National Assembly Considers Gambia Immigration Bill, 2026
By: Fatou Krubally The National Assembly on Tuesday continued consideration of the Gambia Immigration Bill, 2026 presented by
Black News 
By: Fatou Krubally
The National Assembly on Tuesday continued consideration of the Gambia Immigration Bill, 2026 presented by the Minister for Interior, Abdoulie Sanyang.
The lawmakers debated over the bill as it proceeded over consideration stage with the Member for Upper Saloum Hon Alhagie Mbowe warning that some families of immigration officers who die in active service could be left without certain death benefits under existing pension arrangements, urging his colleagues to retain a provision in the bill to address the potential gap.
The lawmaker argued that the Pension Act 2022 required a minimum of five years of service for certain death benefits, potentially excluding families of officers who die before completing that period.
He proposed replacing the word “compensate” with “support” in Clause 27(2)(c), which provided for compensation to the spouses or next of kin of immigration officers who die in active service.
He said the change could allow the trust fund to support families who might not qualify for benefits under existing arrangements.
However, interior minister Hon Abdoulie Sanyang maintained that immigration officers, as civil servants, were covered by the government’s existing compensation framework. He argued that retaining a separate provision could duplicate arrangements already in place.
The minister instead proposed removing the compensation provision and replacing it with one covering operational activities, saying the trust fund was intended to help address the Immigration Department’s operational needs.
He told lawmakers that the department faced difficulties obtaining all the resources required for its work, including fuel, equipment and other logistical support.
The proposal prompted further debate, with some lawmakers expressing concern that removing the provision could leave gaps in support for officers’ families. They argued that the existing legal framework should be examined to establish whether all eligible families were adequately covered.
Other members cautioned against creating different benefit arrangements for immigration personnel and other security services, arguing that any shortcomings in the existing framework should be addressed more broadly.
