It further states that from the map shown, the embassy will not reach the beach area and will not affect the movement of people within the area.
It also said that during the meeting, the task force made its stance unequivocally clear to the officials that “it will not compromise” with the objective of protecting any sacred land which serves as home to the wild animals and trees while condemning the government’s continuous attempts to illegally and unconstitutionally de-reserve portions of the Bijilo Forest for an embassy, when there are multiple strategic locations in the country where the intended structures can be built.
The taskforce tourist experts also highlighted the significant loss of tourist attractions in The Gambia, especially within the metropolitan areas of Banjul where most of the remaining forest cover has now completely disappeared forcing communities to deal with unprecedented flooding and rising heat waves due to climate change.
The alliance renewed its unalloyed commitment towards the protection and restoration of the “beautiful flora and fauna of the country especially areas under threat.”
The release was issued after representatives of The Gambia Environmental Alliance-Taskforce held a two-day dialogue and roundtable discussion centered on the deadlock surrounding the Bijilo forest on ways it can be preserved without any encroachment by external factors. It was witnessed by the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy, Eric R. Mehler and Technical Due Diligence Committee hired by the United States Embassy in Banjul on 17th and 18th November, 2022.
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