By Fatou Sillah
Rising sea levels are presenting an increasingly serious threat to Banjul and other coastal communities in The Gambia, according to Franklin Mutahakana, the World Bank Group’s resident representative in the country.
In an interview with Kerr Fatou, Mutahakana said the effects of climate change are already evident along the coastline, where erosion and flooding are steadily reshaping vulnerable areas.
Speaking about the World Bank’s Country Climate and Development Report for The Gambia, he cautioned against dismissing the risks, despite longstanding skepticism among some residents about the extent of the threat to the low-lying capital.
“The sea is actually coming in,” Mutahakana said. “Most of the beaches and coastline are going, and while people may feel like nothing has happened yet, the reality is that these changes are happening gradually, and the risks are very real.”
He noted that rising sea levels are eroding natural coastal buffers, with beaches and shorelines gradually disappearing—a process that may not always be immediately visible but is nonetheless ongoing.
Flooding during heavy rainfall, he added, is another clear indicator of mounting environmental pressure. Such events are already affecting infrastructure and livelihoods in at-risk communities.
“When you see the flood levels that are coming up whenever it rains, these are signs demonstrating that the risks are real,” he said.
Mutahakana said the government, working with international partners, is taking steps to mitigate the damage. These include coastal nourishment projects aimed at reducing erosion and the restoration of mangroves, which serve as natural barriers against encroaching waters.
“Now, the government, in partnership with the World Bank Group, is addressing some of these by providing the coastal nourishment that would help recede the water and minimize the impact that it has on the coastline itself. And then, of course, also restoring some of these mangroves, because those were really the buffers that were naturally put to safeguard the land from the sea. And because of encroachment by human beings, they destroy some of these buffers,” he said.
He also stressed the importance of climate-resilient infrastructure, warning that poor drainage systems can worsen flooding in urban areas.
“If you build roads without proper drainage systems, when heavy rains come, the water has nowhere to go, and it floods surrounding areas,” he said. “That is why climate-sensitive infrastructure design is so important.”
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