By Seedy Jobe
Renovation work at Independence Stadium has been completed, and Gambian officials are now awaiting an inspection by the Confederation of African Football that could clear the venue to host international matches again, Youth and Sports Minister Bakary Y. Badjie has said.
“I can say with all certainty that the work is complete, and we’re only waiting for CAF inspections,” Mr. Badjie said in an interview with The Dialect Space Podcast.
The stadium has been unable to host international football matches since CAF withdrew its approval in 2022, forcing The Gambia’s national teams to play designated home fixtures abroad.
Mr. Badjie said the government had addressed the football-related deficiencies identified by CAF and that most areas of the stadium—including changing rooms, hospitality facilities, player areas, the media center, and VIP sections—had already satisfied inspectors during an earlier assessment.
The pitch, he said, had remained the principal concern.
According to Mr. Badjie, problems with the playing surface emerged in September 2022, when efforts were being made to prepare the stadium for a national team match during the rainy season. A fungal infection damaged the grass, he said, while the authorities lacked both the specialized machinery and technical expertise required to properly maintain the hybrid playing surface.
The government subsequently provided funding for maintenance equipment and brought in Gregory, an international firm, to work with local contractors to rehabilitate the pitch, according to the minister.
Mr. Badjie also rejected claims circulating on social media that recent photographs showing improvements at the stadium had been generated using artificial intelligence. The images, he said, were authentic and reflected the current condition of the facility.
“Whenever it comes to football, every other thing is done,” he said.
CAF has requested updated photographs of the stadium, Mr. Badjie said, adding that the images were taken by the federation’s club licensing manager. An in-person inspection is expected next week.
“We are hopeful,” he said.
Although CAF approval is primarily concerned with the stadium’s suitability for football, Mr. Badjie said the government was also completing renovations to the athletics track. The track is not part of CAF’s requirements, he said, but officials decided to restore it so the stadium could again accommodate track-and-field competitions.
The minister attributed many of the stadium’s problems to decades of limited investment.
Independence Stadium was built in the early 1980s and officially opened in 1983, he said, but did not undergo a major renovation until decades later. CAF began urging African governments around 2014 to upgrade stadiums to comply with increasingly stringent requirements for international competitions, he said.
Some basic improvements were carried out in 2019, allowing The Gambia to continue hosting Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches. But by early 2022, CAF had barred dozens of stadiums across the continent, including Independence Stadium, from hosting international fixtures.
The decision came shortly after The Gambia made its first appearance at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Mr. Badjie said budget constraints prevented the government from immediately carrying out all the required improvements, leading officials to divide the renovation into phases.
He also sought to clarify controversy surrounding a CAF assessment conducted in August 2023, saying it was a preliminary inspection rather than a rejection of completed work. CAF inspectors, he said, recommended moving several improvements originally planned for the second phase into the first phase before temporary approval could be granted.
That change required additional government funding and contributed to public criticism over the cost and pace of the project.
Some CAF requirements have still not been fully implemented. Mr. Badjie said plans for 36 closed-circuit television cameras and turnstile gates remain outstanding because of their cost.
But he said CAF had agreed, for the time being, to permit matches during daylight hours using the stadium’s existing floodlights and eight surveillance cameras.
With maintenance equipment acquired and the pitch reseeded and treated, Mr. Badjie said officials believe the stadium is now ready to return to international football.
The final decision, however, rests with CAF. Its forthcoming inspection will determine whether Independence Stadium can once again host The Gambia’s international home matches.
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