Following the introduction of a four-day working week for the public sector which takes effect on Friday, 1st February 2013, the office of the President has announced that the private sector and the business community are exempted from this new working arrangements and are therefore, allowed to open for business on Fridays.

A media release from State House stated that this new dispensation includes banks, hospitals and health care providers, Gambia Ports Authority (GPA), Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA), and security services, among others.

Below is the full text of the release;

Further to our press release in the introduction of the four day working week for the public sector, to be effective from Friday 1st February 2013, the Office of the President wishes to inform the general public that the private sector and the business community are exempted from this new working arrangements and therefore, are allowed to open for business on Fridays. This new dispensation includes banks, hospitals and health care providers, Gambia Ports Authority (GPA), Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA), and security services, among others.

The general public is further reminded that the new official government working schedule is Monday to Thursday from 08:00am to 06:00pm and lunch break is authorised between 1:30pm and 2:30pm.

All permanent secretaries and heads of departments are required to bring this information to the attention of all staff and to stringently adhere to the new working arrangement and must come to work and leave at the prescribed times. Heads of departments are reminded to reinforce the staff attendance register and regularly monitor lateness and absenteeism in line with the PSC Regulation 62 and General Orders (GO) 03112.