The Gambia’s Department of Forestry has defended the sale of land at a protected environmental zone to the US government. 

Last week, The Gambia government gave the green light for the sale of 10 hectares of land in Monkey Park for the construction of the new US embassy.

The park is a popular tourist destination known for its wildlife and endangered species including Western Red Colobus Monkey. 

Environmentalists have decried the sale as  “shameful and disgusting”, adding that it will affect existing plans to protect the country’s endangered wildlife. 

However, the forestry department said in a counter statement that the designated site for the embassy will not affect the protected zone. 

It said satellite images of the site showed that the Monkey Park “is not affected even by a centimetre by the proposed development.

“The satellite imagery also shows that the area under consideration (WALIC) is almost completely occupied by buildings and limited vegetation or forest cover. 

“We therefore, wish to reassure the public that the Monkey Park will not be in anyway affected by the proposed new US Embassy development. 

“If anything, this project will add value to WALIC with a new state of the art visitor centre and the paved road to the beach for better and safer public access.” 

Reporting by Adama Makasuba