By: Sainabou Sambou
President Adama Barrow on Tuesday, 1 September, officially opened the 4.5-kilometer Sanyang Beachside Road, presenting the project as a practical step toward better coastal access and stronger local economic activity.
After cutting the ribbon, the president addressed residents and stakeholders at a meeting ground in Sanyang. He praised the community’s long-standing contribution to national life through farming, fishing, trade and tourism, and described the village’s coastline as one of The Gambia’s most valuable natural assets. Improved access, he said, would help turn that asset into wider opportunity.
The new road is expected to ease the movement of people and goods between the village, the beachfront and surrounding markets. President Barrow said farmers, fishermen, traders, entrepreneurs and other businesses should find it easier to operate once travel times fall and transport conditions improve. He also argued that the project’s value extends beyond Sanyang itself, forming part of a wider government effort to develop the country’s coastal corridor.
That corridor, he said, will become more important as The Gambia advances plans for a deep-sea port. Reliable roads will be needed to link coastal communities, commercial centers and strategic national assets. “The roads we construct today must anticipate the demands of tomorrow,” the president told the gathering, stressing that infrastructure should be built to support expanding trade, investment, tourism and everyday economic activity.
President Barrow said young people and women in particular should benefit if new traffic, visitors and investment raise demand for goods and services along the coast. He urged residents to protect the newly completed road and called on drivers to obey traffic rules and watch for pedestrians and other road users.
He also warned that development along the shoreline must be handled responsibly. Environmental protection, he said, should go hand in hand with growth, and local communities must share in the gains from new investment rather than being left on the margins.
The Sanyang Beachside Road is one component of the government’s EPC Nationwide Road Development Program, which officials describe as a broader push to strengthen the national road network. President Barrow commended the Ministry of Transport, Works and Infrastructure, the National Roads Authority, contractors, engineers and other partners who delivered the project. He also thanked traditional leaders, local authorities and Sanyang residents for their cooperation during construction.
Sanyang, in Kombo South, already draws visitors to its beach and supports fishing and small-scale farming. Officials hope the upgraded beachside link will reduce isolation from the main coastal route, support tourism businesses and make it easier to move fish and farm produce to market. For government planners, the road is also a supporting piece of a larger coastal strategy that includes the proposed deep-sea port at Sanyang, for which a foundation stone was laid in 2025.
