Africa-Press – Gambia. In a swift and coordinated intervention, the Gambia Immigration Department (GID), in collaboration with public health authorities and law enforcement, has launched a medical response following disturbing health conditions observed among minors residing at Daara Medina Suwaneh, a Quranic boarding school near Brufut Heights.
According to the GID, the operation, which unfolded over the weekend, was triggered by a chance encounter between GID Director General Ebrima Mboob and a group of young boys at Brufut beach. The minors, believed to be students of the daara, were seen swimming while exhibiting visible signs of skin infections, including rashes, wounds, and lesions—symptoms that immediately raised public health alarms
In response, the GID mobilised a multi-agency team comprising its Child Welfare Unit, Intelligence Unit, and the Gambia Police Force’s Child Welfare Unit and a formal inspection was swiftly organised on the school premises, leading to the initial relocation of 61 students—widely referred to as Talibehs—to Brusubi Police Station for further medical screening and administrative processing.
The GID said medical assessments were then conducted by health officials from the Sukuta and Brufut Health Centres, under the supervision of the Regional Principal Public Health Officer of Western Region 1, alongside personnel from the Epidemiology and Disease Control Unit of the Ministry of Health. “Preliminary findings confirmed that 57 out of a total of 101 minors were suffering from scabies, a highly contagious skin disease caused by parasitic mites and aggravated by poor hygiene and overcrowded living conditions”.
Among those affected are 35 Gambians, 17 Senegalese, and 5 Bissau-Guinean nationals. Authorities have flagged the dire state of the living quarters, emphasising that the cramped and unsanitary environment at the school not only endangered the health of the children but also facilitated the rapid spread of infection.
Public health officers have since taken over the case, administering treatment and coordinating further response efforts. Officials have also underscored the negligence of the guardians and caretakers who failed to seek appropriate medical assistance for the affected children, thus worsening their conditions.
The GID further confirmed that Director General Mboob has held a teleconference with the National Security Adviser, Director of Public Health, the Minister of Presidential Affairs (who also serves as Chief of Staff), and the Senegalese Defence Attaché. The emergency meeting produced actionable steps aimed at enforcing remedial measures and strengthening child protection frameworks. The Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Welfare is expected to play a pivotal role in the next phase of the response.
“This situation is a wake-up call,” the GID emphasised in its public appeal. “We urge parents and guardians to be vigilant about the conditions under which their children are living, particularly those placed in religious boarding institutions,” according to the release.
The Department further called on key ministries—including Lands and Regional Government, Religious Affairs, Health, Basic and Secondary Education, and Gender, Children and Social Welfare—to collaborate in developing stringent oversight mechanisms for religious and private educational institutions. The goal, officials say, is to ensure that all children in The Gambia, regardless of background, are protected in accordance with the Children’s Act 2005 and international legal standards.
This latest development sheds renewed light on the long-standing issues surrounding talibehs in The Gambia and the broader region—children who are often enrolled in informal Quranic institutions and subjected to harsh living conditions, with limited access to healthcare, education, and protection.
As public health officials continue their intervention, the GID’s press release has triggered broader public debate around the accountability of religious institutions, the role of cross-border migration in child welfare cases, and the urgent need for systemic child protection reforms in The Gambia.
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