The Gambian government signed a terrible bridge deal with Africa50 that should make us all angry. Looking at the math again, I can tell you Finance Minister Seedy Keita lost our country more than 100 million dollars. President Barrow's team gave away the Senegambia Bridge to Africa50 for 25 years. They wrongly called this an "asset recycling" plan. The government will get a one-time payment of $100 million. Africa50 then takes over bridge operations for a quarter century.
The $100 million payment severely undervalues what the bridge is worth. The bridge should be priced based on how much money it can make during its life. Bridge income comes from the tolls paid by vehicles crossing it. Between 2019 and 2023, about 530,000 vehicles used the bridge each year, ranging from motorcycles to large trucks. The bridge earned around 327 million dalasi yearly during this time.
Africa50 hired experts who studied traffic patterns and made predictions through 2048. But our Finance Minister never did his homework. He relied completely on Africa50's numbers instead of checking them independently. My traffic calculations show annual crossings will exceed 800,000 by 2025. By 2035, more than a million vehicles will cross yearly. The number will reach almost 1.4 million by 2048.
The bridge charges different tolls based on vehicle size, from 50 dalasi to 2,000 dalasi per crossing. When you add up all future revenue until 2048, the bridge should generate about $500 million. Subtract the $100 million Africa50 pays us, and they keep $400 million. The bridge remains nearly new at that point, with many useful years left. Even after maintenance costs, the government should have received at least $200 million upfront.
Our Finance Minister serves as a perfect example of who should never hold public office. I challenge the Ministry to release their financial models if they disagree with my math. Every Gambian citizen deserves to see these documents to understand how badly this deal hurts us. The country will actually receive less than $100 million because construction costs for toll facilities come out of that amount.
Gambians have not been told that Africa50 pays zero taxes during these 25 years. This makes absolutely no sense. Africa50 built nothing new. The bridge already exists and makes money. They face no financial risk because the bridge generates cash from day one. Their profits will be huge, yet they have paid nothing to our treasury for 25 years.
The worst part limits our national development for decades. The contract forbids building any infrastructure that might reduce traffic on this bridge. Every Gambian should know we need many bridges across the River Gambia to connect our country properly. Only someone without love for their country would agree to such a harmful restriction.
This Africa50 agreement represents a complete betrayal by high-ranking officials. It shows extreme incompetence and lack of patriotism from those who negotiated it. Any functioning government would hold these people accountable for such a bad deal. Hopefully, Gambians will soon see justice done.
The $100 million payment severely undervalues what the bridge is worth. The bridge should be priced based on how much money it can make during its life. Bridge income comes from the tolls paid by vehicles crossing it. Between 2019 and 2023, about 530,000 vehicles used the bridge each year, ranging from motorcycles to large trucks. The bridge earned around 327 million dalasi yearly during this time.
Africa50 hired experts who studied traffic patterns and made predictions through 2048. But our Finance Minister never did his homework. He relied completely on Africa50's numbers instead of checking them independently. My traffic calculations show annual crossings will exceed 800,000 by 2025. By 2035, more than a million vehicles will cross yearly. The number will reach almost 1.4 million by 2048.
The bridge charges different tolls based on vehicle size, from 50 dalasi to 2,000 dalasi per crossing. When you add up all future revenue until 2048, the bridge should generate about $500 million. Subtract the $100 million Africa50 pays us, and they keep $400 million. The bridge remains nearly new at that point, with many useful years left. Even after maintenance costs, the government should have received at least $200 million upfront.
Our Finance Minister serves as a perfect example of who should never hold public office. I challenge the Ministry to release their financial models if they disagree with my math. Every Gambian citizen deserves to see these documents to understand how badly this deal hurts us. The country will actually receive less than $100 million because construction costs for toll facilities come out of that amount.
Gambians have not been told that Africa50 pays zero taxes during these 25 years. This makes absolutely no sense. Africa50 built nothing new. The bridge already exists and makes money. They face no financial risk because the bridge generates cash from day one. Their profits will be huge, yet they have paid nothing to our treasury for 25 years.
The worst part limits our national development for decades. The contract forbids building any infrastructure that might reduce traffic on this bridge. Every Gambian should know we need many bridges across the River Gambia to connect our country properly. Only someone without love for their country would agree to such a harmful restriction.
This Africa50 agreement represents a complete betrayal by high-ranking officials. It shows extreme incompetence and lack of patriotism from those who negotiated it. Any functioning government would hold these people accountable for such a bad deal. Hopefully, Gambians will soon see justice done.
