By Yunus S Saliu
The Honourable Minister of Tourism, Arts, and Culture (MOTAC) yesterday, 8th April 2025, officially received a report on the Assessment of River Jetties, Their Capacity For Tourism, and Options For Development on The River Gambia which was presented by the consultant, Royal HaskoningDHV. The report presentation ceremony was held at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference, Bijilo.
Frederik Mabesoone, Director of Business Development Water and Maritime Royal Haskoning DHV, made the presentation at the event attended by different tourism stakeholders, National Assembly Member Select Committee for Tourism and Sports, Honourable Omar Jammeh, the Gambia Ports Authority Managing Director, Mr. Ousman Jobarteh, and Oumie Sise, General Manager of Discovery Tours, among other dignitaries.
Addressing stakeholders at the presentation ceremony, Honourable Abdoulie Jobe said the report of the Assessment of River Jetties, Their Capacity For Tourism, and Options For Development on The River Gambia, funded by the World Bank through the Tourism Diversification and Resilience in The Gambia Project (TDRGP), aimed to unlock the significant tourism potential of the river Gambia.
Also, it aimed at enhancing river transport infrastructure and improving access to the heart of “our country,” he added while hoping to stimulate new opportunities for eco-tourism, community development, and broader economic growth.
Presentation of the report, he noted, marked the culmination of several months of meticulous assessment and strategic planning focused on evaluating the capacity of river jetties across The Gambia.
“The study initially explored 29 potential jetty sites, narrowing them down to 10 priority sites with the highest potential for development. This prioritization was conducted using a comprehensive weighting and scoring methodology, ensuring a robust and data-driven approach,” he explained.
The Minister expounded that the study provided in-depth analyses of various factors for each of the proposed jetty sites, noting that the resulting recommendations offer actionable insights on necessary upgrades, repairs, and new developments-ensuring the long-term functionality and sustainability of these jetties.
Meanwhile, the report, he disclosed, underscored the importance of climate resilience in the face of environmental challenges, such as flooding and erosion, to ensure that the infrastructures remain robust and adaptive.
Furthermore, Minister Jobe informed that the successful implementation of these assessments, strategies, and recommendations requires collaboration across multiple sectors “The synergy between government agencies, local communities, and the private sector will be key to ensuring the legacy and success of this initiative.”
This jetty assessment, according to Honourable Minister, is just one such example of the foundational work being laid to build a thriving and resilient river tourism sector that will benefit all stakeholders and contribute to the long-term sustainability of The Gambia’s tourism industry.
However, he thanked the consulting team from Royal HaskoningDHV for their diligent work in producing this comprehensive report while extending gratitude to the Project Implementation Unit (PIU) and the consultants, offering valuable technical input from the inception phase through to the final report and recommendations.
Speaking earlier, Momodou Ceesay, Project Coordinator welcomed participants to the gathering which he described as another milestone event of the Tourism Diversification and Resilience of The Gambia Project (TDRGP).
He reiterated the objectives of the TDRGP saying it is meant to support diversification, and climate resilience of the tourism sector at the selected destination, noting that the presented report is finalized and officially handed over was part of the deliverable that will help enhance the diversification of the tourism sector in The Gambia.
He noted that they already have some other milestone studies under component 2 and hopefully when implemented will take tourism to a higher level in terms of development.
While noting their being in the midterm status of the project, and have already delivered a good number of studies assessments including comprehensive situation analysis on marketing tourism in The Gambia, and with the hope that in the next two and a half years most of these studies will be implemented in term of accelerated implementation with some of the partners from private sectors and stakeholders.
In his brief remark, Frederik Mabesoone, Director of Business Development Water and Maritime Royal HaskoningDHV recommended the team to the Ministry for close collaboration between the consultants and the wider community in the Gambia.
He highlighted the beautiful environment of the country which has something special as indicated in the report while urging everyone to carefully go through the result of the study as officially presented to bring tourism in the destination to the next level.
However, he hinted that The Gambia has all the assets, beautiful waterways, culture, and cultural heritage to cherish that are of interest to tourists who are willing to spend significant money if the infrastructure is in place.
