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The last episode of our series of reports dedicated to the Senegambia Bridge that has changed the lives of Gambians and Senegalese for a year. Inaugurated on January 21, 2019, the Sénégambien Bridge stretches across the Gambia River and allows easy connection of southern Senegal to the north. It replaces the old ferry that required waiting long hours before crossing or even several days for truck drivers. This forced wait had given rise to many businesses along the way and in the town of Farafenni. Since the bridge was opened, the city has been in decline.
The prison cabins have been given ocher color on beaten soil as if they wanted to be forgotten. Rust has spread to dozens of abandoned barracks, lined up along the road that led to the old ferry. Mamadou Diallo, a salesman in Guinea, has been present for about fifteen years: “I sold candy, cakes, cookies, all this.”
For Mamadou Diallo, the Sénégambien bridge overshadows his activities: “It is not good for us. It’s good for the passengers. There are already many suppliers who have gone here to Senegal, Banjul or other villages. ”
On the south shore, which comes from Soma, there are more vendors. On his small table, Alieu Diallo presents jars of mayonnaise mounted in a pyramid. He moved in just before the bridge was inaugurated in January 2019. The deal is not good: “Sometimes we show our goods to customers but they refuse to buy. Some do not even consider us. ”
All sellers identified as such have received compensation, Gambia’s Ministry of Transport assures. A market is being built in Soma, on the south shore, to accommodate them. But in the meantime, Momodou Lamin Jeng, a former city councilor, is worried about her citizens: “Most people here will say that the bridge has hurt them financially. Many of them work in the retail trade, in the food industry. So the income for many people, especially women, depends on this activity in Farafenni. ”
Open all day and at night, the bridge also damages Farafenni guest house like those run by Omar Mbye: “Previously, people stayed here overnight after the ferry closed. I got many clients in my boarding houses. But since the bridge is open, they have no reason to stay here, and that’s not good for me. “
On March 12, during the last Senegalese-Gambian presidency, the two heads of state promised to open their common border night and day. A small opportunity for Farafenni to keep travelers imprisoned for the night.
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