Angella Colley, Secretary of State for Tourism and Culture, yesterday, began a familiarisation tour of institutions under her purview.

SoS Colley, who started her tour with visits to the Bakau and Sun Wing craft markets, was accompanied by Nuha Touray, Permanent Secretary at the Department of State for Tourism and Culture, Kaliba Senghore, Director-General of the Gambia Tourism Authority (GTA), officials of ASSET and other stakeholders in the  tourism industry. 

The two-week extensive and interactive meetings, will include meetings with craft marketers, hotel managers, hotel tourist taxi-drivers, tourist guides, and fruit-sellers, among others.

Speaking at Bakau Craft Market and Sun Wing, SoS Colley emphasised the need to put  in place coordinated activities within the tourism sector for the promotion and development of tourism in The Gambia.

“Tourists come to The Gambia for holidays and in the course of their stay, they interact with local people and buy products, especially from the craft markets,”  she said.

According to the Tourism SoS, environmental cleanliness and product diversification plays a crucial role in the promotion and development of tourism. She urged the respective craft market association executives to write their complaints to either her Department of State or GTA for redress.

She further assured them of her office’s readiness to work hand-in-glove with stakeholders for the development of tourism in the country.

Kaliba Senghore, Director-General (DG) of the Gambia Tourism Authority (GTA) and Daoud Niang, Development Manager at ASSET, spoke at length on the importance of product diversification, good marketing strategies for effective and efficient use of tourism.

Sainey Singhateh, President of the Bakau Craft Market Association, Aji Awa Jah, President of Sun Wing Craft Market Association, all expressed delight at the SoS’s  visit which, according to them, is a clear manifestation of her Department’s interest in the development of tourism in The Gambia.

At the end of the tour, Bakau Craft Marketer members complained about the lack of a proper drainage system, electricity and the need to build a new craft market for them.

Sun Wing market members also complained of the need to have regular periodic exhibitions of their products in the area.