Exaggerated Tourism Boom? Investigating President Barrow’s Statement
President Adama Barrow delivering New Year statement © Kerr Fatou
By Yusef Taylor, @FlexDan_YT
President Adama Barrow’s recent claim that The Gambia recorded over 233,000 tourist arrivals in just three months has been debunked by official data. A fact-checking investigation reveals that the actual number is significantly lower, casting doubt on the government’s projections for the 2024-2025 tourist season.
Claim: According to the official statement published on the State House website, President Barrow’s 2025 New Year address highlighted that “the tourist season in the country is booming again, and from October to December 2024, 233,411 tourists have been recorded. It is projected that 263,764 tourists will visit the country during the 2024-2025 tourist season.”
For the full statement, visit the website or watch the President’s speech from the 3-minute, 10-second mark: YouTube link.
Fact-Check: To verify the President’s claim, our team submitted a request for information to the Gambia Tourism Board (GT Board) to ascertain the actual number of tourist arrivals during the specified period.
In response, the GT Board stated that “tourism arrival data is systematically categorized into various variables and accompanied by specific indicators that help identify who qualifies as a tourist, per the definition provided by the United Nations Tourism Organization (UNTO).”
According to UNTO, a tourist is defined as an “overnight visitor.” Specifically, “a visitor (domestic, inbound, or outbound) is classified as a tourist (or overnight visitor) if their trip includes an overnight stay, as opposed to a same-day visitor (or excursionist).”
Key Findings:
According to data provided by the GT Board, over 72,000 tourist arrivals were recorded from October to December 2024.
In the previous year, over 69,000 tourist arrivals were recorded from October to December 2023.
This represents an increase of 2,481 tourist arrivals from October to December 2023 and 2024, a modest 3.6% growth.
Source GT Board - Digitised by Askanwi © Askanwi
President Barrow also claimed that “it is projected that 263,764 tourists will visit the country during the 2024-2025 tourist season.” However, our research suggests this figure is inaccurate.
During an October 2024 press conference organized by the Ministry of Information, Media, and Broadcasting Services, the GT Board Director General, Mr. Abubacarr S. Camara, made an announcement regarding the expected number of tourist arrivals for the 2024/25 season. He stated, “By the end of this season, we should see a good increase in tourist numbers. I may not have the exact figure in mind, but I believe it’s around 232,000 arrivals or more.”
Watch the announcement at the 1-hour, 35-minute, and 47-second mark: YouTube link.
Tourist Arrivals from September 2024 to January 2025:
In addition to information received to conduct the FactCheck, the total tourist arrivals from September to January 2024/2025 and 2023/2024 were also obtained. Below are some of the key findings and a chart digitising the data obtained from GT Board.
A total of 113,000 tourists traveled to The Gambia between September 2024 and January 2025.
In contrast, 110,000 tourist arrivals were recorded from September 2023 to January 2024.
This represents an increase of 2,866 tourist arrivals, a 2.6% growth from the previous year.
Source GT Board - Digitised by Askanwi © Askanwi
Verdict: Based on official data obtained through a request for information from the GT Board:
Only 72,000 tourist arrivals were recorded from October to December 2024, not 233,000 as claimed by President Adama Barrow.
The GT Board Director General projected over 232,000 tourist arrivals for the entire 2024/25 season, not 263,000 as stated by the President.
Therefore, the President’s claim that over 233,000 tourists arrived between October and December 2024 is FALSE. Additionally, his claim that 263,000 tourists are expected for the 2024/25 tourist season may also be FALSE/MISLEADING.
Simple calculations reveal that the President's claim of 233,000 tourist arrivals between October and December 2024 has been exaggerated by more than 223%. Similarly, the claim that 263,000 tourist arrivals are expected for the 2024/25 tourism season has been overstated by over 13%.
