By Sainabou Sambou February 10, 2022
The Gambia tourism board has compensated Senegambia craft market vendors, by building stalls for them. Due to the destruction of their shop’s by the OIC road project. Buba Bah, a vendor and committee member of Senegambia craft market, said when their shop’s were destroyed by the Gambia road authority working on the OIC road project, the Gambia tourism board compensated them by building stalls for them and have promised to build new shop’s for them.
He said they were informed by the Gambia road authority that some of their shops need to be destroyed because the shops were situated along the expansion of the road. She said since the destruction of the shop’s business has been slow, and we don’t have a large number of customers to patronize us.
“Since the outbreak of COVID-19 our business has been affected by the pandemic and again this road project has also affected our business” he said. He stressed that their shop’s were destroyed and didn’t not have a place where to sell their products.
He urged the tourism minister to visit the craft market and see the life they are living. Basiru Sambou, a vendor at Senegambia craft market said they were informed by the Gambia road authority that due to the expansion of the roads some of their shop’s need to be destroyed and they will need thirty meters left and right for the expansion.
He said he is among the people paid by the Gambia tourism board to do the job. Fatou Jobe is one of the vendors whose shop was destroyed due to the construction of the Berlin Harding highway. She said well before the destruction of their shop’s they were informed by the Gambia road authority that their shop’s need to be destroyed because they are on the highway.
Moreover, she said the Gambia tourism board compensated them by building stalls for them to sell their products for the main time and have promised to build shop’s for them. Ousman Cham, a vendor said it’s devastating during these trying times because since the destruction of their shop’s. They didn’t have a permanent place to keep their goods.
He said the destruction of their shop’s has affected their business a lot because they lost some of their materials during the process. He urged the tourism minister to visit the craft market and know some of the problems they are facing.
