During a virtual extraordinary session held on Saturday, August 12, the ECOWAS parliament selected Honourable Touma Njai, a parliamentarian from Gambia, to be part of a mediation committee tasked with visiting Niger to resolve the current political crisis and find a sustainable solution.

The committee to be headed by Hon. Ahmed Idris Wase, 1st Deputy Speaker of the Parliament, includes Memounatou Ibrahima, 3rd Deputy Speaker; Adja Satu Camara Pinto, 4th Deputy Speaker; Edwin Melvin Snowe Jr., Liberia; Fatoumatta Njai, The Gambia; Woraye Sarr, Senegal; Veronick Kadie Sesay, Sierra Leone; Mohamed Ali Ndume, Nigeria; Emmanuel Kwasi Bedzrah, Ghana; Herve Aka, Cote d’Ivoire; Orlando Pereira Dias, Cabo Verde; and Nassirou Bako Arifari, Benin.

The Committee is also expecting to meet Bola Tinubu, Chair of the Ecowas Authority, before their subsequent visit to Niger.
The session comes barely two days after the Ecowas leaders called for the activation of the Ecowas standby force for deployment to Niger to restore constitutional order, following the overthrow of President Mohamed Bazoum by the Presidential Guards led by Abdourahmane Tchiani on 26th July.

During long hours of discussion, the Ecowas Parliamentarians were divided over the decision to use military intervention in Niger. Most of them suggest diplomacy over military intervention, and call for ease of sanctions, as it is the people who are suffering. They suggest the sanctions should be limited to the junta.

Hon. Fatoumatta Njai of The Gambia condemned the military coup but was quick to call for a closer look at the root causes of the coups in the sub-region. Many have blamed the coups on the high cost of living and unemployment among others as a result of bad governance.

Hon Idris Wase of Nigeria and first deputy speaker of the Ecowas Parliament believes any war in Niger will have a negative impact on Nigeria, which shares a 1,600-kilometre-long border with Niger.

“The use of military force has never solved any problem hence dialogue should be explored,” added Mohammed Karbeer Garba, second deputy Speaker of the Community Parliament.

As part of the sanctions, Nigeria has cut off electricity supply to Niger, which Ali Ndume, a member of the Parliament from Nigeria condemned, adding that any military deployment to Niger by Nigeria without parliamentary approval is against the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Honourable Salou Djibo from Niger stressed using dialogue, as he informed the session that the sanctions imposed on his country are already taking its toll on the ordinary Nigeriens.

Hon. Adebayo Balogun has different views from his colleagues. He said there is a difference between intervening militarily to dislodge a military junta and declaring war on a country. For him, Ecowas is simply intervening against the coup leaders from taking power.

Billay Tunkara of The Gambia said there is a need for a bold step to bring an end to military coups in the sub-region. He supports the use of force if all dialogue fails.

The junta in Niger is showing no sign of compromise, as it continues to snub envoys on the crisis. Tchiani has already formed a new government led by Prime Minister Ali Mahamane Lamine Zeine, Niger’s former Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs, and resident representative of the African Development Bank in Chad, Ivory Coast and Gabon.

By: Dawda Baldeh

Over the years, the port of Banjul has been challenged on modernization and expansion, and its inability to reliably manage the increase in sea traffic. This has led to vessels which were meant for The Gambia to be diverted to other countries, including neighboring Senegal, to avoid delay in offloading containers.

The port’s main business is the container shipping line, and the terminals are reportedly constricted. This means that the port cannot handle any further increase in sea traffic as it has already been struggling to maintain existing volumes.

Importers and exporters over the years have expressed concerns about doing business in The Gambia, as the limitations have only worsened the high cost of doing any business in this area.

The government has granted approval for the Public Private Partnership (PPP) agreement between The Gambia Ports Authority (GPA) and Grupo Rodman of Spain for the design, construction, rehabilitation, operation, maintenance and hand back of the Banjul Shipyard (BSY) facility.

In a GPA press statement, the process of the expansion of the Banjul Shipyard premises will include “the relocation of the Gambia Navy Command Centre, and part of the Banjul Fisheries Jetty administrative area, in order to derive maximum value from the investment.”

GPA also highlighted that the government decision is based, inter alia, on the need for the restructuring and further development of the Banjul Shipyard in order to enhance the sustainable operation and maintenance of the ferries fleet, GPA harbor craft, industrial fishing vessels and leisure craft.

The press statement revealed that the transaction was procured through an international competitive bidding on September 2022, through which Grupo Rodman was evaluated as the “most responsive bidder.”

GPA believes this will be substantially beneficial for the country and the shipyard due to the existence of a potential market for the ship repair facility, ship building, and ancillary services. It is also believed that this expansion and modernization will enhance knowledge and skills transfer as well as improve opportunities for job creation. Having been established as a subsidiary of GPA in 1924, the shipyard’s main objectives are to provide marine and industrial services.

“The agreement is to rehabilitate, redevelop and operate the Banjul Shipyard under a PPP arrangement where the investor will be required to finance, design, construct and operate the facility at a minimum capacity to maintain and repair (dry dock) vessels up to 1,000 gross tones, a secondary facility for a travel lift of up to 70  tones, new cranes of up to 25 tons lifting capacity, new mooring and repairing dock with 4 meter draft, new shed of 2000 m² and full modern workshop facilities for marine, diving, mechanical, machining, electrical and carpentry,” the GPA statement ended.

By: Seringe ST Touray

Uncertainty continues to reign as Abdourahmane Tchiani, leader of the military coup in Niger, remains steadfast in defiance of pressures from surrounding West African states and from some other parts of the world, to bring an end to his insurrection, and to release and reinstate the country’s ousted President.

In accordance with this morning’s latest updates from France 24, the junta announced the appointments of twenty-one ministers “on national television on Wednesday night.” The statements by the military group tread on the heels of Tchiani’s desperate push to solidify his stance as leader of a new government since he staged his military coup to put an end to what he called “deteriorating security and economic hardship” which inundated Niger and thrust its people into difficult livelihoods.

Following Tchiani’s drastic yet momentous move to appoint a new cabinet, the ECOWAS has begun an emergency summit today on the concerning developments in Niger. The closed door meeting, held in the Nigerian capital of Abuja, hosts more than twenty government ministers, including defense and interior ministers, to engage in talks on the way forward. Since the junta’s dismissal of calls for it to step down, many are devoid of knowledge about any immediate strategy to undo the government overthrow.

In addition to defying calls to reinstate Niger’s deposed Mohamed Bazoum, the junta has further refused calls to release Bazoum from detainment – a move dubbed “deplorable” by the United Nations chief on Wednesday only moments prior to the junta’s announcement of its new cabinet appointments.

By: Muhammed Lamin Drammeh

Sheriff ML Gomez, former Minister of Interior in the Gambian government, has said the Gambia should partake in a military intervention in Niger to reinstate democracy if the West African regional bloc ECOWAS heads of state approved, noting that juntas should remain in barracks.

Gomez, who served as a state minister under President Yahya Jammeh, told The Fatu Network that The Gambia should participate in a military operation in Niger if all diplomatic attempts to restore order and reinstate ousted President Muhammed Bazoum by ECOWAS are unsuccessful.

“I think the Gambia should take part. Besides, the Gambia may not have all the choices on its own for so many reasons, that is why I think the Gambia should take part and stand tall with all the other countries in the subregion to stamp out this trend of reversing democracy by people in uniform believing that they have a solution. The place for men in uniform is in the barracks,” the former Gambian interior minister said.

According to him, Gambia’s regional obligation and the presence of ECOMIG forces in the country are reasons why it should participate in any military operation initiated by the ECOWAS to force junta leaders to surrender power to civilian governments.

However, he explained that military intervention should only come into play if diplomatic negotiations for the juntas to reinstate the ousted president did not go through, explaining that military intervention is not in the best interest of ECOWAS in Niger.

“The idea should be to explore all options on the table and then push them to the limit. When every option failed, that will be the right time to highlight military options,” he said.

With the rise of military coup d’état in West Africa, Gomez said the regional heads of state should look into the rationale behind coups in the region to put an end to them in the region.

The heads of state of ECOWAS had their second emergency summit today, August 10 in Abuja, Nigeria regarding the current political crisis in Niger. The leaders still have diplomatic means on the table, with military intervention still available on the table as well.

Today, the Junta’s in Niger appointed cabinet members, showing no sign of relinquishing power.

By: Alieu Jallow

The percentage of Gambian youths engaged in small-scale fishing is low. The sector is dominated by adults, the majority of whom are Senegalese who reside in the urban areas. With the low count of youths we have in this sector, many are still fleeing due to inadequate support from the fisheries department.

Youths in Tanji’s fishing landing site therefore called on the government and President Adama Barrow to support them by providing fishing boats to assist them.

The most recent employment data from The Gambia Bureau of Statistics (GBoS) indicates that the youth unemployment rate increased to 41.5% back in 2018. The lack of gainful employment opportunities for young people in The Gambia has led to increases in crime as well as irregular migration.

As part of his 2021 presidential campaign agenda, President Barrow outlined that his government would support young people in the fishing industry with $50 million worth of fishing boats and storage facilities to help further the initiatives of many of our youths.

Fast forward to 2023, the youths engaged in fishing at Tanji are drawing attention to what has so far been unfulfilled promises by the Barrow government as unemployment and frustration escalates among the youths themselves.

In conveying his frustration, Mamodou Jallow, one of the youths working at the site in Tanji, also expressed that while youths’ willingness to work and earn a decent living is still strong, they are tied to a corner. Mamoudou, who is also a migrant returnee, highlights that some Gambian youths are forced to embark on the irregular migration route due to the lack of sustainable employment opportunities.

“Our earnings here are not satisfactory, so this why the boys embark on the back way journey. I am a deportee since 2020 and if I still have the opportunity to go, I will go because the situation is not encouraging.”

On his part, Omar Jallow, known as the youth ambassador at the seaside, reaffirms that the young people at the site cannot work due to the lack of fishing boats: “we are determined and willing to work thus we are calling on the government to help us with a fishing boat either in the form of grant or loan so we could work to deter us from engaging in illegal means to get cash.”

Many times, the youths are seen hanging around the seaside trying to make a decent living. However, they decry the difficult circumstances which have limited their ability to thrive.

By: Sainabou Gassama

According to the most recent survey conducted by the government of The Gambia and development partners, which includes the Gambia Bureau of Statistics (GBoS), the findings indicate that the rate of unemployment among young people is three times higher than that of adults. Moreover, a considerable number of children aged between 5 and 17 are engaged in child labour.

Moreover, according to the findings, youth are facing challenges in entering the labour market and accessing quality jobs.

“In addition, the research shows that young people are experiencing difficulties when it comes to entering the job market and securing high-quality employment opportunities.

“The youth’s labour force participation rate is around fifteen points lower than that of the adults (38.1% compared to 53.5%). The combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force (LU3) reaches 38.6 per cent.

“Furthermore, almost half of the youths are underutilized, (LU4) stands at 48.6 per cent against 30.6 per cent among adults. On average, six in ten youth work as self-employed and are mainly engaged in informal employment (84.0%).

“Similar to the adult population, some gender disparities persist, young women are worse off than young males. Moreover, the survey reveals that 45.3 per cent of the youth are neither in employment nor in education or training.”

The survey further revealed that child labour is more prevalent in rural areas for both boys and girls. In fact, the percentage of children engaged in child labour in rural areas is almost four times higher (38.2%) than in urban areas (10.3%). Additionally, almost half of the children in Mansakonko, Kuntaur, and Janjanbureh are involved in child labour.

“More than one-third of the children aged 5-14 (36.3%) are in child labour and mainly perform in agricultural activities. While the rate reaches 46.7% among children aged 15-17.

“The survey assesses the impact of work on children’s education. On average, 23.0 per cent of children aged 5-14 years work, the majority of them continue going to school (15.1%) and the remainder (7.9%) only work.”

“Nevertheless, the share of children who only work is doubled in rural areas (13.1%).

“In the older age group (15-17 years), 36.4 per cent of the children work but still, the majority of them pursue education. The rate of children engaged in work in rural areas amounts to 57.6 per cent of whom 26 per cent only work,” according to the findings.

By: Dawda Baldeh

Fish vendors in Tanji have expressed to The Fatu Network the consequence of steady increase in the price of fish on their business and livelihood.

Tanji being Gambia’s biggest fishing site, many find it surprising why the price of fish keeps doubling the price in other parts of the country.

Fish vendors in the area attributed the price hike to “lack of operational Gambian fishing boats”.

They also noted that the price is determined by the variety and size of fish and where or from whom they buy.

The fish vendors mentioned that, despite the grumbling and criticism they get from buyers concerning the price increase, they [vendors] always find ways to cajole them [buyers] and justify the price hike.

“The cheapest pan of fish was between four and five thousand Dalasis (D4,000-D5,000). Now, that has increased.

One pan which initially cost five thousand Dalasis (D1,000) is now sold for twelve thousand Dalasis (D12,000). The ones that cost four thousand Dalasis (D4,000), are now eight thousand (D8,000).

The cheapest pan is now sold for eight thousand Dalasis (D8,000). The rest are at fourteen thousand (D14,000) and twenty thousand (D20,000). A pan of lady fish is also sold at twelve thousand (D12,000), with the cheapest being eight thousand (D8,000). “Sometimes, we sell at loss,” Ramatoulie, a fish vendor said.

Sainabou Nyass is another fish vendor at the heart of the Tanji fishing site. She confirmed similar challenges in the business, reiterating that they have been selling at a loss.

“The business is very slow. You will buy the pan for eight thousand five hundred (D8,500) or seven thousand (D7,000), but to resell it is a problem,” she lamented.

In a situation where supply exceeds demand, buyers come together to influence price. As a result, several implications tend to arise. For some vendors in Tanji, business is not as usual.

Fatoumata Ceesay, a resident of Tanji who is said to have been in the business for nearly three decades, told The Fatu Network that they are losing a lot due to the price hike, which she noted is beyond their control.

“I sometimes sell a pan of fish for two days. I have family to take care of but how are we going to take care of our families? Our hopes are only on the fish we sell. For me, women are suffering in the Gambia and we constitute the majority,” she explained.

For some vendors at the heart of the fishing site, lowering the price could significantly impact their profitability as they may incur loss or struggle to recover their purchasing cost.

They called on concerned authorities to help mitigate the challenges in the sector so there would be abundance of fish at low cost.

By: Hadram Hydara

The Campaign Manager of the main opposition United Democratic Party (UDP), Momodou Sabally, who previously served as Secretary General and head of Civil Service under the Yahya Jammeh regime, has raised concerns regarding President Adama Barrow’s alleged intention to dispatch troops to Niger as part of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) plan to reinstate civilian rule in the country following the recent coup that overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum.

Sabally has described this move as inappropriate and unwarranted.

“Niger’s problem is internal; it is a problem between the same nationals. Nobody should pick up weapons to go there and take sides. That should not happen.

“And to start conflict and war in Africa right now is not in Africa’s interest and progress”.

“In 2016, Gambia was an example; when the country had a problem, no gun was fired, and no bomb was detonated. The problem was resolved through negotiations.

“So, when Niger has a problem, I don’t think ECOWAS should be in a haste for a military action”.

Mr. Sabally criticized President Barrow for prioritizing a foreign country’s issue over the safety of Gambian youths who are planning to migrate to Europe through Niger. He believes that the lives of these thousands of migrants should be the main focus.

“The hardships facing African youths, especially Gambians youths who are currently in their thousands in Niger trying to reach Europe and they could not – some of them had problems there and went to Algeria and got shipped back to Niger again”.

“So, we are in that situation and [President] Adama Barrow has not thought about how to save the lives of Gambians in Niger but rather wants to take up guns and bombs to go and fight in Niger; This should not happen,” he said.

The campaign manager for UDP strongly denounced the proposal of sending Gambian military troops to Niger. He stated that if President Barrow truly cares about Gambian youth, he should not initiate a war in Niger because both Gambian military personnel and migrants would suffer casualties.

“I think what [President] Barrow needs to do is to get in touch with both sides and get them to negotiate to broker peace,” Sabally said.

By: Muhammed Lamin Drammeh

Ahead of the second Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) heads of state meeting scheduled for Thursday, August 10 to discuss the political crisis in Niger, Samsudeen Sarr, a former army commander in the Gambia Armed Forces (GAF), has said he expects President Adama Barrow to decline any suggestions to send military troops to Niger to take part in any military intervention in junta-led Niger following the recent coup that overthrew the democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26.

Sarr, who was a commander in the army until 1999, said GAF “may not possess the necessary readiness to navigate the complexities” of any possible intervention in Niger.

“I expect him to decline any suggestion of sending Gambian troops to Niger. From my perspective, the Gambia Armed Forces may not possess the necessary readiness to effectively navigate the complexities of such a precarious undertaking. The challenges presented by an ambiguous conflict in an unfamiliar territory, coupled with the intricate logistics required for a sustained campaign, give rise to legitimate concerns,” said the former army commander.

He explained that the financial burden of going into such a war cannot be ignored, saying the Gambia’s budget may not sustain the financial burden should President Barrow agree to send troops.

“The financial implications of engaging in such a war cannot be ignored. Wars invariably entail exorbitant costs, and the Gambian budget may be ill-equipped to sustain the financial burden of such an endeavour,” he explained.

Sarr said President Barrow can instead recommend to his colleagues in the ECOWAS heads of state meeting the idea of persuading the junta to hasten their transitional period to civilian rule.

“He can recommend the idea of persuading the coup leaders to hasten their transitional timeline to civil rule. Any other proposal other than that will be rejected by the junta which is very popular in the country and will never reinstate the overthrown government of Bazoum.”

Last week, when President Adama Barrow arrived from the ECOWAS heads of state meeting, he expressed the country’s willingness to cooperate with the decision of the West African block, which includes using force to reinstate Bazoum. He said that ECOWAS still accepts Bazoum as the legitimate president of the Republic of Niger.

By: Dawda Baldeh

After being sworn in as a nominated councillor for the Kanifing Municipal Council (KMC), Momodou MC Cham Jnr has faced criticism for recently joining the opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) and receiving a nomination. However, he has responded to his critics with a strong rebuttal.

During a recent interview with King FM radio, the politician responded to critics regarding his decision to join the UDP and made the following remarks.

“I thanked the leadership of the UDP and the supporters for welcoming me. This is huge for me because of the love they show me.

“The few that are criticizing me now never supported Mayor Bensouda. They never wrote on their Facebook wall or released audio asking people to vote for Bensouda. They are just coming out today because we are nominated,” he said.

MC Cham has clarified that he did not actively pursue the position. Instead, it was given to him by Mayor Bensouda as a recognition of his dedication to the growth and progress of KM.

Cham claimed that the few people who are criticizing him at UDP never wanted Bensouda to win the mayoral election.

“Why didn’t they come and criticize me and Nenneh when we were helping Bensouda and other UDP candidates during the election process? They were all silenced,” he stated.

MC Cham Jr stated that their nomination for councillorship should not be problematic if Bensouda deems it necessary to collaborate with them.

The politician, who was praised for his contribution to Bensouda’s re-election, stated that as Gambians, they are capable of holding any position.

He vowed to work with the UDP to move the party’s agenda, saying he will also focus on helping to eradicate the misconception people have about the UDP such as tribalism.

By: Dawda Baldeh

The Ministry of Higher Education, Research, Science & Technology (MoHERST) has denied the allegations made by Gambian students in Morocco about the delay in receiving their stipend. The ministry has called these claims “misleading and malicious”.

On Friday, August 4th, The Fatu Network published a story about the Gambian Students Association in Morocco (GASAM). According to GASAM, the students have not received their annual stipend from the Gambian government for an entire academic year.

However, Gambia’s higher education ministry has today, August 5th said in a statement that those claims are misleading and laced with malice.

The ministry’s reactions came barely 24hrs after The Fatu Network published the story where most students said they are worried as a result of not receiving their stipends.

“We wish to inform the public that the information trending is misleading and laced with malice,” the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry further claimed to discover that some students would complete their undergraduate programs and continue to pursue advanced studies in the same programs without clearance from the ministry.

“It has also come to light that some students could not finish their programs during the prescribed time frame.

“At the same time, they continue to benefit from stipend payments in their fifth and sixth years of studies in programs they are supposed to complete in four years. These facts must be established,” the ministry stated.

Accordingly, the Ministry said they have fielded a headcount mission involving two officers (one from the scholarship unit and one from the internal audit).

“This team has had meetings with the Gambian Embassy, the Executive of the Students Association, and the body responsible for awarding scholarships (AMCI) in Rabat, the Kingdom of Morocco.

“During these meetings, the position of the Ministry has been reiterated, and the students in the Kingdom of Morocco are aware of the position that only students under the Ministry’s sponsorship will be paid.

“The Accountant General’s Department was advised to make the necessary payments to the Gambian Embassy in Rabat, and it has been reported that the funds will reach the Embassy early next week to facilitate payment of stipends to all deserving MoHERST students,” the statement added.

They advised the students to exercise patience and assured them that “we share their predicament.”

However, the ministry noted that they must address these issues for the national interest to avoid audit inconveniences in the future.

By: Muhammed Lamin Drammeh

The Gambian Students Association in Morocco (GASAM) has expressed dissatisfaction and concern over the delay in receiving their yearly allowance from the Gambian government, which is meant to cover their rent and food expenses.

They are worried that many students are facing difficult circumstances in Morocco as a result of not receiving their stipends.

The leadership of the association released a press statement expressing the current situation of students who are receiving government stipends after alleged multiple attempts to resolve the issue with the government through the Ministry of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology.

“…We are currently facing a distressing situation where students are compelled to endure an entire academic year without receiving their annual stipend from the government of the Gambia.

“As time passes, the delay in disbursing the stipends has stretched beyond 12 months, placing an overwhelming burden on our soldiers. This predicament has made it exceedingly challenging for us to concentrate on our studies and achieve academic excellence.

“The persistent delays in receiving our stipends are causing a far-reaching and deeply concerning consequences, threatening the very essence of our educational pursuits and aspirations,” GASAM said in a statement.

According to them, a significant number of students rely heavily on the annual stipend provided by the Gambian government, which amounts to $1200 for those who are renting and $900 for those residing on the school campus.

The press release highlights that the late payment of stipends has been causing difficulties for the recipients to have a decent meal, as they rely on it for sustenance.

“Delayed stipends have thrust many students into financial hardship, depriving us of the ability to afford meals, rent, and other basic essentials necessary for a decent standard of living. With limited financial resources, we are facing food insecurity, compromising our health and well-being”.

According to them, they’re unsure when they’ll receive their stipend due to delays and unavailability, causing them to feel uncertain and hesitant.

“The uncertainty caused by these delays is taking a toll on the mental health of students. The stress and anxiety of not knowing when our stipends will arrive have made it difficult for us to focus on our studies and achieve our academic goals,” GASAM added.

The leadership issued an urgent call to the government to quickly disburse their annual stipends to help them settle the rent and other financial issues including feeding.

The Fatu Network attempted to contact Yusupha Touray, the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology, for a comment. However, he was unavailable to answer our calls.

By: Dawda Baldeh

Yahya Sonko, a Gambian migration and human rights activist residing in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, has called for the Gambian government to clarify the whereabouts of millions of euros allocated by the European Union (EU) for the purpose of reintegrating Gambian deportees.

During a recent press briefing by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Activist Sonko criticized the lack of proper information provided to Gambian migrants in Europe and their families. He referred to the briefing as a missed opportunity.

“I always asked: where are the millions of euros the Barrow government received from the European Union for the reintegration of deportees?

“Hundreds of deportees reunited with their families with zero hope, offers, or support from the government that deported them,” Sonko said.

Sonko expressed his disappointment towards Minister of Foreign Affairs Mamadou Tangara for neglecting to bring up the deportation of Gambian migrants that his ministry collaborated on with the European Union.

He believes the government continuously ignores the importance of deportees’ reintegration.

Sonko believed that during the press conference, Tangara missed an opportunity to update Gambians on the actions taken by his ministry and the government to assist the deportees, noting that it would have been beneficial to also share information on the sustainable reintegration plans for the hundreds of Gambians who have been deported from Europe.

Meanwhile, the foreign minister Tangara stated that it is solely the responsibility and authority of any European Union Member State to allow the return of Gambian nationals, noting that according to International Customary Law, if any Gambian national has exhausted all their legal options to stay in another country, it becomes The Gambia’s obligation to readmit them as it is their country of origin.

“But he forgot that as a responsible government, accepting mass deportation equally goes with taking full responsibility for deportees.

“[The] Gambia accepts hundreds of youths from Europe, and upon arrival at the Airport, that is usually where their last contact with the government,” Sonko stated.

However, Tangara has announced that Cabinet has discussed the issue and the government will engage in bilateral negotiations with the Federal Republic of Germany regarding the new law on residence permits. This law enables migrants who have lived in Germany for at least five years by 31st October 2022 to apply for a temporary German residence permit, and it came into effect on 1st January 2023.

This permit is temporary and grants holders 18 months to regulate their status while in Germany so that they can become holders of a “regular” German residence permit.

In response to Minister Tangara’s remarks, Sonko stated that it appears the Gambian Cabinet may not have a clear understanding of the issue at hand.

“The law they are talking about is called the new “Chancen-Aufenthaltsrecht” (Opportunity Residence Act) stipulated in §104c Residence Act”.

Sonko believes it would be pointless for the Gambia to send a delegation to Germany to negotiate this new law, as all Gambians residing in Germany are already aware of it.

According to him, Stakeholders, NGOs, and Gambian associations in Germany are working tirelessly to educate Gambian migrants about how they can acquire their residence permit through this opportunity and that the German government is unlikely to heed the Borrow government’s request on this matter.

For activist Sonko, Germany would welcome the Gambia government delegation for possible talks but must be based on continuity of discussion and plans of cooperation they started a few years ago.

“As far as I know, the government of Germany wouldn’t entertain any new discussions from the Gambia,” he said.

At the beginning of 2023, Joachim Stamp was designated as the new German Commissioner for Migration by the German Federal government. In his initial interview, he openly expressed his backing and eagerness to establish a partnership with The Gambia.

In June and July of 2019, ESI European Stability Initiative, a think tank based in Berlin, made two trips to The Gambia. They subsequently published a policy proposal called “THE GAMBIA PLAN” that outlined steps to prevent migrant deaths in the Mediterranean, alleviate the suffering of migrants in Libyan detention centres, and take a realistic approach to the return and deportation of Gambians who do not receive asylum in EU countries.

The goal was a real paradigm shift, creating a win-win solution for The Gambia and Germany, and replacing dangerous irregular migration with regular migration.

Sonko suggested that Germany should provide opportunities for legal migration that are connected to skills training in The Gambia. Additionally, he recommended expanding scholarship and exchange options.