Gambia Plans Border Food Safety Deployments as Government Confronts Growing Risks

By Makutu Manneh

The Gambia government plans to deploy food safety officers at border crossings and weekly markets known locally as lumos, Vice President Muhammed B.S. Jallow said this week, as authorities move to address what he described as persistent vulnerabilities in the country’s food supply chain.

Speaking in an interview on QTV, Mr. Jallow acknowledged that food safety remains a major challenge, largely because much of the trade operates in the informal sector and across porous borders.

“Every food item that comes into the country should be tested,” he said. “That has been one of the challenges.”

At present, The Gambia lacks sufficient domestic laboratory capacity to conduct comprehensive food testing, forcing regulators to send samples to Senegal or Ghana—a process Mr. Jallow said is both costly and time-consuming.

To close that gap, the government is constructing a food testing facility in Brusubi, supported by President Adama Barrow, the World Bank, and other development partners. Once completed, Mr. Jallow said, the laboratory will significantly expand the country’s ability to monitor food quality and safety.

The vice president also pointed to recent progress in agricultural exports, particularly groundnuts, a key cash crop. He said shipments had previously been constrained by weak regulatory frameworks but noted that China has now begun accepting Gambian groundnuts following the introduction of new standards.

“One of the achievements we have made through food safety is that now the People’s Republic of China is accepting our groundnut,” he said, attributing the breakthrough to improved regulations.

Officials say the planned deployment of food safety officers at borders and LUMOs is intended to strengthen oversight at entry points and marketplaces, where imported and locally produced foods are most exposed to contamination and regulatory lapses.