An influential women activist and journalist, Jaha Sise Sawaneh, has died in a car crash today.

The tragic accident is said to have happened around Kiang Massembeh, Lower River Region, about 170 Kilometers from the Gambian capital Banjul.

Two other people in the vehicle have also been confirmed dead.

The accident was reported to have been caused by a flat tire which resulted in the car somersaulting.

The influential and pioneering activist was reported to have been returning from a mediation efforts among the fighting Sarahulleh community in her native Garawol.

In her last Facebook post on Sunday titled Good morning from Garawol Jaha Sawaneh wrote:

“There is so much we can do, there is so much we can give, there is so much we can contribute and there is so much we can discuss at community level.

“For the past two decades, I have been celebrated by many and now, it’s time to give back.

“Your daughter is here for a peace talk and I hope we will have a fruitful discussion together.

“Thanks to the ICSC, my two visits to Kigali, Rwanda for the TJ academy training for 10 Africans was a time well spent and I am grateful.”

Ms Jawaneh, who was also a journalist, was very popular and influential in The Gambia. Her untimely death has been met with shock and disbelief.

Many Gambians have taken to social media to share their condolences.

Until her death, Ms Sawaneh worked as a reporter at the Gambia Radio and Television Services. She previously worked at various media organisations, including The Standard, Today Newspaper and Star FM.

GPU in mourning her death described the late Ms Sawaneh “as a committed and hardworking young journalist of great promise, a wonderful human being and an excellent professional. Her death is a great loss to the media and country.”

By Madi Njie