As the 9th edition of the Home Coming International Roots Festival is moving closer, it is important that visitors and tourists to the Gambia during and after this event should know more about some of the local but globally known items having in our country.

There are more than enough of valuable and durable items that tourists can buy in The Gambia for their personal use or as a gift to their friends and families left behind at their destination before journey to The Gambia. Among those things are craft materials local hand woven fabric, leather goods, jewelry, sand painting and basketry, tie-and dye and batiks, wood carvings among other. But one of the most popular at the craft markets among this handicrafts is wood carving which capture the attention of everyone at the entrance of any craft market in the Gambia.  

There are some major craft markets in the country where you can do your shopping without stress. Among such major places are Bakau, Fajara, BB, Senegambia, Brikama, Banjul craft markets respectively, all are very interesting markets if you can visit them. Learn everything you will like to know that pertain to any of the item at your sights without reluctance. Almost all of the popular hotels in the country have located places outside the main hotels for the sales of craft materials.

Of recent, Gambian carvers are receiving more applause from tourists mostly those that normally bring along with them different catalogues and engage the services of carver to carve items of their choice for them. On a visit to Bakau Craft Market at Cape Point, Abdoulie Jawara Jome, one of the old men, a carver as well as a seller, was instructed to take us round by Saine Singateh and Alieu Njie, Bakau Craft Market President and Vice President respectively.

Jome explained the advent and usefulness of most of their displayed art works to Tourisphere, examples are bowl called ‘Kela’ in Wollof and ‘Kunam’ in Mandinka languages. ‘Kela’ is a traditional bowl first carved by a tribe called Laobe many years ago before the advent of bowl. It was carved and well designed from a thick wood or mahogany tree. It is very strong.

Since art works is a simple way of expressing the innermost thoughts of the people and describing of action and view, among this is a ‘thinking man.’ It is like a shadow of a human being, it does not possessed eye, nose, mouth, ear or whatever that can identify the status it takes but it is envisage to be an old man sorting for a solution to a problem in a family.

Another robust carved is portrait of a hunter. They are special people with special knowledge. Hunters are the king of forest but back in the community we have someone called ‘Kekuroba’-wise man. This was carved with full concentration that reflects in the image. It really speaks about the authenticity of a wise man. Kekuroba, in a community, is the oldest and wisest, everyone believes that he have solution to every problem before him.

Well its knowledge is inherited from its forefather. Such old person is common in the provinces. They can talk and invoke spirit, they are traditional healers.

In this 9th edition of Home Coming International Roots Festival, you can learn more about those art works and buy different types of these craft materials for yourself and present them to your friends and love ones as well.  

African arts has gone far beyond expectation in recent years in the Gambia, tourists are the major patronize of this craft markets. Wood carving or art works is effusive of what is in mind. Their job always expresses what is in man’s mind.

Therefore, make your visit a memorable one in The Gambia and after, visit any of the craft market. Simple ways of expressing the innermost thoughts are through carved items.