By: Dawda Baldeh

Following reports of the Niger Junta attempting to charge ousted President Mohamed Bazoum on high treason, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has condemned the attempt in a press release dated August 14, 2023.

The West African bloc, having previously considered the possibility of military intervention to reinstate President Bazoum, described the move by the junta as an indication of their lack of willingness to restore constitutional order.

“ECOWAS has learned with stupefaction attempts to bring charges of high treason against HE. Mohamed BAZOUM, President of the Republic of Niger… ECOWAS condemns this move as it represents yet another form of provocation and contradicts the reported willingness of the military authorities in the Republic of Niger to restore constitutional order through peaceful means,” the press release stated.

Despite increasing public support for the junta in and outside Niger, ECOWAS maintains that President BAZOUM remains the democratically-elected President of the Republic of Niger, as recognized by ECOWAS and the international community.

The West African bloc further condemns Bazoum’s “illegal detention” and calls for his immediate release and reinstatement.

By: Alieu Jallow

Mamudou Jallow, 24, from Tanji, attempted to migrate to Spain in 2020 by buying a boat. However, after 15 days and nights, they landed in Morocco where they were intercepted and deported to Mauritania. Jallow was imprisoned for two days before finally being repatriated to The Gambia through the Gambian embassy in Mauritania.

In 2019, at least 62 young Gambians died when their boat capsized off the coast of Mauritania while attempting to reach Spain. Despite the risks and fatalities, the Central Mediterranean route to Europe remains the primary entry point for irregular migrants from Africa.

According to Jallow, he felt compelled and challenged by limited opportunities and economic hardship his family faced as the firstborn.

“I work at the seaside to make ends meet for my ageing parents. However, the lack of fishing boats for the youth in Tanji is forcing me and many others to embark on the journey,” he said.

Amid government’s slow response to addressing youth unemployment and economic hardship, Mamudou remains determined to embark on the perilous journey once more.

“Having spent D45,000 in 2020 and couldn’t make it to Spain, I am still determined to embark on the journey once the opportunity prevails itself because here, we work on Senegalese fishing boats, therefore, confining us to when our services are needed”.

This irregular migration pattern from Gambia reflects lack of economic opportunities and a mindset that Europe is the promised land to eradicate poverty. Lucky ones send remittances and upgrade status quo.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) recorded more than 22,400 migrant deaths between 2000 and 2014. The number of such deaths has been increasing between 2014 and 2019, with more than 19,157 migrant deaths in the Mediterranean.

It is not very surprising that in a country where economic opportunities are missing, and poverty is widespread, potential irregular migrants are willing to accept substantial risk of death.

In this interview, Mamudou is discussed as a potential migrant. However, many of his peers at the Tanji seaside are also likely to make the risky journey to Italy or Malta via Libya, Algeria, or Tunisia in due time.

By: Dawda Baldeh

As part of their three months pilot project dubbed “Innovate to Combat Irregular Migration”, the Media Academy for Journalism and Communication (MAJaC) has earlier today, August 14, 2023, engaged media practitioners on how they can help in combating irregular migration.

The day-long workshop convened media workers from various outlets to discuss the underlying reasons for irregular migration and offer recommendations to the academy for addressing the issue.

Mustapha Ceesay, the Project Coordinator, underscored the significance of engagement with the media as part of the project component. He said the media and related fields have a key role in combating irregular migration.

The three-month project aims to combat irregular migration by providing MAJaC with first-hand information and training suggestions from CSOs, migration organizations, NGOs, and international organizations.

Officials said they plan to engage youth and media for a comprehensive three-year project promoting youth and citizen participation in change-making, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

They said the objective is to find out how innovative training programs can help address the causes of irregular migration which include poverty, unemployment, and low salary scale among others.

“Irregular migration is an issue that needs to be addressed as a lot of people have travelled and some are media workers.

“The project has skill development training for media-related fields in film and photography, videography, communication. With these skills, people can be self-employed.

“People can set up their communication consultant companies and get paid by doing consultancy for others,” Ceesay told journalists.

He revealed that young people in the media and related fields need to be empowered to change the status quo. Mr. Ceesay added that the project will help equip journalists and media-related fields with knowledge and skills to be self-employed in the areas of film, photography, and communication.

He believes with such skills people don’t need to embark on irregular migration because they can employ themselves.

At the end of the project, MAJaC and partners are expected to come up with a proposal with information gathered to develop a document and seek approval for a project that will run for three years.

Participants, Paul Steven Priererra and Seedy B. Kanyi, commended MAJaC and partners for coming up with such an initiative, saying it will help people to understand the risk involved in embarking on irregular migration.

They described training journalists on migration issues will help them in their daily reporting. Paul suggested that MAJaC engage other government institutions and migrant returnees to share their stories to help portray migration in a better way.

Paul further urged the government to support the project and create employment for the young people who often embark on the irregular migration route.

By: Muhammed Lamin Drammeh

Scores of women vendors in the Brikama market have complained about slow sales due to stagnant rainwater, despite the Brikama Area Council’s recent support in draining water from the market.

Due to stagnant water during rainy seasons, vegetables and food sold by vendors at the Brikama market have raised health concerns. Women vendors, who rely on sales to support their families, have been affected.

Fatou Fofana, a 57-year-old cassava seller in Brikama market, expressed that the stagnant water around her stall has negatively impacted her business. She acknowledged that the stagnant water is unhealthy, but she has no other place to sell her products.

“This water here has impacted my business. Whenever it rains, it alters my business. Most of the time, I will not even get half of my normal income. Some customers will prefer others because where I sell, the place is full of stagnant water and that is not healthy for me and even the cassava that I sell,” Mrs. Fofana told The Fatu Network.

She added that she depends on cassava selling to take care of family affairs.

Fatou Drammeh, who lives in Farato, goes to the Brikama market at the break of dawn every day to sell bitter tomatoes. She has a place just near the bus stop at the entrance of the Brikama market around the fish market.

According to her, stagnant rainwater mixed with dirty water from the fish market attracted ants, which harmed their businesses last year.

Despite complaining of low sales due to stagnant rainwater, she said the market has received help from the Brikama Area Council which sporadically sends trucks to drain the water.

“Our business is not working. You see these waters; they are preventing customers from coming to buy from us. This is a challenge, but this year is better because the Area Council comes time to time to drain the water.

“But still, you can see the water. Nobody is coming to buy from me,” she lamented.

Mrs. Drammeh further explained that she has no other place to go and sell, so she has to sit in that stagnant water and try her luck.

Binta Ceesay, a vendor who sells onions and garlic, called on the Brikama Area Council to double their efforts in helping them fix the market because they pay tax (duty) every day to the council.

The Fatu Network attempted to contact the market manager of Brikama Area Council for comments, but he was unavailable at the time.

By: Alieu Jallow

Victims of the 2022 Mandinaring oil spill have accused authorities of disregarding and failing to compensate them for the significant damages incurred.

In May 2022, a pipeline rupture caused the main fuel depot in Mandinaring, Kombo North, in The Gambia, to spill over 70 metric tonnes of Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO) into the river and surrounding areas. The spill spread across the riverbanks of the Gambia and reached as far as Pirang in the Kombo East district.

Even with the implementation of modern safety regulations, the depot remains a source of danger for nearby residents, particularly children. The dangers include ground-level ozone from gasoline fumes and potential groundwater contamination from petroleum products leaking into the soil.

The coastal village of Mandinaring is a vital economic hub and a breeding ground for numerous fish species. Banjul’s fuel storage capacity is limited, which led the government to establish new fuel storage in the village on May 24th, 2008.

Alasan Pam, a fisherman and victim, expressed his frustration over the lack of support and protection from those who are supposed to provide it. He stated that these individuals are suppressing and destroying their property without compensation. Mr. Pam also mentioned that he and other fishermen had a meeting with Gam Petroleum to discuss compensation for the damages, but unfortunately, the meeting was unsuccessful.

Alluding to what his colleague Alasan revealed, Mamadou Pam explained that for a week they were unable to access their fishing boat and materials due to the toxic and flammable nature of the water. This made life unbearable for their poor families, as their survival depended on how much catch they could get from the river.

Mustapha Ceesay, an elderly man, mentioned how inhaling spills’ scent can lead to respiratory diseases, forcing them to get checkups.

Mr Ceesay further revealed that providing for their family was extremely challenging during the spills and clean-ups.

“In the past, one [fishing] net used to catch up to 10 kilos of scrimps, but now 7 [fishing] nets combined can’t catch such a quantity,” Ceesay said.

Musa Pam emphasized that they are tax-compliant and pay their yearly dues to the maritime department. However, they have never received any government support and allege being used as a tool to gather funds, saying: “Government failed to turn up since the last visit”.

Isatou Secka, a fishmonger, spoke on behalf of women affected by the oil spills. She explained how the oil spills rendered many husbands unable to provide for their families, causing women to take on unfamiliar work.

“We are forced to leave our houses at around 5 a.m. and head to Tanji or Banjul to get fish to sell and later return home to head to our vegetable gardens,” Secka said.

In the far north along the riverbank, women oyster farmers in Kubuneh are being forced to abandon their only source of income due to riverbank spills.

Jariatou Gibba decried of challenges meeting family demands and paying their children’s school fees.

“Our oysters smell and [get] sticky and [they] can’t last for two days, thus [we] find it hard to sell in the market in order to pay our children’s school fees,” she said.

Many women echoed the same sentiment, calling for support from authorities and philanthropists due to the devastating impact of oil spills on their lives and livelihoods.

The Fatu Network could not reach both the Petroleum Ministry and the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change for comments.

By: Alagie Cherno Suwareh

The Kafuta-born Brikama-based chef is a multiple award-winning Chef. Saikou Bojang, famously known as Chef Bojang, has been re-elected, owing to his competency, as President of the West African Chef Alliance. The revered chef was also honored and named Director of the Africa Chefs Alliance – a multinational organization uniting the chefs of Africa on a common platform as part of the bigger picture of chefs throughout the world. According to the organization, it “has been a collaborative forum and shared platform to facilitate the sharing of information, knowledge and expertise.”

Speaking to The Fatu Network from Lagos, Nigeria, the Chef said that he “felt honored, happy, and at the same time humbled” for these leadership responsibilities which were bestowed upon him within West Africa and Africa as a whole. It can be recalled that for years, Chef Bojang has served as President of the West African Chef Alliance with merit, helping grow its membership from 19 to 50 countries.

He highlighted that he will encourage new ideas and propose fresh approaches in the sub-region, while championing healthy indigenous heritage cuisines, and promoting our African (including regional) cuisines to reach global awareness.

He concluded by thanking The Gambia Tourism Board for helping secure team Gambia’s flight tickets to the ongoing Chef Competition in Lagos, Nigeria, where he is serving in the panel of judges. He also thanked The Fatu Network for publishing their journey, while advising us Gambians to come together and to embrace our healthy traditional dishes.

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.