By Nelson Manneh
Majula Colley and her family are faced with the proboem of saltwater intrusion which has been a daily struggle for survival. Born and raised in a farming family in Bwiam, Foni Kansala District, she married a farmer like herself. Together, they have relied on their harvests to feed their children.
“Saltwater intrusion contaminate our farmlands, threatening our livelihoods and food security as we harvest less compared to how it used to be ten years ago. The encroachment of the sea is causing erosion, flooding, and sometimes human behaviors. Some of us heavily rely on rain-fed agriculture. This situation is exacerbated by factors like mangrove cutting, which weakens coastal defenses and the lack of resources and decision-making power,” she said.
The intrusion of saline water has transformed once-productive rice paddies into nearly barren plots. “Saline water intrusion contaminates freshwater sources and reduces the productivity of rice paddies in our community; this directly threatens food security for women and their families. Many of us depend on agriculture for our livelihoods. The loss of farmland due to sea level rise and saltwater intrusion forces us to seek alternative income sources, often with limited success,” Ms. Colley said.
In nearby Kalagi Village, Mariama Sanyang has seen half of the rice-growing land disappear beneath the rising tide. “Farming to feed my family and raise my children can only be possible for me and other women in areas where farmlands for rice cultivation are available, in our community today, saltwater has over taken and occupied half of the available space for rice cultivation,” she said.
Ms. Sanyang’s burden is echoed across the region, falling hardest on women and young people, who often lack alternatives. “Things are different now,” she said. “The rains used to come in plenty. People would work and have a good harvest. Now, we work hard but we don’t get as much rice as we used to.”
Traditionally, women tend rice fields while men grow groundnuts. But in Foni Jarol, the women’s control over their land is slipping. “These women are pushed out and they don’t have many other livelihoods to turn to like men,” said Mustapha Jarju, 30, from a youth-led organization in the district. “It pushes them into poverty. They are very vulnerable.”
Mr. Jarju advocates for community gardens as a lifeline. “It’s our tomorrow, government should establish more gardens in Foni. This will help us in so many areas because it will help us stay healthy and to be able to buy small things for our children and even pay school fees for their children.”
In Foni Bintang Karanai, Jarra Colley recalls the moment she realized her harvest was no longer enough. “Last year’s our harvest only lasted for about three months before I and my family alone had to do what in Foni would once have been unthinkable: buy imported rice from shops. Twenty years ago none of us buy imported rice from shops. We eat what we grow, we survive from our sweat,” she said.
Almamo Colley, 63, remembers when buying rice meant hunger was knocking at the door. “In this community there was a time when, if they saw you buy rice from the shop, they would know there was hunger in your house. Now, it’s the order of the day. I don’t think you will see anyone in this community now who will say: I can farm enough rice to feed my family for longer than six months,” he said.
The pattern stretches beyond Foni, reaching Kombo East. One farmer explained, “If we allow saltwater to reach certain levels within the riverbanks, it will decrease rice cultivation in the country and put food security at risk.”
In Pirang Village, on the estuary of the Gambia River, Maimuna Ceesay’s farm tells a similar story. “We have no one to help us, a tide of salt is killing our rice fields,” she said. Erosion has let the sea claim rivers that were once freshwater. On her one-hectare farm, she used to harvest 15 bags of rice; last season she collected fewer than three. “This saltwater intrusion is severely crippling our rice production. It was devastating for me,” she said.
Across the country, farmers watch helplessly as saltwater and rising seas eat away at fertile land. Deforestation, erratic rainfall, and stronger tides strip communities of the rice they have long relied on. For families whose lives revolve around planting, harvesting, and selling rice, the creeping saltwater is not just a threat to crops—it is a threat to survival itself.
