When her husband fell sick and unable to work five years ago, Binta Bojang dutifully put the full burden of her household on her shoulders. She’s since been engaged in vegetable gardening. Like many other women in her native Sanyang Village, she depends on the small income to put food on the plate for her extended family. But her source of livelihood is being threatened, thanks to the hunt for mineral sand buried under the very soil she uses to grow her crops.

“This is my life,” she says, pointing at rows of garden beds of infant unions, tomatoes and garden eggs that she planted in Sansanding, an area in the outskirts of the village of Sanyang where scores of women from the village grow their crops.

“But we are suffering,” she adds. “Anything we cultivate here does not survive. They have brought machines and destroyed our land. They came here, promised to fix the damage and compensate us. But we’ve not seen anything.”

She’s referring to the miners.

In her garden, while preparing new beds for her crops, Binta would pause to stare at the giant mining machine, just about 30 meters from her garden. The fence is made of palm tree branches, so she has the full view of the mining activities.

For the miners outside her area, there is no dull moment. The roars of a giant dredging machine echoes from a small artificial stream. The Chinese contractors, employed by Gach Mining Company, are busy hunting for rutile, Ilmenite and Zircon. Binta and the women in the garden have no idea about the shiny little things being churned out and trucked away, but they are in no doubt that her land – and perhaps her life – is being destroyed.

The story of mining is a story of corruption

Kombo South, laying about 50 kilometers from Banjul, the capital, is famous for tourism, fisheries, agriculture and recently estate development. Now, the place is also endowed with deposits of heavy mineral sand which is mined and exported to China where it is made into glass and paints used in construction.

In the 1990s, under President Jawara, a ban was placed on mining of the minerals in order ‘to protect the Coast’. This was lifted in 2005, under President Jammeh. License was granted to an Australian company Carnegie Minerals for commercial exploitation of the mineral sand.

Records from the Ministry of Energy show that as of 2004, a year before the commencement of exploitation, the villages of Sanyang, Kartong and Batokunku was home to 682,200 metric tonnes of mineral sand deposits. After years of mining in the area, as of 2016, the reserve has been reduced to 438, 778 metric tonnes.

Meanwhile, three years into the operations of the Australian company, President Jammeh revoked the license and soon afterwards, Gambia African Mining International Company (GAMICO), an entity owned by one of his close associates, Muhammed Bazzi, took over operations at the mining sites. In 2015, Jammeh himself took full control of the mining operations through his company Alhamdulillah Petroleum and Minerals Company (APAM).

In July 2017, barely five months after assuming office, the Barrow administration commissioned an inquiry into the assets and financial dealings of the former president, Yahya Jammeh. The mining sector, which had been a province of President Jammeh, was subject of intense scrunity. The operations in the industry had been characterised by corruption scandals and protests over the damage being caused to the environment.

In its findnigs, the Commission says that GAMICO owes D13.2 million as royalties and D28.9 million as tax liabilities. APAM has not paid either royalties or tax to the state, despite generating revenue of US$677 thousand from the sale of mineral sand (approx. D34.9 million) and D55 million from the sale of white sand.

Madi Jobarteh is a civil society leader, who has been closely observing issues around the extractives industry and called for reforms in the sector.

“The mining industry is an area that has gained huge attention of the level of corruption involved and the huge damage to the environment and on livelihoods,” he told Malagen.

 

He added: “The Gambia needs a new law on extractives industries to ensure that there is total transparency and maximum benefit is accrued to the communities.”

 

The story of mining is a story of corruption

Kombo South, laying about 50 kilometers from Banjul, the capital, is famous for tourism, fisheries, agriculture and recently estate development. Now, the place is also endowed with deposits of heavy mineral sand which is mined and exported to China where it is made into glass and paints used in construction.

In the 1990s, under President Jawara, a ban was placed on mining of the minerals in order ‘to protect the Coast’. This was lifted in 2005, under President Jammeh. License was granted to an Australian company Carnegie Minerals for commercial exploitation of the mineral sand.

Records from the Ministry of Energy show that as of 2004, a year before the commencement of exploitation, the villages of Sanyang, Kartong and Batokunku was home to 682,200 metric tonnes of mineral sand deposits. After years of mining in the area, as of 2016, the reserve has been reduced to 438, 778 metric tonnes.

Meanwhile, three years into the operations of the Australian company, President Jammeh revoked the license and soon afterwards, Gambia African Mining International Company (GAMICO), an entity owned by one of his close associates, Muhammed Bazzi, took over operations at the mining sites. In 2015, Jammeh himself took full control of the mining operations through his company Alhamdulillah Petroleum and Minerals Company (APAM).

In July 2017, barely five months after assuming office, the Barrow administration commissioned an inquiry into the assets and financial dealings of the former president, Yahya Jammeh. The mining sector, which had been a province of President Jammeh, was subject of intense scrunity. The operations in the industry had been characterised by corruption scandals and protests over the damage being caused to the environment.

In its findnigs, the Commission says that GAMICO owes D13.2 million as royalties and D28.9 million as tax liabilities. APAM has not paid either royalties or tax to the state, despite generating revenue of US$677 thousand from the sale of mineral sand (approx. D34.9 million) and D55 million from the sale of white sand.

Madi Jobarteh is a civil society leader, who has been closely observing issues around the extractives industry and called for reforms in the sector.

“The mining industry is an area that has gained huge attention of the level of corruption involved and the huge damage to the environment and on livelihoods,” he told Malagen.

 

He added: “The Gambia needs a new law on extractives industries to ensure that there is total transparency and maximum benefit is accrued to the communities.”

 

The old government’s ways are the new government’s pathways

In October 2017, barely eight months after assuming office, and four months after launching an inquiry into Jammeh’s corrupt practices, the Barrow administration awarded licence for resumption of mining of mineral sand in Sanyang.

Investigation by Malagen reveals similarities that are as striking as they are disturbing, between the Jammeh administration and the Barrow administration, in their handling of mining operations:

Jammeh operated in the sector through presidential directives. His company, APAM, did not obtain operational licenses. He gave mining contracts to his close associates. Under Barrow, the awardee is GACH Mining Company whose de facto owner is a close associate of President Adama Barrow.

Under President Jammeh, mining companies, GAMICO and APAM in particular, did not even pay taxes to the state. Under President Barrow, the company in charge, GACH, does not even keep a tax file with the tax authorities and has not been paying taxes.

Under President Jammeh, mining companies, in violation of environmental laws, carried out mining activities without environmental clearance from the National Environment Agency. Under President Barrow, the company in charge has been escavating and exporting without environmental license from the environmental watchdog.

Under President Jammeh, mining companies, in violation of environmental laws, do not restore damages caused to the environment. Under President Barrow, the same practice prevails.

Under President Jammeh, from the millions of dollars of revenue accrued from mining by GAMICO and APAM, and before them Carnergie Minerals, zero dollars was utilised for the benefit of the affected communities or the state. Under President Barrow, the amounts that land on the accounts of the state come in piecemeal and the total so far seems to be pittance when compared to the estimates of revenue generated and agreed share distribution.

Accordingly, the Janneh Commission recommends for community participation in the mining licensing process.

“The process should involve community participation both at the level of the area council and village development committees,” the Commission says.

This wasn’t done.

Who owns GACH Mining

The GACH Mining Company is a limited liability entity registered in June, 2017, with a share capital of D1 million and granted mining license four months later. The company is jointly owned by a Surakata Jawara who holds 95 percent of shares and one Abubakary Jagana keeps 5 percent.

Surakata is an elusive figure. There is no information publicly available online about him. Persons close to the company do not seem to know about him. The Director of Geology Deparment seems lost about his stakes in the business. But official records show that he lives in Fajara while his partner, Mr Jagana lives in Kanifing.

Meanwhile, Abubakary Jawara, 45, the de facto owner is the secretary to the company, according to their registration details. Jawara is a Gambian businessman who has risen to prominence following the change of government.

At least four business outfits have been registered under the Gach brand since the change of government and Abubakary holds the major share in all of them, except the mining outfit. For example, he owns 99 percent shares in Gach Global Trading Company Limited; and 85 percent shares in Gach Security Company Limited.

Born in Gambisara in the Upper River Region of The Gambia, and known in a local lyrics as ‘Gambisara Boyo’, the 45-year-old reportedly started his business in Nigeria in 1994. He moved to Angola in 1995. In 2003, he travelled to China. It is not clear what kind of businesses he was doing in those countries.

His public profile accessible online says he was appointed as the Gambia’s Counselor General to China in 2016, a position he still claims to hold.

But that Abubakary Jawara and the President Adama Barrow have a close and strong relationship is an open secret. Neither of them, though, is willing to acknowledge it in public.

In 2018, President Barrow confirmed to a Fatu Network interview that his government had issued mining license. Curiously, though, he claimed that he forgot the name of the company given the licence.

Months later, however, in November 2018, Abubakary Jawara was at the State House to present to President Barrow his Africa Leadership Award.

Besides, Abubakary has donated to political allies of President Barrow and he is one of the chief financiers of President Barrow Youth for National Development, a heavily criticised ‘non-partisan’ popular youth group that has since morphed into a political party.

The office of the foundation of the Gambian First Lady, Fatou Bah-Barrow Foundation, is housed at Abubakary’s building, Fatima Plaza, slightly adjacent to the Independent Electoral Commission in Kanifing. The building is named after Abubakary’s wife.

Environmental laws flouted

Following its inquiry covering the environmental issues affecting the communities where mineral sand is mined, the Janneh Commission recommends that no further mining should take place in the coastal areas without an independent assesment. This however, has not been adhered to.

The Gambia has laws that protect the environment. But since mining is carried out by the president himself, as in the case of Jammeh or the president’s men, as the case of both Jammeh and Barrow, the laws are flouted.

And the findings of the Janneh Commission indicate that both the Geology Department – the agency that regulates mining – and the National Environment Agency have failed in their duty to ensure that adequate measures are put in place to protect the environment in these mining areas.

The Mines and Quarries Act 2005 states in no uncertain terms that any applicant seeking mining license should submit a project brief, and an environmental management plan. Each licensee is required to provide a bond of US$30,000 within 30 days from the granting of the licence.

The purpose of the bond is to finance the cost of the site rehabilitation to make mining areas safe on expiry, surrender, cancellation or termination of the license. This enables the NEA to appraise the environmental friendliness of the project. The NEA would issue institutions deserving an environmental clearance license to conduct mining.

However, this process was not followed by GACH Mining, according to Lamin Camara, the head of the NEA Environmental Impact Assessment department.

“We are not aware of the GACH mining in Sanyang,” added Malick Bah, director of technical services department at the NEA.

However, Malagen is aware that a delegation comprising officials from the National Environment Agency, Ministry of Energy – led by the permanent secretary and Geology Department – led by deputy director general, has recently visited the GACH mining sites.

“We don’t care what political connections you have but you have to correct this,” our source quoted a senior NEA official as telling GACH CEO Jawara while on the visit to the sites.

Malagen cannot independently verify whether the visits were prompted by its ongoing investigations.

 

Potential tax liability of D2 million   

Under the laws of The Gambia, every registered company is required to file a tax return. The Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA) keeps a tax file for every business.

However, tax avoidance and tax evasion seem pervasive in the mining industry. In six years of its operations, accruing a revenue of more than US$18 million (approx. D349.3 million), GAMICO paid corporate tax of only D1.8million, leaving an outstanding tax liability of D28.9 million, according to records from the Gambia Revenue Authority.

APAM, the company owned by President Jammeh himself and in charge of mining before GACH took over, paid zero dollars in taxes despite generating more than US$600 thousand (approx. D30 million) in revenue in two years of its operations.

The ways of doing business is not different under the new government. Gach Mining Company has not been paying tax and as of February 2020, does not even have a tax file at the GRA since its registration in June 2017.

The company has not been granted tax break, Malagen has confirmed. It is Gach Tomato, a subsidiary of Gach Global Trading that has been given a tax exemption by Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA).

Moreover, details of exports being carried out by Gach Mining are not featured in the database of GRA for the years 2017, 2018 and 2019.

According to a senior tax official who wishes not to be identified in the story, the fact that there is no trace of GACH’s export information in the customs database means either the company does not record its export information or is exporting under an alias.

He said: “This is problematic because according to our laws, one should not use another person’s tax identification number or name to export or import.”

Meanwhile, official records seen by Malagen show that, from 2017 to February 2020, GACH has exported a total of 599 containers of 20-foot each.

Further, investigation by Malagen reveals that the Gambia Revenue Authority has recently served a notice to GACH over tax liabilities. The projections by the tax authorities is that the company has more than D13 million in tax liabilities.

This figure, however, could be understated as it does not take into account revenue generated by GACH Mining from the sale of mineral sand.

When supplied with the information about the total number of containers exported and expected revenue, a senior tax official estimated that the company should have paid at least D2 million in tax.

 

The terms and numbers do not add up

The terms of licensing agreed between the government and Gach Mining Company is that the net profit from mining proceeds will be shared. The government will take 60 percent and the company 40 percent.

In March 2019, the Energy Minister, Mr Fafa Sanyang, appeared before the National Assembly to answer questions relating to mining. He said although Gach Mining did not commence mining at the time, the company had exported the stockpile of 4,376 tonnes of heavy mineral concentrate that the state has seized from Apam after the change of government.

The sale of the stockpile has generated a revenue of US$205 thousand (approx. D10.5 million). A tonne, he said, was sold at US$150, but Mr Alagie Sillah, a former Managing Director of Gach Mining had told a Fatu Network interview that a tonne was sold for US$200. Mr Sillah left the mining company in December, 2018.

In any case, from the sale of the stockpile, the government got US$205 thousand, which is supposed to be the 60 percent for the government. But the figures do not seem to add up. If the price of sand minerals is US$150 per tonne, the sale of 4,376 metric tonnes would generate a total of US$656 thousand (approx. D33.8 million). Sixty percent of that total is US$393 thousand, not US$205,672, as reported by Minister Sanyang. This leaves US$188,168 outstanding.

Morevoer, the terms agreed was for Gach Mining to mine and sell the sand minerals. The net profit should be shared; 60 percent for the government and 40 percent for the company. In this case, however, Gach only exported the sand minerals mined by another company and did not incur production cost. Yet, the agreed share distribution applies, a position defended by Lamin Camara, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Energy.

He told Malagen: “Even where GACH did not mine the minerals, the company did the marketing and sales.”

The devil is in the details

Offical records seen by Malagen show that, from 2017 to 2018, GACH Mining has exported a total of 208 containers to China. On average, a 20-foot container carries 27 tonnes of sand minerals. This means an estimated total of 5616 tonnes has been shipped out, which would generate a revenue of US$842 thousand, given that a tonne is reportedly sold for US$150.

However, the revenue accrued from mining has not been reflected in the national budget, both for 2017 and 2018.

In 2019, Malagen has confirmed that a total of 351 twenty-foot containers were shipped out to China. This would have generated a revenue of US$1.4 million (D72 million).

However, in the budget projection for 2019, the government estimated the revenue to be D35 Million. In that year however, GACH made four separate payments to government, totaling only US$193 thousand (approx. D9.9 million), representing less than 20 percent of projected revenue.

Malagen has confirmed that the royalties paid to the government from mining proceeds is held in a special account at the Central Bank. GACH, on the other hand, operates an account at the First International Bank, from where the company transfers funds to the mining account at the Central Bank.

Our study of the accounts reveal a discrepancy between the figures presented by the officials of the Energy Minstry and the funds that have actually landed in the accounts at the Central Bank. The Minster of Energy had told National Assembly that US$205, 672 has been paid to the government, from 2017 to 2019. But, as of April 2020, the mining account received a deposit of US$293, 866.

The payment started in 2018 with US$99,917, followed by four separate payments totalling $193,949. The last payment was made in November last year.

Meanwhile, official records obtained by Malagen show that, from 2017 to 2019, a total of 559 twenty-foot containers of heavy mineral sand has been exported to China. On average, each of those containers carry 27 tonnes. This would have accrued a minimum revenue of US$2.2 million (approx D115.6 million)

In 2020 alone – as of beginning of February – at least 40 twenty-foot containers of heavy minerals have been exported. No payment has been made to the government, as of April 16, 2020.

The payment of US$205, 672, as reported by the Energy Minister or US$293,866 – the amount that landed in the account – represent less than 13 percent of the total revenue generated from the sale of nearly six hundred 20-foot containers, made from 2017 to 2020.

Yet, the Energy Minister, in his appearance before the National Assembly, said that the government is getting what it deserves from the mining. His permanent secretary, Lamin Camara told Malagen that Gach does provide the minstry with their account statements to ensure its rightful share from the minerals. He however declined to make available the account statements collected from Gach in order to independently verify that claim.

Geology Department – no reforms

The Gambia’s mining industry is reputed to be corrupt. The Geology Department, the governmental agency that regulates the industry has been at the centre of it.

In 2017, the role of the agency became a subject of an investigation when the new government established an inquiry into the assets and finances of the former President Yahay Jammeh and his close associates.

The probe unearths corrupt practices and abuse of authority and process on the part of the Geology Department.

“The Geology Department, in particular, under its directors from 2011 allowed themselves to be placed in a position of conflict when the Ex-President used the department to carry out mining operations,” the Janneh Commission says.

“Any form of mining or sale of sand, excavated material or minerals is inconsistent with their (Geology Department) role as regulators and is not provided for under the Mines and Quarries Act.”

The Commission calls for investigation into the sale of construction sand by the Geology Department and urges the government to seek expertise to ‘reform the Geology Department, re-orient its role and build its “capacity to properly regulate the mining sector”.

However, investigation done by Malagen reveals that the allegation of sale of construction sand has not been investigated. The Geology Department has not been reformed. The leadership and the staff remain the same.

“In fact, with regard to Gamico, it was Abdoulie Cham (the Managing Director of Geology Department)  who recommended that the mining operations of Gamico should continue and even be expanded to gravel and other areas under the Department,” the Janneh Commission reveals.

That Abdoulie Cham turns out to be the same person whose role it was to advise the Energy Minister on granting of mining licenses and the mode of operations has not been different.

No reforms, no transparency

Without reforms at the Geology Department, and with the likes of Abdoulie Cham still at the helm, mining operations continue to be veiled in secrecy.

During the course of this investigation, Malagen had through written application and a number of in-person and telephone follow-ups, requested information about the mining operations, including the names of companies awarded license.

“For the license, you cannot have it,” the director Cham said over the phone. “You are not a stakeholder,” he added, refering to the reporter.

Mr Lamin Camara, the permanent secretary, Ministry of Energy, agrees with Cham. In at least two encounters – telephone and face-to-face – with Malagen in February, he maintains that information regarding mining license is not for public consumption.

And when Cham eventually granted audience to Malagen in his office, he declined to answer any question for more than 40 minutes of the encounter. Visibly uncomfortable, he got up many times, pacing about his office and sitting in two different seats.

Curously, he does not seem to be fully aware of the nature of ownership of Gach Mining Corporation.

“Who told you Surakata owns the company,” he says when asked about whether he knows Surakata Jawara owns the company.

He added: “It is not a fact. When you… [publish that], they can sue you,” he warned. When asked who in their records own Gach Mining Company, he would not say.

“Go to Gach company and ask,” he replied. “You have a wrong information.”

But Mr Abubakary Jawara, the CEO of GACH, would not comment. He didn’t receive or return our calls. In April, we sent an SMS, requesting interview. No reply. More calls followed throughout a period of two months. No response. On June 12, he at last responded to interview request via SMS by saying that he was out of town. But he refused to reply follow up messages. On June 12 – three months after our first interview request, we visited his office. Yet, he said he was not available for interviews and would not make any appointment for one.