By Seedy Jobe
Lawmakers on Thursday pressed officials from The Gambia’s National Environment Agency over more than D1.8 million in vehicle maintenance expenditures, as well as hundreds of thousands of dalasis paid in honorariums, during a review of the agency’s audited accounts for 2021 through 2023.
Appearing before the National Assembly’s Finance and Public Accounts Committee, NEA officials presented their annual reports, financial statements, and management letters—disclosures that prompted pointed questions about procurement practices and internal controls.
An audit report revealed that the agency spent D1,811,241 on vehicle maintenance contracts during the period under review. Auditors recommended that the NEA formalize its contractual arrangements to clearly define responsibilities and ensure that mechanics engaged by the agency are properly vetted and qualified.
NEA management told the committee that contracts had since been signed with two mechanic garages, effective Dec. 1, 2023, and that the garages were assessed and recommended by the agency’s chief driver. But auditors said that, as of Feb. 5, 2024—the date their report was finalized—copies of the contracts had not been submitted for verification.
“We still have not been provided with the copies for us to verify that these contracts exist,” the auditors wrote. NEA officials pledged to submit the documents by Feb. 25.
The committee also examined honorarium payments totaling D636,350, which auditors said were made without a clear governing policy. They urged the agency to establish formal guidelines defining eligibility and payment thresholds.
In response, NEA management said a draft honorarium policy had been prepared and submitted to the National Environment Management Council. Officials said the Minister of Justice, who sits on the council, is currently reviewing the legal framework of the proposed policy—a process that began in December.
The agency expects the draft to be tabled for final consideration at the council’s next meeting, scheduled for the coming quarter.
The hearings form part of Parliament’s ongoing oversight of government spending, as lawmakers seek to strengthen accountability across public institutions.
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