Ebrima Sinera, commercial manager of Salam Cement Company, has reassured the public that there is no cause for alarm as there is enough cement in the country contrary to reports that there is cement shortage and no company that manufactures cement in The Gambia.
In an interview with this medium, Mr Sinera assures the public that the three cement players in the country - Gacem, Salam and Jah, who are under one umbrella, have one goal: which is to ensure the whole Gambia have quality and affordable cement supply in the interest of the people of the country.
Speaking to our reporter who visited and toured the factory located at Mile 5, Denton Bridge in Banjul, Mr Sinera confirms that Salam Cement Company manufactures cement in The Gambia.
He affirms that his reputable company imports the raw materials from Senegal, Algeria and Turkey to manufacture the cement with high quality in The Gambia.
"We can assure the Gambian people that there is no cause for alarm because the three cement players have endeavoured to continue to supply quality and affordable cement to the whole country and beyond," he said, adding that the cement players can always supply the country affordable and quality cement.
Salam supplies between 20 to 30 thousand bags of cement a day and is currently expanding by building a bigger project, according to the commercial manager.
As Salam Cement Company and the other two players continue to manufacture quality cement in The Gambia, Mr Sinera says government has continued to cushion and protect manufacturers in the country including cement industries.
Up to 95 per cent of the materials for their second phase expansion project are already in the country, the commercial manager said, adding that once work is completed, they would be able to produce more than a million tons of cement a year.
The completion of Salam's bigger project, he said optimistically, would ensure they produce more than enough for the Gambian market.
"Our second phase is a bigger project and when it is completed it can produce more than a million tons in a year," he explains. "When it is completed we will be thinking of exporting cement outside the country for other markets because there will be more than needed in the country. Scarcity of cement in the country will be a thing of the past."
However, one of their main challenges is stable electricity supply, he pointed out, saying electricity supply for the industry "is very expensive and challenging".
He commended the Government of The Gambia for being very supportive of the cement industry, especially the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Employment and Regional Integration, who, he applauds, are on their hills round the clock to ensure The Gambia becomes an industrialised country.
Salam Cement Company currently employs a lot of Gambians, as the industry continues to transform for the better, Sinera says, even though cement manufacturing is new in the country and their plant was run by non-Gambians. Now, though, their plant is run and manned by 95 per cent Gambians who "are well-experienced and work hard".
"With the completion of our expansion project, the sky will be the limit because we will employ many more Gambians," he further said, adding that the cement industry employment "is a two-way" thing - directly and indirectly. "Imagine how many shopkeepers or vendors depend on cement industries," he recalls: "I have seen people who after retirement went into cement business. There are also women who have ventured into cement selling now. Youth are also doing away with the irregular migration and are into cement business now."
He also observed that some people who joined the business starting by buying a few hundred bags are now well established.
All these are adding to the improvement of the country and its economy, he said: "The cement industry is discouraging the 'back-way' to Europe."
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He therefore calls on Gambians to be patient with the cement factories and support Gambian-owned businesses because "there is only one country we have, which is The Gambia".
"Let us all be one and support the government," he appeals and applauds. "I thank the Government of the day for really supporting the industry. They are working day and night to ensure The Gambia become an industrialised country and not to depend on other countries."
Salam Cement Company ownership
Salam Cement Company is owned by a Gambian, Muhammad Sillah. The company has been in existence in The Gambia for over two decades. Mr Sillah started by buying cement locally. He later ventured into importing and then to re-bagging. Years later, the industrialist went into production, which he sees as the only solution to solving the nation's cement challenge. He has been going from height to height, even with no foreign backing or support to the company.
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