Independent
Electoral Commission (PIEC) as cited
earlier is another fundamental demo-
cratic institutions created and estab-
lished by the advent of the 22nd July
1994, Revolution in the country. The
importance of this institution cannot
be overemphasised as far as promo-
tion of democratic dispensation in
the country and beyond is concerned.
This particular institution, as illus-
trated earlier, came into existence
through decree 62 of 1995, when the
country was under transition from a
military rule to civilian one, overseen
by chairman of the Armed Forces Pro-
fessional Ruling Council, headed by
Jammeh.
The PIEC, as cited in section 6 of
the said decree, was meant to conduct
and supervise registration of voters
for all public elections and referenda.
Its also meant to demarcate electoral
boundaries for both national and lo-
cal government elections, to conduct
and supervise all public elections and
referenda to register political parties,
as they unfold and to ensure that the
dates, times and places of public elec-
tions and referendum are fxed and
that they are publicized and also elec-
tions are held accordingly.
The Commission is also assigned
to ensure that the candidates for elec-
tions make full declaration of their as-
sets at the time of nomination, to an-
nounce the results of all elections and
referenda. However, the Professional
Independent Electoral Commission
(PIEC) has an additional responsi-
bility of conducting elections of the
Speaker and a Deputy Speaker of the
National Assembly.
Distinguishing for PIEC
from IEC
It would be of interest to note that
the Provisional Independent Electoral
Commission (PIEC) gave birth to the
Independent Electoral Commission,
thanks to the source of their power
and circumstances that inspired them
at various stages of our growth from
transition to the Second Republic.
Decree 62 of 1995, section 6 therein
established the Provisional Indepen-
dent Electoral Commission, whereas
section 42 of the 1997 Constitution
established the Independent Electoral
Commission (IEC), hence made IEC a
permanent institution with mandates
of conducting all public elections in
the country.
This feature made the difference
between PIEC, IEC and what was ten-
able in the First Republic, when elec-
tions and conduct of election related
matters were controlled and overseen
by a particular Ministry with respon-
sibility to that effect; such mandates
106
were assigned to the Ministry of Local
Government.
Giving the importance of elections
in democratic dispensation of any giv-
en country across the globe, including
the Gambia, having a permanent elec-
toral institution like the IEC, tells a lot
about the Second Republics commit-
ment to democracy, good governance
and principles of the rule of law. IEC
like other public institutions, com-
prises of persons appointed in line
with provisions of the cited section 42
of the constitution.
Mission of the IEC
It has a mission to provide Gambi-
an people with an independent and ef-
fcient electoral process based on fair-
ness, transparency and trust, which is
supported by competent staff.
Its committed to the ideals of
maintaining a credible voter register
and carrying out continuous voter
education programme in the country.
The Independent Electoral Commis-
sion also shared a common vision for
evolving into an effcient and effec-
tive institution, which is adequately
staffed and resourced, responding to
the national need for full participa-
tion in all electoral processes, based
on a leadership that will promote har-
mony, democracy and progress.
Achievements
The Professional Independent
Electoral Commission (PIEC) now
Independent Electoral Commission
(IEC), like many other public insti-
tutions, registered signifcant suc-
cess stories since its inception. Such
achievements were exhibited in the
conduct of numerous elections includ-
ing Presidential, National Assembly,
Local Government and other relat-
ing bi-elections, elections of Speaker,
Deputy Speaker of the National As-
sembly among other public elections.
The Professional Independent
Electoral Commission conducted the
1996 presidential and National As-
sembly elections that ushered tran-
sition of the country from military
to civilian rule. Its successor the IEC
presided over the rest of the elections
from 2001 through 2006, 2011 and
will as well preside over the forthcom-
ing 2016 polls.
Equal employer
The Commission from its incep-
tion to date, has employed thousands
of Gambians and none in various ca-
pacities for either conduct of elections
or other administrative and technical
works, all meant to get the commis-
sion where it ought to be. In each of
the polls conducted in the country,
being presidential, national assem-
bly, local government and others, the
commission hires thousands of peo-
ple to handle various positions in all
regions of the country, either on con-
tract or permanent basis.
Such contract positions included
assistant returning offcers, presiding
offcers, assistant presiding offcers,
polling, and assistant polling offcers
among others, all engaged to ensure a
smooth democratic poll is conducted
in the country.
107
The Offce of the Ombuds-
man
The main rationale behind the es-
tablishment of the Ombudsman Offce
was not limited to having democratic
public administration and harmoniz-
es relationship between government
and citizens. This offce has the as-
signment to bridge the gap between
public offcials and citizens and to also
increase a deep sense of personal se-
curity by reducing arbitrary and other
unfair activities of the public offcials.
Section 5 (a) of the Ombudsman
Act, empowered the offce to deter-
mine the nature and extent of any en-
quiry or investigation referred to it by
any complainant. Its also empowered
to conduct searches on buildings,
premises or persons connected with
questions that needs to be addressed,
to access all types of evidence and in-
formation, summon witnesses and
make arrest as per contained in the
complaint lodge before it.
Achievements
The Offce of the Ombudsman,
also some scores to showcase as part
of its achievements over the years,
and such includes organisation of
press briefngs about the operations
and objectives of the offce. Radio and
TV programmes, printing and distri-
bution of brochures about the role of
the offce.
The Ombudsman is said to have
received a total of 402 complaints, 85
percent of which has been dealt with
accordingly. Out of the said 85 per-
cent, 80 percent relates to adminis-
trative matters and 5 percent relates
to human rights. Beside the offce
opened a branch in Basse, Upper Riv-
er Region of the country, with a view
to extend its operations to the rural
Gambia.
PAC/PEC at work
Further commenting on some of
the key democratic institutions es-
tablished by the second republic from
1994 to date, its prudent and beftting
to note and acknowledge the role and
fundamental importance of the Public
Account, Public Enterprise Commit-
tee (PAC/PEC) of the National As-
sembly.
The very institution that has
earned the respect and love of every
Gambian from all political divides of
the country and beyond, thanks to its
professional operations and conduct
of business towards achieving sus-
tainable development of the country.
Its the very institution that has placed
the Gambias democratic system on
the face of the world, to the extent
of other nations far and near coming
to study and solicit support from the
Committee for similar implementa-
tion of the system in their countries of
origin.
The PAC/PEC, as its commonly
called, has achieved a lot in terms of
democratic development of the coun-
try, through the fght against corrup-
tion and other corrupt related matters
in the country. It has also helped in the
reduction of wastage of public funds
and other public properties, contrary
to what was tenable in the frst Re-
public, wherein the concept of public
property attracts far less importance
as many viewed such properties as
belonging to nobody, hence no need
to have them protected and preserved
for the public good and welfare of the
public.
The PAC/PEC through its over
sight functions, has promoted and
strengthens the core objectives of the
22nd July 1994 revolution, based on
the principles of transparency, ac-
countability, probity and justice for
all. It has inspired many other legis-
lative acts, all meant to achieve sus-
tainable development of the country.
Such acts include the anti-corruption
act followed by establishment of the
Anti-corruption Commission, set up
purposely to weed all forms of cor-
ruption and corrupt related practices
in the country.
However, before going further
into the achievements registered by
the PAC/ PEC, it would be of inter-
est to make reference to its origin
and objectives of the institution that
made every progressive Gambian and
none alike proud and always keen to
follow its proceedings and activities
over the years. It is part and parcel of
parliamentary or National Assembly
procedures that, facilitates effective
and effcient scrutiny of government
operations. The very National Assem-
bly as cited earlier, came into exis-
tence through section 87 of the 1997
Constitution, a product of the July 22
1994 Revolution. This particular sec-
tion provided for the establishment
of the National Assembly, which has
effectively replaced the Parliamentary
system tenable in the frst Republic
(19965 -1994).
National Assembly plays a crucial
role in the promotion and develop-
ment of democracy, rule of law and
good governance in any given country
across the globe. As such, section 102
of the said constitution empowered
the National Assembly with detailed
provisions in the exercise of its legis-
lative powers.
The cited section provided among
others that, in addition to the powers
conferred on the National Assembly
by this constitution or any other law,
the National Assembly may; (a) re-
ceive and review reports on the activi-
ties of the government and such other
reports as are required to be made
in accordance with this constitution.
(b) Review and approve proposals
for raising of revenue by the govern-
ment. (c ) examined the accounts and
expenditure of the government and
other public bodies funded by public
money and the report by auditor gen-
eral thereon. (d)- Include in a bill a
proposal for referendum on issues of
national concern defned in the bill.
(e) Advice the president on any mat-
ter which lies within his/ her respon-
sibility.
PAC/PEC provisions
The provision that covered estab-
lishment and operations of the PAC/
PEC, falls under section 109 (1-3),
which stated among others that, the
National Assembly shall appoint the
following committees such as (a), a
Public Appointment Committee, (b)
Finance and Public Account Standing
Committee, (C ) Standing Committee
of Privileges, (d) Standing Commit-
tee on Defense and Security and such
other standing committees as it con-
sidered necessary for the exercise of
its function.
The preceding subsection two, fur-
ther empowered the legislative house,
to investigate or inquire into the ac-
tivities or administration of minis-
tries or departments of government
or such investigation or inquiry may
extend to making proposals for legis-
lation or (b) to investigate any matter
of public importance.
Three stated for the purpose of
108
effectively performing its functions,
each of the cited committees, shall
have all of the powers, rights and priv-
ileges as are vested in the High Court
at a trial in respect of (a) enforcing the
attendance of witnesses and examin-
ing them on oath, affrmation or oth-
erwise and (b) compelling the produc-
tion of documents among others.
From the above citations, its now
proper to have a brief highlight of the
achievements registered by the PAC/
PEC, both in terms of intangible and
tangible formats at both local and
international level. The Gambia as
small as we are, for the frst time in
the history of our development ef-
forts, received delegates from two sis-
ter countries of the Republic of Sierra
Leone and Guinea Bissau to study and
solicit support from the National As-
sembly PAC/PEC Committee.
The committee also received sup-
port from at both local and interna-
tional level through training and ca-
pacity building of its members, with
a view to enable them perform as ex-
pected of them. The committee con-
ducted series of training programmes
for its members either at local or in-
ternational level in various capaci-
ties and such has positively refected
on their performance over the years.
Such capacity building and trainings
were exhibited in the annual retreats
conducted for members of the com-
mittee before the commencement of
every sitting, which serves as an av-
enue for refreshing their minds and
better prepares them for the calls to
national duty.
This has brought many public in-
stitutions and companies on their toes
towards development of the country,
through scrutiny of their annual f-
nancial reports and activities, with all
sense of transparency and account-
ability, devoid of corruption.
Sittings of the committee becomes
the most attractive, interesting and
well attended one in the history of the
Gambia, thanks to their professional
conduct of business coated in the
strong desire for the development of
the country and her people.
The committees professional
business has no limit and knows no
friend as far as the interest, welfare
and development of the country is
concerned, as no sacred existed in its
operations, hence more public insti-
tutions upgrading their sense of re-
sponsibility and commitment to na-
tional development.
In essence, the PAC/PEC has ex-
tremely improved and impressed on
the image of the National Assembly
both within and outside of The Gam-
bia. It embraces all characteristics of
a model and vibrant legislative house,
expected in the 21st Century and has
complemented the objectives and
spirits of the 22nd July 1994 Revolu-
tion, headed by President Jammeh.
109
National security,
preserve nations integrity
and territory
I
nternal security is a prereq-
uisite in maintaining the sus-
tainability not only for the
state but economic power,
diplomacy, power projection, politi-
cal powers amongst others. It is also
the act of keeping peace within the
borders of a sovereign state or other
territories.
Generally by upholding the nation-
al law and defending against internal
security threats, national security
then is the ability to preserve the na-
tions physical integrity and territory;
to maintain its economic relations
with the rest of the world on reason-
able terms; to preserve its nature,
institution, and governance from dis-
ruption from outside and to control
its borders.
Therefore the peace and stabil-
ity, as well as the development of
The Gambia, can only be guaranteed
by the establishment of effcient and
dedicated security institutions that
will complement one another. This
has highlighted the importance of
national security and since taking
the mantle of leadership in the July
22nd Revolution of 1994, President
Jammeh and his government has suc-
ceeded in making this country zero
tolerant for crime.
It is an open secret that, the Gam-
bia Police Force (GPF) today has gone
through a lot of transformation since
inception in 1885, especially in the
last two decades. It has stimulated
from being used as machinery serv-
ing only colonialists interests, to a
force that provides to the Gambian
populace the very genuine purpose
of its formation. It is commanded by
an Inspector General of Police who is
assisted by a deputy, and the admin-
istrative and regional commissioners.
The service that security forces
rendered to the communities are not
limited to protecting life and prop-
erty, but to also maintain peace, en-
hance economic and social wellbeing
111
of the people as a whole, since no eco-
nomic and social development can be
achieved without peaceful environ-
ment. With the massive increment in
business opportunities for instance,
The Gambia could not fall short of
maximum security in place. There-
fore, the GPF are more determined
than ever before to execute their all
important mandate of protecting life
and property, maintenance of law and
order, prevention of crime and pros-
ecution of offenders.
These inroads in The Force did not
come without some transformative
actions on the part of the Jammeh
administration. Since the advent of
the Revolution, the Force underwent
a lot of transformation in order to
successfully fulfll their constitutional
mandate. New paradigms of policing
have been introduced. These among
others include community policing,
problem-oriented policing, and dem-
ocratic policing. Within the Kanfng
division alone, the police continue to
provide security to a population of
383,785 in the regions 17 wards.
The demographic trends emanat-
ing from the 2013 Population Census
have qualifed the region as the most
densely populated in the country. This
is normally a turbulent economic and
social challenge, leading to criminal
activities such as money laundering,
cyber crime, theft, human traffck-
ing, drug-traffcking and drug abuse,
but the police managed to combat all
those. Moreover, the Jammeh admin-
istration has managed to transform
the Force into a more professional
one. This could be noticed in all disci-
plines. Starting with human resource
development, from 1994 to date, a
signifcant number of police offcers
have their capacities upgraded. The
president has highly prioritised secu-
rity services and that is why Police are
able to maintain the peace and stabil-
ity in this country. You will also notice
that a lot of police offcers have been
trained within and outside the sub-
region.
The advent of the University of the
Gambia has also helped them a lot.
Now GPF have a lot of offcers who are
Bachelor degree holders in various
felds of studies. They are helping in
their policy analysis and procurement
jobs, among others. Presently the GPF
have over 30 University graduates in
the Force.
With support and guidance from
Professor Jammeh, GPF was able to
create a lot of units to enhance their
work and ensure quality service de-
livery. The Force registered a lot of
achievements, key among them are
the creation of the Policy Implemen-
tation Unit, Complaints and Disci-
pline Unit, Child Welfare Unit, Hu-
man Rights Unit, Press and Public
Relations Unit, Audit and Inspection
Unit, Peacekeeping Department,
Community Policing Unit, the PIU,
amongst several others.
With the support from President
112
Jammeh, GPF have built a lot of po-
lice stations, brand new vehicles for
all the stations across the country and
also have staff buses, among many
other development projects. Before
Jammeh took over power, there were
police stations in only KMC, Banjul,
Bakau and Kairaba, but today every
major town or village across the coun-
try has either a police station or a po-
lice post; this is a landmark achieve-
ment because it helps to make police
services closer to communities. Fur-
ther to that the president has also not
lost sight of the fact that there is the
need for the police to stay in a very
conducive environment both during
and after work. And in this area too,
GPF has registered a lot of successes.
Major police stations were built in Ba-
koteh, Sibanor, Bureng, and Kanifng.
The government continues to sup-
port the security forces to root out
criminals within society. In this re-
gard, our law enforcement agents
will be assisted by the long arm of our
justice system. Criminals can run but
they would not be able to hide any-
where in this country. Therefore, all
hands must be on deck in the fght
against crime and criminal tenden-
cies. Furthermore, over thirty satellite
posts have been opened countrywide
from January 2013 to date. A new fo-
rensic laboratory to help in the detec-
tion of crime was also recently com-
missioned at the police headquarters
in Banjul.
With regards to correctional insti-
tutions, plans are underway to reno-
vate all the prisons as well as build
a new maximum security prison for
dangerous criminals. The Gambia Po-
lice Force dated as far back as over 100
years, had all along been using the old
policing method but under the second
Republic, there has been tremendous
changes including the Force being a
key player in African peacekeeping
missions, which has been recognised
by the international community.
African solidarity is a major aspect
of Gambias foreign policy and gov-
ernment will pursue all initiatives to
minimise confict on the continent.
Its no secret that since 1994, The
Gambia, through Gambia Armed
Forces has been participating in a
range of peacekeeping operations,
from the wood land of Burma, the
mountainous regions of Nepal, the
forest region of Congo, Burundi to
Angola, the sand storms of Darfur,
Chad; the rainy region of Liberia, Ivo-
ry Coast, Guinea Bissau, and Sierra
Leone and to the mercurial region of
Eritrea and Ethiopia.
NDEA triumph
Combating drugs is one of the
hardest jobs one can undertake in
modern generation. Drug abuse and
traffcking are problematic issues not
only within the sub-region alone but
113
the world in general. The West Africa
sub-region has recently been targeted
for the production and transit of drugs
meant for local and western markets.
This is why The Gambia government
has never been complacent to address
the situation, in making the smiling
coast a drug free country.
Drugs are a global problem which
requires global solutions. In that re-
gard, The Gambia government under
the leadership of Professor Jammeh,
has set up an anti-narcotic agency, the
National Drug Enforcement Agency,
(NDEA). Gambian authorities have
declared war on this global menace
to ensure that the country is free from
all forms of drugs. The NDEA did not
register success alone; it was able to
achieve, it thanks to the collaboration
of the entire sister security services,
namely the Gambia Armed Forces,
the Police Intervention Unit, the
Gambia Police Force, the National
Intelligence Agency, and the Gambia
Immigration Department. The fght
should be everybodys business; be
it a narcotics, police offcer and ev-
ery citizen of the Gambia; this way no
crime will go undetected in our com-
munities.
The exercise is a pointer that the
NDEA is fulflling its mandate as pre-
scribed in the Drug Control Act and
its subsequent amendments. The
drugs destroyed were seized from
Gambians as well as foreigners in the
country. It is evident that drugs con-
tinue to pose a threat to our society.
Not only the number of drug users
and traffckers increase on a daily ba-
sis, but their methods of concealment
and traffcking are also getting more
sophisticated each day. However,
since the inception of the NDEA, drug
cases are successfully dealt with in
courts, it becomes mandatory on the
part of the Agency to show the public
the fnal destiny of these public drug
destruction exercises. The NDEA reg-
istered success in this fght and made
signifcant reductions in the demand
and supply chain. March 4th 2013,
Gambian authorities apprehended
and subsequently destroyed two
tons of cocaine, with a street value
of over US$1B, bound for Europe. It
was seized in June 2010 by person-
nel of the National Drug Enforce-
ment Agency in collaboration with the
United Kingdoms Serious Organised
Crime Agency (SOCA).
The operatives of the NDEA and
their partners in June 2010 success-
fully made one of the biggest drug
seizures stored in a warehouse in
Bonto at the Baobab Island in Kuloro,
Kombo East. The breakthrough is the
biggest in Gambian history when they
unearthed the cocaine as part of the
governments zero tolerance to drug
peddling in the country. In addition
to the huge haul of drugs, the NDEA
operatives also seized large quanti-
ties of cash and arms. The men were
subsequently arraigned at the Banjul
Magistrates Court, where they were
convicted and sentenced accordingly.
That operation has since emboldened
the Agency to step up its strategies
and implement President Jammehs
zero tolerance policy on drug trade in
The Gambia.
The Bonto drug seizure was fol-
lowed by a string of other major oper-
ations including the seizure in August
2010 of over a ton of Cannabis sativa
in Foni, West Coast Region; as well
as the arrest in September 2012 of a
32-year-old Nigerian who had swal-
lowed 72 pellets of cocaine before his
departure from Nigeria, unaware that
he was under the radar of the Gam-
bias narcotics agency. These among
other operations have spoken of the
high security mechanism put in place
by the government to make the coun-
try a drug-free nation, given the dev-
astation caused by drugs and drug-re-
lated problems around the world. The
stringent mechanisms put in place are
anchored on the fact that drug activi-
ties are inimical to not only develop-
114
ment, but also peace and stability.
In November 2010, offcials of the
NDEA destroyed one hundred and
thirteen kilogramms, 255 grams of
cannabis sativa, and 280 grams of
cocaine were destroyed. In July 2012,
offcials also destroyed over 3 tons of
illicit drugs at a public burning ex-
ercise at the Old Cape Point Road in
Bakau. The exercise saw the burning
of 3 tons, 15kg and 47 grams of Can-
nabis sativa; 8kg, 2 grams of cocaine
and 20 grams of heroin respectively.
The drug destruction exercise is his-
toric because it once again showed
that the Gambia government and the
NDEA are serious about their fght
against drugs as envisaged by Presi-
dent Jammeh, when he championed
the zero-tolerance on drugs and cor-
ruption.
In a similar development in De-
cember 27 2013, anti-narcotic agents
destroyed over one ton of illicit drugs
in a public burning exercise held at
the Old Cape Point Road in Bakau.
The combined drugs burnt were a ton
and 745kg of Cannabis Sativa; 3kg and
300g of cocaine; 4kg of heroin and
117g and 110mg of hashish. This drugs
destroyed were seized from Gambians
and non-Gambians, who according to
offcials, were prosecuted in narcotics
court.
The recent destruction of one bil-
lion US Dollars worth of cocaine
should send a strong signal to crimi-
nal gangs and their collaborators that
drug traffcking and its associated vic-
es will not be condoned in this coun-
try.
Gambia Immigration De-
partment and the new visa
system
In 2008 a new biometric visa sys-
tem, the latest acquired technology
and facility intended to enhance the
quality of service and security at the
Banjul International Airport, was
launched by President Jammeh. The
machine has the technology to au-
thenticate the identities of travelling
visa holders, thereby discouraging
identity theft, all geared towards hav-
ing the best for the Gambia. The Gam-
bia is developing at a very fast trend,
because of the peace and security.
Gambians should be proud of the bio-
metric visa system, because in Africa,
there are diamond and oil producing
countries that do not have the tech-
nology. The Gambia has it and by the
time they have this system, we would
have moved to something higher. This
biometric system is a precursor of
what is to come next in our continu-
ous march towards meeting the aims
and aspirations of Vision 2020, the
Millennium Development Goals and
the Silicon Valley.
The Biometric Project, the Immi-
gration Section of the airport has been
ftted with 13 modern and customised
computer terminals and related ac-
cessories. With this system, offcers
of the Immigration Department at
the airport, could easily isolate and
identify citizens from other nationals
entering and leaving the country. The
project also provides for the issuance
of Gambian visas to visitors wishing
to enter The Gambia. These visas can
be issued in some Gambian embassies
abroad with a direct link in Banjul.
The system can flter any informa-
tion or person coming to The Gambia,
and can ensure proper records of all
people arriving in and departing from
the country. The possibility of identity
fraud is rather unlikely and it can cap-
ture and store the identities of people
for a lifetime.
Following the events of 9/11 in
the US, efforts at tightening security
at international airports intensifed
around the world. Industry leaders
and technology experts continued ef-
forts in fne-tuning procedures and
perfecting the technology that go to
give users of airports and citizens
the ultimate assurance of security.
One area conspicuously identifed for
strengthening within the airport se-
curity system was immigration and
passport control.
The system is a smart and accurate
method of controlling and monitoring
the issuance of visa to migrants enter-
ing another state with visa fees paid.
This biometric system in Banjul
is the latest Immigration controlling
system of recording movement of
persons, capturing their correct iden-
tity and data information without im-
posters, wanted criminals or a person
escaping from the country since the
system is linked internationally.
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