By: Kebba AF Touray
Officials of the Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA) have disclosed before members of FPAC that they have processed and awarded Special Investment Certificates (SICs) estimated to have generated US$121,367,086 or approximately over seven billion, five hundred and two million dalasi.
The Agency reported this in their 2020 report which they presented to members of the Finance and Public Accounts Committee (FPAC) of the National Assembly for scrutiny, consideration and adoption.
According to GIEPA officials, the Agency was able to process a record number of SIC applications in October 2020, leading to the award of nineteen qualifying companies by the Investment Incentives Award Committee, a multi-stakeholder committee. They added that the companies were categorized under five priority sectors as per Schedule II of the GIEPA 2015 Act, namely agriculture (banana plantation, poultry, rice production); tourism (development of four and five star hotels); fisheries (fish processing); manufacturing (wheat flour processing; steel and iron; woven bags; sofa and furniture making; soap making; sugar re-bagging; purified water production, and other services such as medical and ICT services.
“The awarded Investment Certificates in 2020 is estimated to create planned investments and employment of $121,367,086 and 2,101 people respectively over the next five to eight years,” the GIEPA officials reported.
As explained by them, some of the companies which were awarded SICs with estimated investment and employment include but not limited to the following:
Egyptian Africa International Investment holding Ltd: The Medical Hospital was issued a five year SIC and the poultry and large animal project was issued eight years with a projected investment of USD 5,000,000 and the employment of one hundred (100) staff;
Swami India International Limited: The project uses clean agricultural technology and best practices that protects the environment from climate change posed by the unsustainable use of natural resources. The company was issued with an eight year SIC in October 2020 with a projected investment of USD 2,000,000 and the employment of forty staff.
Zeina Investment Company Ltd: The project is in Central River Region and was issued an eight-year Special Investment Certificate in October 2020, with a projected investment of USD 28,000,000 and the employment of one hundred and twenty staff.
Ribat General Trading & Services Company Limited: The company was registered as a farming and agro-processing company dedicated to rice cultivation and rice related products. The company is in Central River Region and was issued with an eight year SIC in October 2020, with a projected investment of USD 30,000,000 and the employment of eighty people directly;
Rural Gambia Ltd: The project is mainly in the activity of poultry (eggs and chicken) and piggery farming. The company is in Kanuma village in the North Bank Region and was issued with an eight-year SIC in 2020, with a projected investment of USD 250,000 and the employment of fifteen people directly;
Safe Bee limited: The project was issued a five year Special Investment Certificate with an estimated investment value of USD1,206, 650 and seventy jobs to be created. The vision of the company is to become the most environmentally friendly leading manufacturer of polypropylene woven bags in West Africa.
Sofax Company Limited: The project was issued a five year Special Investment Certificate with an estimated investment of USD500,000 and jobs for two hundred staff. The company’s core strength lies in the production of high quality finished furniture with high manpower development to ensure efficiency and effectiveness.
SRN Steels Limited: The company was issued a Special Investment Certificate with a planned investment of USD744,308 with ninety-six job openings and aims to contribute to the country in terms of import reduction and technology transfer.
Little Star Gambia Limited: The Project is a specialized soap factory and was issued a five year Special Investment Certificate with an investment value of USD1,000,000 and a proposed job openings for forty-seven people. The company is under operation with a current capacity of 2,000 packets of soaps daily, with a minimum of 36 bars per packet;
Gambia Milling Corporation (GMC): The project is a flour mill and the company was awarded with a Special Investment Certificate in 2013 which expired in 2018. An expansion plan was submitted by the company which was approved with an estimated investment value of USD 22,400,000 and job openings for seventy-six Gambians.
