{"id":92870,"date":"2026-01-02T11:01:19","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T11:01:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/uncategorized\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government"},"modified":"2026-01-02T11:37:52","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T11:37:52","slug":"waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government","title":{"rendered":"Waste Crisis is Councils\u2019 Responsibility not Central Government"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. <\/strong><\/span>The Minister of Environment, Climate Change, and Natural Resources, Rohey John Manjang, said on Monday that responsibility for waste collection and disposal rests with local councils, not the central government, as she warned that the growing waste management crisis\u2014particularly in the Greater Banjul Area\u2014has reached an alarming level.<\/b><\/p>\n

Speaking to the media, Ms. Manjang said councils have consistently failed to meet public demand for waste services despite collecting taxes specifically intended for that purpose.<\/p>\n

\u201cWaste collection and disposal is not the responsibility of the central government but the councils to whom we pay our taxes,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The minister noted that rapid population growth, especially in urban areas, has compounded the problem, turning waste management into a broader national concern. She said that since independence, local councils have struggled to keep pace with rising demand, a situation she described as unsustainable.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately, since independence, the councils have been unable to meet the demand, particularly with the increasing population in the Greater Banjul Area,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s becoming a crisis that no serious government should ignore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ms. Manjang also questioned the effectiveness of informal community clean-up exercises, commonly known as set-settal, when they are conducted without proper legal procedures. She said existing environmental laws do not support the closure of businesses or mandatory shutdowns for such activities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe thought the usual set-settal that was happening here without following the due process is not the way to think because we have the anti-litter law that doesn\u2019t give us the right to close shops and stop businesses on Saturdays to do a set-settal,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Instead, she said, the government is pursuing long-term and sustainable solutions aligned with development goals and environmental standards. \u201cWe want a system that will be sustainable, that will at least pay dividends with respect to environmentally friendly standards,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The minister emphasized that effective waste management requires substantial financial investment as well as technical expertise, noting that several proposals have been submitted to the government over the years.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt requires heavy investment, but not only investment but also expertise,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Ms. Manjang added that waste management remains a priority at the presidency, stressing that infrastructure development must be accompanied by efforts to maintain a clean and healthy environment. \u201cWaste management is not an easy thing to do,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Gambia<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. The Minister of Environment, Climate Change, and Natural Resources, Rohey John Manjang, said on Monday that responsibility for waste collection and disposal rests with local councils, not the central government, as she warned that the growing waste management crisis\u2014particularly in the Greater Banjul Area\u2014has reached an alarming level. Speaking to the media, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":92869,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,12],"tags":[260],"class_list":["post-92870","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-gambia"],"yoast_head":"\nWaste Crisis is Councils\u2019 Responsibility not Central Government - Gambia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Minister of Environment, Climate Change, and Natural Resources, Rohey John Manjang, said on Monday that responsib ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Waste Crisis is Councils\u2019 Responsibility not Central Government\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Minister of Environment, Climate Change, and Natural Resources, Rohey John Manjang, said on Monday that responsib ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gambia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-01-02T11:01:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-01-02T11:37:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2026\/01\/sm_1767341202.997203.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Waste Crisis is Councils\u2019 Responsibility not Central Government\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-02T11:01:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-02T11:37:52+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government\"},\"wordCount\":407,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2026\/01\/sm_1767341202.997203.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Gambia\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/waste-crisis-is-councils-responsibility-not-central-government\",\"name\":\"Waste Crisis is Councils\u2019 Responsibility not Central Government - 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