Cement Importers’ Refusal to Pay Government Levy Delays Truck Deliveries, Trade Minister Reports

By Ramatoulie Jawo 

Hon. Baboucarr O. Joof, Minister of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration, and Employment, informed parliament on Wednesday that a refusal by cement importers to pay a newly introduced levy has led to the delay of several trucks at the border.

During a session at the National Assembly, responding to inquiries from Hon. Modou Lamin Bah, Member of Parliament for Banjul North, Hon. Joof explained that approximately 78 trucks carrying cement were held up at the Senegal-Gambia Border in late April 2024.

The government had recently raised the import duty on cement from D30 to D180 per bag to protect the domestic industry, a move contested by importers who deemed the levy excessive.

“The hold of trucks was as a result of importers of bags of cement refusing to pay a levy charged on their cement, which was introduced by the government as a revenue-enhancing measure,” said Minister Joof.

Hon. Bah posed supplementary questions, inquiring whether the Minister had engaged with the importers prior to the arrival of their consignments.

In reply, the Minister stated that communication had occurred simultaneously with the implementation of the measures.

“As soon as the decision was made, communication was shared with the Gambia Revenue Authority, at the time, the major players in this business did not register, or have any contact with my Ministry. So we did not know them,” said the Minister.

Hon. Sulayman Saho, the National Assembly member for Central Badibou, questioned whether raising the levy might adversely impact the country’s economy.

In response, the Minister asserted that the measure was designed to bolster the Gambia’s economic performance.

“It was well researched and well analysed, and we found that engaging in the current steps that we have taken will benefit the economy of the Gambia more than what was happening before,” he told the Parliament.

Many National Assembly Members emphasized in their supplementary questions that the price of cement had sharply risen when cement-laden trucks were stranded at the border, sparking nationwide concerns about the government’s new policy. The Trade Minister explained that this occurred during the initial weeks of the policy due to distribution challenges, compounded by reluctance from individuals tasked with bringing cement across the border.

“So that trucking challenge, created some pockets of challenges, but that was within the period of two weeks, and it was stabilized. Currently, we have a stable industry moving on.” he said.

He informed the members that currently, the country operates three factories: two for rebagging and one for producing goods from scratch.

“And we have been consulted by several people, including some people who were in the trucking business from across the border, who are currently working with us to establish even a production centre of cement in this country,” he said.