By Yunus S Saliu
Brikama Craft Market, one of the oldest craft markets in The Gambia will soon become Art Village, where all artifacts can be found for personal use, souvenir and as well buy in large quantity by anyone that is into craft businesses.
This was disclosed by the Minister of Tourism and Culture who is currently on tourism facilities tour to all the tourism development area across all the regions in the destination.
Honorable Hamat NK Bah, Wednesday, on his visit to the Brikama Craft Market, informed the Craft Market Association and craft vendors in the market of authorities’ intention to turn the market to an Art Village in the country.
Honorable Bah disclosed that The Gambia “is one country in the world that has no official Art Village. There is need to have it and I felt Brikama have the best site for it, this will be a starting point for us to use the Brikama Craft Market by developing it to that level.”
According to him the Art Village will be a center that dealers of arts and crafts and everyone can come or visit to buy choice materials and take away “and we will work with every association and this will add value to the craft market associations and their products,” the Minister assured the craft vendors.
Brikama, he said, is a best site for such project because the “market has space for it and the market craft association, craft vendors are better organized.”
Answering to craft vendors request during his visit, he divulged that he has been supporting Brikama Craft Market since in the 80s when the market was still at its old place before the present place. “But all the same as a government, we are concerned, we need to have a national arts market that everything people want in artistic or arts work throughout the country will be found, especially by any VIPs to the country,” he said.
He added further that the Art Village will as well serve as a central craft market whereby “VIPs will patronize and buy different items for souvenir just to have good memory of destination Gambia.”
To make this a reality, he said there is need for government to work with the Brikama Area Council, West Coast Region Governor’s office, GTBoard, NCAC and of course Ministry of Tourism and Culture to see how best they can finalise the plan and advance the project.
He went further saying about 350 Gambians are working in the market “but we want over 2,000 Gambians to work here and with the Art Village, we can create jobs and the income will enable you (craft vendors) to sustain yourself.”
Minister Bah further said it is responsibility of government to make sure that people are secure, get job at least to feed and maintain as citizens “and you can only do that when you have a job, particularly, women.”
Further addressing their requests, he said the government especially his Ministry aware that Brikama, Farafenni, Basse even Soma does not have any five, four star hotel. But the Ministry of Tourism and Culture is working hard to see what best that “we can do to support and encourage investors to build standard hotels, lodges across these places even if it is going to be fifty bed hotels but standard ones particularly now that we are doing everything to promote domestic tourism in the destination,” he expressed.
He therefore advised them to always keep the market clean noting that the Covid-19 support package might not be enough for them but his Ministry will continue to see how best to support them more.
However, Honorable Hamat NK Bah accompanied on this tour by some high rank officials from the Ministry which includes Mrs Cordu L Jabang-Senghore, Permanent Secretary, Mr Mamadi Dampha, Deputy Permanent secretary, regional governors, the board chairpersons of National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC), Gambia Tourism Board (GTBoard) and Gambia Tourism and Hospitality Institute (GTHI). Others include officials of the Ministry, GTBoard, GTHI, NCAC and members of travel and tour writers also visited Sindola Safari Lodge, Bintang Bolong, AbCa’s Creek Lodge, Amdalai Camp, Tumani Tenda, Makasutu Culture Forest and Lodge, while the tour continues.
