The Vice President of The Gambia, His Excellency Mohammed B.S. Jallow, has hailed the signing of a landmark integrated waste management project concession agreement between his country and Zoomlion Gambia Integrated Waste Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of the Jospong Group of Companies (JGC), as a strategic step toward transforming the country’s approach to waste collection, treatment and disposal.
Speaking on behalf of His Excellency President Adama Barrow at the sod-cutting ceremony on Wednesday, October 28, for the construction of The Gambia Integrated Waste Treatment Facilities, Vice President Jallow expressed deep appreciation to the Jospong Group of Companies and Zoomlion Ghana Limited for “their confidence in The Gambia and their commitment to partnering with our country in addressing one of our most persistent environmental and public health challenges.”
He emphasised that the agreement represents far more than a contractual arrangement, describing it as “a strategic step towards changing how waste is collected, transported, treated, recovered and safely disposed of in The Gambia.”
“This initiative reflects the Government’s determination” to address long-standing challenges including inadequate waste collection, indiscriminate dumping, overflowing waste sites, and the associated health risks,” he stated.
Modern Infrastructure and Legacy Site Remediation
Under the agreement, the project will include the development of modern waste treatment and resource recovery infrastructure, notably a Mechanical Biological Treatment plant, a Material Recovery Facility and Transfer Stations.
Vice President Jallow also disclosed that the deal addresses “some of our most pressing legacy waste management challenges including the closure, remediation and rehabilitation of the Bakoteh and Mile 2 dumpsites.”
He noted that the timing of the ceremony coincides with broader efforts to strengthen environmental governance, citing the proposed Waste Management Bill and the new National Environment Management Bill, which are scheduled for consideration at the National Assembly alongside the ongoing review of anti-litter regulations.
“This comprehensive approach brings together legislative reform, institutional strengthening, private sector investment, improved public services and responsible citizen participation,” he added.
Call for Community Ownership
The Vice President stressed that the success of the project ultimately depends on community participation, calling on residents of the West Coast Region and Greater Banjul Area to embrace responsible waste disposal practices, support segregation initiatives and actively participate in cleanup campaigns.
“Waste management is not solely the responsibility of government institutions or waste collection companies; it is a shared responsibility. Every household, every business, every institution, every citizen has a role to play,” he urged.
He also highlighted the economic potential of the initiative, noting that it “presents significant opportunities for employment, resource recovery, recycling and innovation” and offers a pathway to transform waste “from an environmental challenge into an economic resource.”
Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration
The Vice President acknowledged the extensive assessments, consultations and negotiations that led to the project’s development, involving the National Environment Management Council, the Ministries of Environment and Finance, the Ministry of Justice, the National Environment Agency, the Gambia Revenue Authority, the Public Private Partnership Unit, relevant National Assembly Select Committees and participating Local Government Councils.
He particularly thanked the Brikama Area Council for providing land for the landfill component and urged all institutions to maintain a spirit of collaboration, stressing that “waste management is a national development responsibility and it must never become a matter of partisan division.”
The Chairman of the Brikama Area Council, Yankuba Darboe, pledged the council’s continued cooperation as the host local government authority.
Representing the Gambia Association of Local Government Authorities (GALGA), Mahamadou Ceesay, emphasised that success depends on partnership across all levels of government, the private sector and communities.
“We thank Zoomlion Ghana Limited for partnering with The Gambia and bringing its experience to this undertaking,” Ceesay said, adding that GALGA pledges its full cooperation to ensure the initiative produces “cleaner communities, healthier people, stronger councils and a more sustainable future for The Gambia,” he expressed.
How It All Began: Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong’s Remarks
After the Vice President’s remarks and the project details, the Chairman of Jospong Group and Zoomlion, Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong, recounted how the project started, tracing it to a chance encounter at Ghana’s Kotoka International Airport.
He explained that the Vice President had travelled from Dubai and was transiting to Gambia when he saw protocol officers escorting a “very big person” to the VIP lounge.
“They told me it was the Vice President of Gambia,” he said.
As a businessman, he added, “I don’t lose chances.”
He approached the Vice President, introduced himself as a waste management businessman and offered to do the same for Gambia.
Continuing, Dr. Agyepong said the Vice President welcomed the idea and introduced him to a protocol officer.
“I told him I will come to Gambia, I will send a delegation, then the Minister of Environment followed and that initiated what we are witnessing today,” Dr. Agyepong recounted.
He also spoke warmly of his personal connection to The Gambia, noting that his first daughter attended law school in the country. He said she told him that in Gambia “you can walk in the night up to 1 a m., without fear. People are respectful, kind.”
That motivation, he said, is what Jospong brought: “That a good people deserves good things,” he averred.
According Dr. Agyepong, he was meeting President Barrow for the first time at the ceremony: “Today I met the President, I’ve never met him before, I’ve never known him anywhere before, the gesture, the commitment, the reception… Your Excellency we humbly, we all just want to pledge that we will do all that we can for this project to become a reality.”
He disclosed that engineers were already on site and announced specific contributions from Jospong Group, including equipment to stop the burning of tyres at the Bakoteh dumpsite.
“I’ve been informed that the landfill there is 23 years old now. All these tyres, car tyres you see there, they have always been burnt and then the wires taken out for sale,” he said.
But he promised to provide a grinding machine so that the tyres can be ground. “It’s a grinding machine, it doesn’t cost too much. We will bring it here and donate it to the community. And these tyres will be ground. And that is what you use to lay astroturf.”
He pleaded with the governor and the people that those who are burning should stop burning. “I’ll provide equipment for them. They should be packing the tyres,” he said.
He also pledged to donate a sanitation park for educational purposes: “Students will come and study.”
In closing, Dr. Agyepong expressed gratitude for the partnership: “Once again thank you very much for the privilege that you’ve given Jospong. I know you could have contacted so many big name companies but the privilege you’ve given us, we also are very humbled and we will work… do everything that we can to make this project a success.”
