On Sunday, 25th May 2025, the Gambia Immigration Department (GID) conducted an inspection of Daara Medina Suwaneh, a Quranic school located at Brufut Heights. The operation followed a brief interaction between the Director General of Immigration, Ebrima Mboob, and a few minors encountered at the Brufut beach during a routine workout. The children were observed swimming with visible skin rashes, wounds, and other infections.
The alarming conditions of these minors resulted in the mobilization of a joint operation consisting of the GID Child Welfare Unit, GID Intelligence, and the Gambia Police Force Child Welfare Unit. The operation intended to assess the living conditions and overall well-being of the minors. This inspection subsequently resulted in the initial transportation of sixty-one (61) Arabic students, commonly referred to as Talibehs, to the Brusubi Police Station for further processing. Interviews and relevant procedural processes were conducted at the police station to understand efforts made in providing medical support to the children, considering their rights to accessible healthcare.
Subsequently, public health officials from Sukuta and Brufut Health Centers were contacted to examine the conditions of the children at their residence in Brufut Heights. Preliminary assessments, led by Regional Principal Public Health Officer, Western Region 1, with support from Program Coordinator of Epidemiology and Disease Control (EDC) Unit, conducted today, 26th May 2025, reveal that, out of one-hundred and one (101) minors, 57 are suffering from scabies, a contagious skin condition caused by mites and transmitted through close physical contact with infected individuals.
The affected individuals include 35 Gambians, 17 Senegalese, and 5 Bissau-Guineans, all residing in a crowded and unhygienic environment, posing serious health risks. The lack of adequate medical attention from the guardians exacerbated their condition, severely affecting their health and overall well-being. The situation is handed over to Public Health Officials for medical attention and relevant public health actions.
In light of this, the Director General has informed and conducted a teleconference with the National Security Adviser, Director of Public Health, the Minister of Presidential Affairs who doubles as Chief of Staff, and the Senegalese Defence Attaché. Action points are drawn to further enforce remedial actions to safeguard the children’s well-being and protection together with the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Welfare.
The GID urges parents and guardians to pay attention to the environments and conditions in which children live, particularly those in boarding schools. Furthermore, the GID calls on relevant government authorities—particularly the Ministry of Lands, Regional Government and Religious Affairs; Ministry of Health; Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education; Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Welfare; and other stakeholders—to devise regulatory and supervisory mechanisms to uphold child protection as enshrined in the Children’s Act 2005 and other relevant legal instruments.
Signed:
Inspector Siman Lowe,
Public Relations Officer, GID
