By Fatou Sillah
The pre-construction phase of The Gambia’s planned Sanyang Deep-Sea Port has been delayed by about one year, prompting the government and its private concessionaire to renegotiate key terms to keep the project on track, the managing director of the Gambia Ports Authority said this week.
Ousman Jobarteh, Managing Director of the Gambia Ports Authority (GPA), disclosed the setback while appearing before the National Assembly’s Public Enterprises Committee, which was reviewing a follow-up report on cargo-handling performance.
Mr. Jobarteh said the concession agreement for the deep-sea port formally took effect on Feb. 14, 2025, with pre-construction originally scheduled to conclude by Feb. 13, 2026. But progress has been slowed by a combination of land-access challenges, equipment problems, and incomplete technical studies.
“The pre-construction activities have not yet started because the studies both on land and at sea are yet to be completed. While the onshore site in the free zone area has been allocated, the offshore investigations have faced delays due to adverse weather affecting equipment, which needs replacement or repair,” he said.
He added that delays in meeting government obligations, including the issuance of land leases, had also contributed to the setback.
As a result, the government and Alport, the project’s concessionaire, are now renegotiating elements of the agreement, including revised milestones, default provisions, and bond arrangements, Mr. Jobarteh said. A cabinet-level task force has been established to lead the discussions and ensure the project moves forward.
The Sanyang Deep-Sea Port is intended to expand The Gambia’s maritime capacity and position the country as a regional logistics hub. Officials say the revised timeline is expected to provide clearer safeguards for both the state and the developer while restoring momentum to one of the country’s largest infrastructure projects.
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