By Omar Bah
Information Minister Dr Ismaila Ceesay yesterday confirmed to The Standard that government has not yet received any official notice regarding a potential US travel ban.
This comes as reports suggest that Donald Trump’s administration is considering issuing sweeping travel restrictions for citizens of dozens of countries including The Gambia which has been placed in a group that would be considered for a partial suspension of visa issuance, if their governments “do not make efforts to address deficiencies within 60 days”.
The new travel ban will affect up to 43 countries, categorised into three tiers of restrictions.
The Gambia is categorised under the yellow list which includes 22 countries, which would have 60 days to address deficiency concerns or risk being moved to another category.
According to the report, some of the issues The Gambia would have to address include failing to share information about incoming travellers with the US, inadequate security practices for issuing passports, and selling citizenship to people from banned countries.
The US has not officially confirmed these plans, and any changes are still under consideration.
A US official speaking on condition of anonymity cautioned there could be changes on the list and that it was yet to be approved by the administration, including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The move harkens back to President Donald Trump’s first term ban on travellers from seven majority-Muslim nations, a policy that went through several alterations before it was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018.
When contacted for comments on the issue Information Minister Dr Ceesay said: “We have heard about it but the US Government has not officially notified the Gambia Government yet. If they do, we will provide a detailed response to that effect.”
