The Tourism minister made the remarks during a dialogue with Tourism stakeholders organised by the Ministry of Tourism and Gambia Tourism Board (GT Board).
The two day stakeholders’ engagement is currently under way at a local hotel in Kololi.
Tourism Minister Jobe said that the horse riders may be banned from the beaches if they fail to take the necessary measures as his ministry and Gambia Tourism Board would not allow the them to leave animal dung and other debris on the beaches making it dirty for others.
He said even in European countries, the animal owners take the responsibility of the activities carried out by their animals.
According to him, the tourists come to The Gambia for three things such as the natural environment, the sun and the beaches. “If we do not clean our beaches it will be very difficult to promote Destination Gambia,” he observed.
The Tourism minister has also challenged the GT Board to properly monitor the beaches as it is playing a very important part in the development of the Tourism sector in the country.
"We are not here for only talking but to share ideas that will bring the solutions to the challenges the industry is facing in The Gambia," he said.
He encouraged all the operators in the industry to come forward and discuss the issues affecting the development of the tourism industry in the country, to give guidance to the government and find solutions to the challenges the sector is facing.
He called on the participants to make the best of use of the dialogue and bring out the solutions that will improve the sector for the best interest of the Gambian and the betterment of the country.
Lamin Komma, a participant from the National Environment Agency (NEA), said it is part of the NEA’s mandate to join with the stakeholders to protect the environment most specially at the beaches, noting that protecting the environment means saving the lives of the Gambian people and residents.
Omar Sanyang, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Smile for Life, called on the stakeholders to come together and bring business strategies that would be used to improve the Tourism sector across the country.
Alimatou Baldeh, a participant from the Food Safety and Quality Authority (FSQA), called on the Ministry of Tourism and GTBoard to work hand-in-glove with FSQA to promote food safety within the tourism industry.
David Adams, also a participant, called for the implementation of policies that guide the development of the Tourism sector across the country.
