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Message: [QUOTE="Nehanda, post: 24170, member: 2262"] Gambia Ports Authority to Address Community Concerns Over Port Expansion. The Gambia Ports Authority (GPA) plans to meet with Sanyang residents about their concerns over the ports expansion project, Managing Director Ousman Jobarteh announced Tuesday. The announcement comes after Sanyang villagers, through their lawyer Lamin J Darbo, wrote to GPA expressing worry over plans to relocate 461 properties. The community wants all deep sea port facilities placed in the Tourism Development Area to avoid displacing settlements. In their letter, residents claimed GPA kept them uninformed about the project. "There was no way a project of this magnitude will engage the services of a consultancy company to mark indiscriminately and value properties without some sort of a master plan," they stated. Lawyer Darbo urged officials to build the port facilities on the sparsely settled Tourism Development Area after the old Hawba settlement between Sanyang and Tujereng. This would avoid the "rigorous and extremely expensive legal regime" under Section 22 of the Constitution, he said. The lawyer emphasized the need for adequate compensation for affected properties. Jobarteh told The Standard the GPA recognizes community involvement as essential. The authority has begun working with Sanyang's Village Development Committee (VDC). The Ministry of Transport directed the VDC to name representatives for the Project Steering Committee, which oversees planning and implementation. "All engagement with the Sanyang community will happen through the VDC to ensure proper sensitization," Jobarteh said. He added that this approach reflects GPA's dedication to building positive relationships with communities affected by port operations. The steering committee includes representatives from key government stakeholders. The expansion project aims to improve port infrastructure and equipment. [/QUOTE]

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