News and Events

GMA Communication: BANJUL; 17 April 2025
GMA has organised a two-day training and sensitization workshop for media practitioners on the mandate of the Administration as per the Gambia Maritime Administration Act 2006, the Merchant Shipping Act 2013, the Marine Pollution Act 2013 and subsequent regulations. The workshop has participants from state media and private media practitioners. 

The Director General of GMA, Mr. Karamo Bakary Janneh gave the welcome remarks at the opening ceremony and thanked the participants for honoring the invitation while emphasizing the role of the media in serving as a watchdog for public institutions and promoting an informed society. 

The Board Chairman of GMA, Hon. Alhagie Mass Axi Gye in his keynote address, buttressed on GMA’s role, which he said, is to ‘regulate and provide a framework for the development of the maritime industry in the country. This he pointed ‘aligns with the duties, obligations and powers bestowed upon GMA in the Merchant Shipping Act 2013, the Marine Pollution Act 2013, and the regulations that help to operationalize them’. 

Hon. Gye stated that GMA is engaged in some major reforms some of which includes the ratification of important Conventions of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO). Some of these Conventions include the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC 2006) and the International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation (OPRC 1990). The Gambia ratified the MLC 2006 in 2018, and it sets minimum standards for the health, safety, and welfare of seafarers worldwide. The country also ratified the OPRC 1990 Convention in 2019 and it aims at combating oil pollution and adequately preparing countries to respond to oil spill incidents. 

The Board Chairman informed the participants that GMA has a dedicated website, which has gone live alongside a Management Information System (MIS), thanks to its collaboration with a Gambian IT Company, Fortѐ Innovations. The MIS he stated, enables ship owners and maritime service providers to access e-services from GMA.

The training and sensitization workshop is part of GMA’s efforts to leverage the power and reach of the media to positively contribute towards the development of the maritime industry in The Gambia.