By: Fatou Krubally
The National Validation of the draft environmental quality standards regulations 2025 held on Tuesday brought together stakeholders from various sectors to discuss crucial issues surrounding environmental pollution.
Njagga Touray, the Deputy Executive Director of the National Environment Agency (NEA), emphasized the importance of addressing pollution levels to protect human health and the environment.
Touray highlighted the pressing need for robust regulatory frameworks to limit pollution levels in the atmosphere. He stressed the significance of implementing strategies, policies, and legislation to guide the number of emissions from industries and other sources. Touray emphasized, “We cannot compromise with the health of the population. We need concrete actions to protect both current and future generations from the harmful effects of pollution.”
The workshop also focused on conducting a comprehensive analysis of The Gambia’s environmental quality laws and policies, assessing compliance with international obligations and best practices, and providing evidence-based recommendations for a more effective regulatory framework. The review identified gaps in monitoring and enforcement mechanisms for pollution levels, outdated provisions in laws, weak inter-agency coordination for environmental management, and insufficient public awareness and participation.
As stakeholders deliberated on these key issues, the recommendations included introducing advanced monitoring technologies for air, water, and soil quality, updating legislative frameworks to address emerging environmental challenges, strengthening inter-agency collaboration for regulatory oversight, and launching public awareness campaigns to engage communities in environmental protection efforts.
Overall, the workshop served as a platform for collaboration and discussion among key stakeholders to address the critical need for protecting the environment and human health. The call to action from Njagga Touray and the collective efforts of all participants underscored the urgency of implementing effective measures to combat environmental pollution and ensure sustainable development for The Gambia.
