By Landing Colley
The Gambia’s oil discovery hangs in limbo as the Minister for Energy and Petroleum told lawmakers that the country has not yet discovered oil.
Fafa Sanyang was tabling Petroleum Commission Bill 2020 which seeks to regulate upstream and mixing petroleum activity in The Gambia.
He said “We have not discovered oil yet; we are exploring and when there is discovery it will be announced. We are at the exploration stage it can be discovered but may not be commercial.”
According to him, the key objective of Petroleum Commission Bill is to establish the commission whose main function will be enforcing law, regulation and contract term and advising the Ministry on the effectiveness of policy.
He said the cabinet approved his Ministry to undertake reforms that are needed for the development of petroleum sector including an establishment of autonomous petroleum commission.
MP for Brikama north, Alagie S. Darboe welcomed the Bill and described it as a step that would move the country in the right direction.
“Having oil is one thing, the environment degradation that it will cause is another thing and social injustice that it can bring in the community is also one thing. While the pollution that the community will encounter is another thing and the regulation should address how the community should be compensated,” he pointed out.
