By Nelson Manneh
Ebrima Sillah, the Minister of Transport, Works and Infrastructure has warned business owners that displayed goods along pedestrian pathways, particularly on the Bundung highway.
Minister Sillah made this warning on Saturday 25 January 2025, as he commenced his routine inspection of ongoing road projects within the Kanifing Municipality, West Coast Region, and other parts of the country.
“Along the Bundung highway, I have observed that business owners have displayed their goods on pedestrian pathways forcing people to work on the main road where vehicles ply. This is undone, and we will engage the task force of the Gambia Police Force to remove them,” he said.
Minister Sillah also visited the Coastal Road where the construction has just begun.
“The government is aware of the bad nature of this road and that is why it is captured as part of the ongoing OIC road projects and it will be constructed as well,” Sillah said.
From Coastal Road, the Minister and his team visited Farato-Bojang Kunda road, and Sanyang and Gunjur village roads that lead to the beach as well.
In all the ongoing projects visited, it was observed that work was in progress. In some sites, the work was observed to be slow but in other sites, the work was progressive.
Ousman Sanyang, the Managing Director of the National Roads Authority (NRA), said he was impressed with the ongoing works.
“We all know how difficult road construction is. In some places, the contractors started their work by demolishing structures and relocating others before starting their work. This has consumed part of their time,” he said.
Sanyang reported that some of the ongoing projects are part of the OIC’s 50 kilometer roads project while other roads are fully funded by the government.
Mariama Fadera, a fish monger at the Gunjur beach, said if the ongoing road construction is completed, it will ease their movement from the beach to the markets within the Kanifing Municipality.
“Most of us fishmongers sell our products either at the Serrekunda or Bakoteh market. Previously, it took us a whole day to go and sell our fish and come back, because of the bad condition of the road. Others will take fish to Bakoteh late in the evening and return the following day to sell them, and this is time-consuming. But if this road is ready, that will be a thing of the past,” she noted.
Features of the Roads under construction:
Lot 5 project: The contracted company is Bologel Limited, a Gambian-owned construction company, with the National Roads Authority (NRA) as the supervisor. The project is a double-surface dressing road with two lanes of carriage, paved shoulders, sidewalks, and parking space including streetlights and drainage facilities. This project is divided into five roads namely: Farato Bojang Kunda to Bafuloto which is four kilometers. This road is 72% complete; Wellingara-Kunkujang Keitaya is a 4.2-kilometer road project which is 68% complete; Wellingara to Abuko Abattoir is a 4-kilometer road which is just 21% ready; Lamin -Babylon-Makumbaya is a six-kilometer road stretch and is 68% complete while the Tabokoto-Abuko-Banjulinding road is 3.7 kilometers and is 49% ready. The overall progress of the project is 50% ready.
Lot 6 project in the West Coast Region: This project is divided into three road sections with a total length of twenty-eight kilometers.
Section one comprises the Youna -Jambur-Jalangbang-Brikama stretch which is 13.9 kilometers. Section two connects Jambur-Baniaka-Kunkujang and Tujereng and is eleven kilometers long. Section three stretches from Old Yundum to Tawto and Jabang and this is 3.2 kilometers long. The contractor is actively working on Section One and is currently on the construction of the culvert, but the overall progress is 10% complete.
Lot 9 Sanyang (Hawba) Road Project: This road project which goes to Sanyang seaside, is 4.5 kilometers long and is contracted to Zen Construction and Trading Company, a Gambian-owned company. The project is a concrete carriageway with a sidewalk and drainage facilities including an Irish crossing. The project is 45% ready.
Lot 8 project in Gunjur starts from the Brusubi-Kartong Highway to the Gunjur seaside and branches to the Gunjur Sheikh Ahmad Futi Grand Mosque. This 4.5km road project is contracted to Green Vision International, a Gambian-owned Construction Company, but the consultant and supervisor is the National Roads Authority (NRA).
The contractor is currently applying concrete and has covered 17 kilometers already, but the overall progress is 75% complete.
