The Edward Francis Small Centre for Rights and Justice (EFSCRJ) has expressed profound shock and outrage following the release of the 2021–2023 audit reports by the National Audit Office of The Gambia. The reports paint a grim picture of entrenched financial mismanagement, corruption, and blatant disregard for public finance laws, revealing a worsening trend of irregularities that threaten national stability and erode public trust.
The audit reports, covering three years of government accounts, expose staggering financial discrepancies, including cash mismanagement exceeding D110 billion (approximately $1.5 billion USD). The findings highlight systemic issues, such as unaccounted loans to State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) worth billions of dalasi, issued without risk assessments and in violation of the Public Finance Act. Many SOEs defaulted on repayments, burdening taxpayers with the fallout. Revenue leakages further compounded the crisis, with the fisheries sector failing to collect over D53 million in penalties from vessels engaged in illegal fishing, and the mining sector understating royalties by nearly D80 million due to missing license files and ignored contractual obligations.
Procurement violations were rampant, with major contracts for road projects, stadium renovations, and the Banquet Hall awarded through single-sourcing or without competitive bidding, flouting regulations set by the Gambia Public Procurement Authority (GPPA). Inflated prices, duplicated payments, and unapproved transactions resulted in millions of dollars in losses. Ministries failed to produce procurement plans, bidding documents, or fixed asset registers, further undermining transparency.
Payroll irregularities also drained public resources, with ghost workers, missing personnel files, unearned salaries, and unjustified allowances persisting across the years. The Office of the President alone overspent D32.5 million in 2023 without providing supporting documentation, while the cash management committees failed to curb hundreds of millions of budget overruns. Auditors flagged hundreds of high-priority issues, many of which were recurring from previous years, indicating the government’s failure to act on recommendations.
The EFSCRJ condemned these findings as evidence of a “culture of impunity and entrenched corruption” that violates the Constitution, Public Finance Act, and procurement laws. The organization warned that such malpractices fuel poverty, inequality, poor social services, and irregular migration, posing risks to national peace and justice. “These audit reports confirm that corruption and disregard for the law are rampant across the government,” the EFSCRJ stated, describing the situation as a betrayal of public trust and a gross violation of human rights.
In response, the EFSCRJ issued a six-point call to action, urging President Adama Barrow to investigate and prosecute all instances of fraud and corruption, recover misappropriated funds, and strengthen financial systems to ensure compliance with the law. The group also demanded that the National Assembly and independent oversight bodies operate without political interference and that the government publish corrective actions for each audit recommendation. Above all, the EFSCRJ called for a demonstration of political will to combat corruption, emphasizing that “2025 must be the year of transparency and accountability.”
The reports underscore a long-standing challenge in The Gambia: the lack of political commitment to good governance. The EFSCRJ warned that without decisive reforms, the systemic failures highlighted in the audits will continue to deprive citizens of essential services and hinder national development. “The Gambian people deserve better stewardship of their resources,” the statement concluded, urging immediate action to restore integrity in public finance management.
As the nation grapples with these revelations, public pressure is mounting for accountability and justice. The EFSCRJ’s demands signal a growing demand for systemic change, with citizens and civil society groups closely watching the government’s response to this damning indictment of its financial practices.
