Gambia: Senegambia bridge

Thanks to European colonialism and the way Africa was irrationally and brutally carved up, Gambia was created as two thin strips either side of the Gambia river, to give the British access to the river and the Atlantic coast for trading stolen goods and human beings.

Tiny Gambia (only about 4,000sq miles, although densely populated with 2.1m people) is entirely surrounded by Senegal, a country within a country, and as the French colonised Senegal, the official language is French, cross the border and its English.

This map in a bar in Serrekunda, Gambia shows the absurdity of the colonial borders.

We left Nioro du Rip early to head inland so that we could cross the border at the Senegambia bridge which, after a long time in the planning between Senegal & Gambia, had just celebrated its first birthday.

It’s impossible to capture the might of the Gambia river from Lenny’s window, this was the best we could do.

Once in Gambia, I must admit it was a relief to be able to communicate with officials in English about our & Lenny’s paperwork.

A young Department of Health official with an air of rapidly deployed intern about him took our temperatures by pointing a laser thermometer at our foreheads and despite it being 38c, luckily we passed the test. The avuncular border guard sat beside him told us as a small and poor country, they were very worried about the impact of Coronavirus.

Once across the river we took South Bank Road all the way back to the Atlantic coast, driving past small villages which had the same style and layout as the villages lining the roads in Senegal. Many of the villages’ mother tongue will be Wolof, just like in Senegal.

One difference we noticed in Gambia, other than the colonial language, was many more signs lining the road telling us about investment from the EU, European countries, US & NGOs; health, education and agricultural programmes. I guess in such a small country the investment can be more focused, or at least the promotion of it can be.