The Gambian leader, His Excellency Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh, has reiterated his intention to transform The Gambia in to a city-state by changing the look of all remote settlements in the country.
 
"By the grace of Allah, in five years time, no part of the country will be considered remote," the president said in Mandinaba yesterday, while presiding over the official inauguration of the Mandinaba-Seleti Road, as part of celebrations marking the 15th anniversary of the July 22nd Revolution. According to him, the inauguration of the road is another fulfilment of promises he had made to the Gambian people and another manifestation of his government's resolve to provide a good road network for the people of this country as a means of enhancing their socio-economic development.

President Jammeh noted that the provision of a high standard road network is a prerequisite for economic development and social cohesion of a country. "In this regard, my government has prioritised road construction and hasover the years invested heavily in the sector," President Jammeh said. Like the Barra-Amdalaye road, The Gambian leader told the gathering, Mandinaba-Seleti road is also part of a major trunk road rehabilitation project financed by the European Commission. "To complement these major trunk roads, my government is also investing in the rehabilitation of urban roads and the reconstruction of feeder roads to provide vital access to major remote areas of the country," he said.

He further told the gathering that it is obvious that numerous social benefits will be derived from the construction of the road and that it will facilitate easy access to schools and hospitals and other social services for many villages. Travel time and road user costs, he added, would also be reduced. To achieve the goals outlined in the Poverty Reduction Strategic Paper (PRSP), the Gambian leader went on, his government has taken a holistic approach to national development, adding that as such, the construction of Mandinaba-Seleti road will be complemented by other necessary infrastructure in the area such as schools and health facilities to enhance the living standards of the Gambian population.

He observed that it was as a result of the lack of optimal maintenance of the roads that the likes of Mandinaba-Seleti road have undergone serious degradation over the past years, thereby necessitating a complete re-construction. According to him, in order to avoid such scenarios from being repeated and to protect the heavy investments that are made on the national road networks, his government, in 2003, created the National Roads Authority, which is responsible for the administration, maintenance and management of the entire road networks across the country.

President Jammeh then told Gambians that in order for there to be a better tomorrow, the people must endeavour to avoid embarking on acts which have caused them to suffer. "If we expect the benevolence of others to develop our country, we will not move even an inch. We must have the mentality that no outsider can come and develop our country," he stated.  

While thanking Gambian women for their solidarity in the national development effort, the president called on the rest of Gambians to take a new resolve towards the development of the country. He then used the occasion to commend the European Commission through the British embassy in Banjul for funding the road project, saying, "The inauguration of this project is a continuation of the strengthening of the relationship between The Gambia and the European Commission.

Speaking earlier, Mme H'ele'ne Cave, the European Commission (EC) charge d'affairs in The Gambia, said the official inauguration of the Mandinaba-Seleti road is a day of joy for the people plying the road, after experiencing difficulties over the years. According to her, in the 9th European Development Fund (EDF), the financial envelope allocated to the infrastructure sector amounts to 48.5 million Euros, which is around 1.65 billion dalasi, with 40.5 million Euros coming from The Gambia National Indicative Programme.

This project, she said, is also financed from the Senegalese National Indicative Programme to cover the Sabi-Wellingara trunk road. Cave further told the gathering that the EC has experienced several problems in the past months concerning the implementation of the overall road projects. But she disclosed that the rehabilitation of the 13 kilometer Mandinaba-Seleti road has been well executed, but that "we are worried about the part of the project related to the maintenance, rehabilitation and upgrading of the Soma-Basse and Basse-Sabi-Wellingara trunk roads for which we experienced some technical and legal problems."

Cave then reiterated the European Commission's resolve to assist the people of The Gambia to address all challenges including road construction, and commended President Jammeh on all his development achievements. Speaking earlier, Lamin Bojang, minister of Works, Construction and Infrastructure, also commended the European Commission for funding of the project. The road, he said, is important in the socio-economic enhancement of the country. The rehabilitation of the Mandinaba-Seleti road, he added, would go a long way in promoting regional integration as well as enhance trade between The Gambia and Senegal. Abdou Colley, minister of Finance and Economic Affairs, also spoke at the ceremony.