The Barrow government has denied signing deportation agreements with European countries to repatriate undocumented Gambians back to The Gambia.

The government spokesman, Ebrima Sankareh, said the rumours being spread through social media that the government was complicit in the deportations were “untrue and baseless”.

“The Gambia Government has neither signed any deportation memorandum nor received any monetary rewards from any European country as is being continuously alleged.

“Immediately after assuming office in 2017, the government of President Adama Barrow engaged our allies in Europe to provide the necessary support and skills development to Gambian migrants. To date, more than 200 young people in Germany alone have benefitted from this programme some of whom have been reintegrated in German society and making significant headways in their lives.”

Sankareh added that a similar package is extended to Gambians across Europe. He assured the public that it is not the policy of the Gambia Government to facilitate and or support the mass deportation of its citizens.

“On the contrary, the government is fully committed to improving the lot of its citizens and working hard to restore our longstanding diplomatic relations with European countries. It would be recalled that three years ago, much of our relations with these countries were severely dented making negotiations very difficult.”