Food Scavenging A Reality In The Gambia!!!

…Students Dodged School Scavenging For Food In This Waste Dumping Site

By Staff Writer Charles Williams, Banjul       

The tiny impoverished West African country of The Gambia, is on the brink total economic collapse, the Freedom Newspaper can authoritatively report. These kids you are watching online, spent hours at the Bakoteh waste dumping site, scavenging for food, scrap metals and clothing. These are school going students. They dodged school to find survival at what is considered here as a  waste dumping site. This site is not health friendly at all. Snakes, mosquitoes and other wild animals frequent the dumping site. The scavenging kids are vulnerable to environmental pollutant diseases.

Food scavenging  is now a reality in The Gambia. Economic hardship and destitution forces these kids to pick up whatever food or equipment they come across at the dumping site. Many kids are dropping out of school due to parental neglect and economic hardship.

The Bakoteh dumping site, is becoming a popular place for scavenging. This reporter  visited the site on Monday, where he took a  photograph of the scavenging kids. These kids have tales of stories to narrate to the Freedom Newspaper. They said due to increasing economic hardship, they were compelled to venture into such risky health hazard related activities.

In an interview with the Freedom Newspaper, a child scavenger narrated his ordeal by saying that he and his brothers do not have lunch when going to school. According to him,  they have no means of survival other than  to Scavenge for food, metal and clothing at the site. He says they sell the metals and part of its proceeds were used to take care of their school lunch.

"It's apparent that we cannot cater the basic needs of our children due to poverty. I and my husband are living in the abyss of uncertainties as you can see our children do not have access to education due to poverty. It’s  not a wisdom for a school going child to be involved in scavenging, but we have no choice” said Sainabou Jammeh,the mother of one of the affected child.

Many Gambians have raised eye browse over the Jammeh government inability to provide the needs of students. Over  the years,  thousands of young Gambians have become school dropouts due to the exorbitant school fees,  coupled with the economic crisis affecting the country.

 In another development, the Nigerian editor, who was charged with publishing false information regarding the scavnging kids had his case adjourned.

 Today Monday 29th, the sedition trial against the proprietor of Today Newspaper Mr.Abdul hamid Adiamoh did not proceed at the Kanifing Magistrates'Court before Magistrate Buba Jawo.

The case was called by the court clerk, but the defence counsel Lamin S.Camara   was on his foot and told the court that his client was on his way coming to the court. At this juncture counsel Camara appealed for an adjournment which was not objected by the State Prosecutor, Touray.The case is slated to resume on the 15th October for consideration of hearing.