Public Safety Code
Improving building codes, public health & sanitation standards
A society without enforced standards is a society that tolerates preventable harm. Buildings collapse because no one checked the construction. Food sickens families because no one inspected the kitchen. Roads kill passengers because no one certified the vehicle. Streets flood because no one enforced the drainage codes. These are not unfortunate accidents. They are the predictable consequences of a governance environment where standards exist on paper but not in practice. The Gambia currently has no dedicated, independent enforcement body with the mandate, the legal authority, and the operational reach to hold businesses, builders, transport operators, and public spaces to the standards the law requires. The result is a country where a building can go up without inspection, a restaurant can operate without food safety certification, a bus can carry twice its permitted number of passengers, and a market stall can sell unsafe food without consequence. Each individual failure may seem small. Collectively, they represent a substantial and ongoing cost in preventable disease, preventable injury, preventable death, and preventable economic loss. The National Builders Party will end this.
A Gambia where the standards that protect people's safety, health, and wellbeing are not left to voluntary compliance. Where a building inspector visits every construction site at defined stages. Where a food safety officer inspects every restaurant and market stall on a regular cycle. Where a transport safety officer checks buses and taxis against defined mechanical and loading standards. Where an environmental health officer responds within 24 hours to a sanitation complaint. Where compliance is rewarded with fast-track permits and public recognition. Where consistent violation results in escalating consequences that make non-compliance economically irrational. That is what a functioning enforcement system looks like. The National Builders Party will build it.
The NBP will establish the Public Safety and Code Enforcement Administration as a specialist enforcement body with genuine legal authority, operational independence, and regional reach across all seven administrative regions of The Gambia.
The PSCEA will operate under the Ministry of Interior with administrative independence, avoiding the conflicts of interest that arise when enforcement sits within the same ministry as the sector it regulates. A Director General appointed through a merit-based competitive process will lead the institution. A PSCEA Board comprising representatives of regulated sectors, consumer groups, civil society, and relevant line ministries will provide oversight and policy guidance. Annual PSCEA Enforcement Reports will be published covering inspection numbers and outcomes, penalty revenue, compliance rates by sector and region, and the outcomes of major enforcement cases. A public PSCEA Compliance Register will list all inspected businesses, their compliance status, and any enforcement actions, accessible to every Gambian online.
The NBP will ensure that every significant construction project in The Gambia is registered, inspected at defined stages, and certified only when it meets the structural and safety standards that protect the lives of the people who will occupy it.
The Construction and Building Code Division will enforce building permits, structural safety standards, approved design compliance, materials standards, and site safety during construction. All construction projects above a defined size threshold will be required to register with this division and undergo stage inspections before proceeding to the next phase of construction. Inspectors will have the authority to issue work-stoppage orders where dangerous non-compliance is identified. The ministry will coordinate with the Ministry of Public Works and Infrastructure on building approvals and contractor licensing. Every building inspection that catches a fault before it becomes a collapse is a life saved. The PSCEA will make that routine rather than exceptional.
The NBP will enforce waste disposal standards, public space cleanliness, drainage maintenance, and sanitation conditions across all commercial premises through the Environmental Health and Sanitation Division, giving inspectors the authority to act where conditions pose an imminent public health risk.
The division will monitor waste disposal standards, public space cleanliness, drainage maintenance, mosquito and vector control, open defecation prevention, and the sanitation conditions of all public and commercial premises. Inspectors will have the authority to issue closure notices to businesses whose sanitation conditions pose an imminent public health risk. The division will coordinate with the Ministry of Health on environmental sanitation, disease prevention, and public health emergencies, and with PURA on standards for energy, water, and waste services. The Urban Development and Beautification Division will complement this work by enforcing urban planning compliance, illegal structure removal, signage standards, and the aesthetic and functional standards that determine the quality of the urban environment in all major towns and cities.
The NBP will build a functioning food safety culture in The Gambia through a mandatory Food Handler Certificate, a five-star public rating system, regular inspections of every food premise, and a public reporting line that gives every Gambian a direct role in enforcement.
A national Food Handler Certificate will be required for all persons involved in commercial food preparation, obtainable through a one-day food safety training course delivered by the PSCEA Food Safety Division and renewed every two years. A five-star food safety rating system, with ratings displayed prominently at every food premises following each annual inspection, will give consumers visible information about the safety of the food they are buying and create reputational pressure for compliance. A dedicated food safety phone and WhatsApp reporting line will enable any member of the public to report a food safety concern directly to the Food Safety Division, with a 48-hour response commitment. Monthly food safety enforcement summaries will be published showing inspections conducted, star ratings awarded, closure notices issued, and prosecutions pursued.
The NBP will enforce vehicle roadworthiness standards, passenger loading limits, and driver compliance across all public transport through the Transport Safety Division, working in coordination with the National Transport Authority and the GPF traffic division.
The Transport Safety Division will enforce roadworthiness standards for public passenger vehicles and commercial freight vehicles, passenger loading limits, driver hour restrictions, terminal safety standards, and taxi and minibus operational compliance. Roadside checking programmes will operate on all major routes, removing vehicles that fail safety standards from service before they carry passengers. The Maritime and Riverine Safety Division will enforce ferry and water transport safety standards including vessel condition, passenger capacity compliance, life-saving equipment provision, crew certification, terminal safety, and river navigation standards, working in coordination with the National River Transport Authority and the Gambia Maritime Administration. Every vehicle check that removes an unroadworthy bus from service is an accident that does not happen.
The NBP will enact a Public Safety and Code Enforcement Act giving PSCEA inspectors the full range of legal powers necessary for effective enforcement and establishing a four-tier penalty system that escalates consequences in proportion to the severity and persistence of non-compliance.
The Act will give inspectors rights of entry to all commercial, industrial, and construction premises during operating hours without prior notice, power to take samples and photograph conditions, power to issue Compliance Notices with defined correction timelines, Work-Stoppage Orders for construction sites with immediate safety risks, Closure Notices for food premises posing imminent health risks, and power to refer persistent or serious non-compliance to the Magistrate Court for prosecution. Tier 1 is a written warning for first-time minor violations corrected within the notice period. Tier 2 is a financial penalty for serious violations or failure to comply with a Tier 1 notice. Tier 3 is a doubled penalty, mandatory licence suspension, and public listing as non-compliant. Tier 4 is referral for criminal prosecution for egregious violations or any violation causing death or serious injury.
The NBP will make compliance worthwhile, not just unavoidable, through fast-track permits for compliant operators, a Gold Compliance Certificate for top-performing premises, and an annual Compliance Excellence Award that creates a public culture of pride in standards.
A fast-track permit service with reduced fees will be available to operators who maintain a clean compliance record for 24 consecutive months, creating a positive financial incentive for sustained compliance rather than compliance only when an inspector is expected. A Gold Compliance Certificate, valid for 12 months, will be issued to premises achieving a top food safety rating or equivalent excellence in their sector, displayed prominently at the premises as a mark of distinction. The annual PSCEA Compliance Excellence Award will recognise the businesses, construction projects, and market areas that have maintained the highest compliance records, listed on the PSCEA website and promoted through government communications. Compliance Excellence Award recipients receive a reputational benefit that makes high compliance commercially advantageous.
The National Builders Party will build a national culture of compliance through public education, community workshops, and an annual Public Safety and Standards Week, because enforcement is most effective when it operates in an environment where standards are understood, respected, and expected.
PSCEA public information guides for builders, food operators, transport operators, and market traders will be published in English and all major Gambian national languages, explaining the standards that apply to each sector in plain, accessible language. Community compliance workshops delivered in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce, market associations, and traders' organisations will provide direct support to businesses seeking to understand and meet the standards. An annual Public Safety and Standards Week, promoted through radio, television, and social media, will use real examples from the enforcement record to make the connection between standards and human wellbeing concrete. The PSCEA will partner with civic associations and homeowners' groups to promote voluntary code adherence and community-level monitoring, building enforcement from the ground up rather than from inspection alone.
For Every Consumer and Family
A five-star food safety rating on the wall of every restaurant and market stall tells you what the inspector found. A closure notice on a premises that failed tells you why it is shut. A public Compliance Register tells you the enforcement history of any business before you walk through the door. The standards that are supposed to protect your family's health and safety will now be inspected, enforced, and published. You will be able to make informed choices, and the businesses that earn your trust will be the ones that have earned it under inspection.
For Young Gambians
The PSCEA will create hundreds of professional inspector jobs across all six divisions and all seven regions. Inspectors are trained, accredited, salaried, and promoted on merit. A career in building safety, food safety, transport enforcement, environmental health, or maritime inspection is a career that serves the public and builds the country. The compliance culture that the PSCEA builds also creates a better environment for Gambian entrepreneurs who follow the rules to compete fairly against those who currently cut corners with impunity.
For Every Business
Clear, predictable standards enforced consistently across your sector mean that you know what is required of you, you know that your competitors are held to the same standard, and you know that the investment you make in compliance will not be undermined by a rival who does not bother. Fast-track permits and the Gold Compliance Certificate reward those who maintain high standards. A tiered penalty system means that a first-time minor mistake is treated proportionately. And the business that earns a top food safety rating or a Compliance Excellence Award earns something real: the public trust that drives customers through the door.
Standards without enforcement are suggestions. The National Builders Party will govern by standards that are real: inspected, enforced, and consequential. Every food stall that receives a rating. Every building that passes its structural inspection. Every bus that is checked before it takes passengers onto the road. Every drainage channel that is maintained because the fine for failing it is real. This is not bureaucracy for its own sake. Every building inspection that catches a fault before it becomes a collapse is a life saved. Every food safety rating that guides a family to a clean kitchen is a hospitalisation prevented. Every vehicle check that removes an unroadworthy bus from service is an accident that does not happen. The PSCEA will build the enforcement infrastructure that makes these outcomes routine rather than exceptional. The National Builders Party will govern by standards that are real.
A standard that is not enforced is not a standard. It is a suggestion. The National Builders Party will enforce the standards that protect Gambian lives, Gambian health, and Gambian dignity: in every restaurant, on every construction site, on every road, and in every market. Laws and regulations will become enforceable instruments for progress, not paper prescriptions.
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