Hon.
Minister of Lands and Regional Government, Lamin N. Dibba, has said land is a
very critical matter in the West Coast Region, caused by especially the
rural-urban migration.
Hon.
Dibba made this comment last Friday in an interview with this reporter at his
office in Banjul.
“This
is all because of the population increase in this area, which is swelling day
by day and that has impacted negatively on the cost of land,” the lands
minister said, adding that the value of land is also skyrocketing day by day
and as a result it has become critical as it turns into scarce commodity.
On
the issue of numbering streets, the lands minister said Banjul is a smaller
settlement, which interestingly is the seat of government. “It has been the capital of this country and
the only capital of The Gambia so obviously some of those facilities which are
provided in Banjul are absent in many other places in The Gambia,” he said.
He
said the government is working hard, together with the support of the UNDP, to
embark on mapping strategy for naming streets and numbering houses for the
whole the country.
The
minister further emphasised the importance of land to a nation, saying: “Land
is so crucial that day by day we sit down and reflect, have our mental debate
looking at ways and means of developing the land so that people living on the
land would be comfortable.”
