By Kebba A.F. Touray
The National Assembly is considering legislation aimed at strengthening environmental protection, safeguarding natural resources and making individuals and organisations more accountable for activities that damage the environment.
The National Environment Management Bill, 2025, was before lawmakers on Monday, 19 October 2026, as the legislature continued its consideration of the proposed law.
Introduced in 2025 by Environment Minister Rohey John Manjang, the bill seeks to establish a comprehensive legal framework for the protection, conservation and sustainable management of the environment. Presenting the bill, Minister Manjang told lawmakers that it was designed to address the effects of environmental degradation on public health, biodiversity and socio-economic development.
She said the proposed law would also promote better coordination of activities that affect the environment and ensure that environmental concerns are considered in national development plans.
“It also aims to safeguard the environment as a common heritage for both present and future generations by reinforcing principles such as sustainable development, accountability, public participation, the polluter-pays principle, and the precautionary principle,” she told the Assembly.
The minister said the bill would bring national environmental policies into line with international obligations while encouraging cooperation among government institutions, the private sector and local communities.
“This will ensure that environmental protection becomes a shared responsibility among all stakeholders, and invariably contribute significantly to safeguarding natural resources, improving public health, and promoting socio-economic development, thereby ensuring a balanced relationship between development and environmental conservation,” she said.
According to Minister Manjang, the proposed law responds to the growing recognition that environmental damage threatens public health, biodiversity and economic progress.
She said it would also address the need for long-term planning, coordinated environmental management and greater public involvement in protecting natural resources.
The bill further seeks to ensure that action to protect the environment is not delayed by scientific uncertainty. It also aims to make polluters responsible for the costs of measures needed to reduce or repair environmental damage.
“The enactment of the Bill is essential in fostering an environmentally sustainable future for The Gambia,” the minister said.
The proposed legislation places responsibility for environmental protection on everyone in The Gambia.
Clause 5(1) states: “Every person in The Gambia shall have a stake and a duty to safeguard and enhance the environment and to inform the Agency or any relevant authority of any activity that affects or is likely to affect the environment adversely”.
Clause 5(2) further states that “every person shall cooperate with state organs to protect and conserve the environment and to ensure the ecologically sustainable development and use of natural resources”.
These provisions seek to encourage public participation in environmental protection and require people to cooperate with state authorities in conserving natural resources.
Clause 6 sets out the principles of environmental management and the objectives of the proposed law.
Under Clause 6(1), the objective is to provide for and promote the enhancement, protection, conservation and management of the environment.
Clause 6(2) provides for a legal framework to coordinate activities that may conflict with environmental objectives and integrate them into a sustainable environmental management system.
It also provides for technical support to ministries, agencies and the private sector to help them incorporate environmental considerations into their activities. The proposed law would therefore establish a framework for cooperation between public institutions, businesses and communities in managing the country’s environmental resources.
The third reading of the bill is scheduled for Thursday, 29 October 2026, when lawmakers are expected to continue its consideration.
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