The Gambia has built about 1,200 kilometers of roads since 2017 and is surveying another 1,600 kilometers, Transport, Works and Infrastructure Minister Ebrima Sillah said on November 6, according to the Banjul newspaper The Point. He said the government had addressed more than half of an estimated 4,000-kilometer road deficit. The World Bank is studying 500 kilometers and considering financing 150 of them, he said.
Analysis: The roads built so far equal about 30% of the 4,000-kilometer estimate, by our calculation. The minister's "more than half" therefore holds only if the 1,600 kilometers under survey are counted, which would take the total to 70%. The finance minister said in October that state-funded works would add about 375 kilometers of paved roads by end-2026, at 10.4bn GMD (€122mn). For contractors and suppliers of cement and bitumen, the remaining 2,800 kilometers point to a long pipeline, though the minister named a possible lender for only 150 of them. No date has been set for a World Bank financing decision.
Source: The Point newspaper (Banjul), The Point, 'Sillah: Gov't has addressed more than half of Gambia's road infrastructure deficit', November 9, 2026 (minister's remarks at the Mansa Kunda ministerial town hall, November 6, 2026), Statement of November 6, 2026 and 2017 to November 2026 and November 2026; Foroyaa Newspaper (Serrekunda), Minister of Finance's 2027 Budget Speech to the National Assembly, October 23, 2026, as reported by Foroyaa (October 23, 2026), Cumulative to end-2026 (expected) and Cumulative to end-2026 (estimate); The Alkamba Times, The Alkamba Times, 'Barrow Inaugurates 12.6km Roads Linking Five Greater Banjul Communities', November 5, 2026, Inaugurated Thursday November 5, 2026; The Alkamba Times, The Alkamba Times, 'President Barrow Inaugurates Abuko-Banjulinding Road', November 8, 2026, Inaugurated Saturday November 7, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), Central Bank of The Gambia homepage, Daily Valuation Rates as at November 10, 2026, November 10, 2026