By Biran Gaye
For 55 days in 2023, a teacher and youth advocate from Jokadu District in The Gambia’s North Bank Region endured a journey few would survive—a desperate bid for education that led him down the perilous “back way” migration route through Mali, Algeria, Tunisia, and beyond.
Now safely home, Modou Ceesay is using his story to warn others and advocate for better opportunities for Gambian youth.
A dream deferred by hardship
Ceesay’s journey began not with dreams of Europe, but of university.
“Before going, I wanted to go to the University of the Gambia,” he recalls, “but I did not have the financial muscles to sponsor my education.”
Attempts to secure fully-funded scholarships abroad failed, leaving him desperate.
“Knowing my background that I cannot really pay for my education, I decided to try my luck through the back way,” he told Foroyaa on Tuesday, September 9.
A route marked by danger
His overland route took him from The Gambia to Mali, then through Algeria, Tunisia, and Niger, and on to Benin, Togo, Burkina Faso, and back again. Along the way, Ceesay faced detention, torture, and hunger. He was held without food or water for days in Algerian and Tunisian detention centers, and nearly died of starvation in the Sahara Desert.
“At one point, I told my friends I could not continue, gave them my details, and asked them to tell my family I didn’t make it,” he remembers. “But they refused to leave me, gave me medicine and a little food. I was unconscious until I managed to recover and continue the journey.”
He recounted being left behind by a bus at a border, captured at gunpoint by soldiers, and beaten before being released.
“We were also ambushed by armed men who demanded ransom, tortured us, and then left us,” he said. Witnessing others suffer and die along the way left scars that will never fade.
Regret and a voluntary return
The despondent migrant’s journey ended not in Europe, but in a moment of clarity among thousands of suffering migrants.
“I regretted embarking on the journey—not because I failed, but because I saw so many people suffering. Had I had opportunities at home, it wouldn’t have gone like this,” he stresses.
With swollen feet and failing health, he opted for voluntary return, or risked being arrested.
“I was transported from one prison to another by Algerian authorities; then dumped 30 kilometers from the Niger border. I walked to Niger and took a bus back to Gambia,” recounts the provincial teacher.
A changed perspective and a renewed mission
Now back in The Gambia, Ceesay says his experience has transformed him.
“Europe is not what we think it is. Even if I had a free visa now, I am done with it. I love my country more, and I know it is better to stay than to go the back way.”
He continues to struggle to pay for university but remains determined: “I will never give up because I have suffered along the journey, and it taught me a lot. I am hopeful for my future here, despite the challenges.”
Advocacy and a call for change
He said he now works with a returnee-run anti-migration network, sharing his story through nationwide campaigns, radio programs, and youth outreach, including football events.
“We sensitise people, help reintegrate migrants, and give psychosocial support. But we lack the capacity to provide financial aid,” says Ceesay.
He laments the lack of support from government and institutions, despite repeated appeals, and calls on the Ministry of Higher Education to assist returnees and potential migrants. “Opportunities and empowerment for young people are needed—real jobs, business support, and direct educational aid—so the back way is not seen as the only solution,” he advocates.
A message to the youth
Ceesay’s advice is clear: “Life back there is not the solution. The suffering you will face—many people die there. The grass is not greener on the other side, and the sea doesn’t deserve to swallow our dreams. Explore local opportunities, be patient, and remember that nothing comes easily. There is no place better than The Gambia.”
His journey, marked by hardship and hope, now fuels his mission to keep others from making the same perilous choice.
