How Many Opportunities Can The Gambia Still Afford to Lose?

Written by: Seringe ST Touray

Whoever drives through Bijilo today cannot miss the Bitcoin Tower. For many Gambians, this project was far more than just a construction site. It became a visible symbol that international investment can create new opportunities. Wherever construction takes place, jobs are created for masons, electricians, suppliers, restaurants, taxi drivers and many others. Major projects are therefore never merely private ventures. They have an impact on the entire local economy.

But over recent months, the story of the Bitcoin Tower has become about far more than a single building.

The previous reports on The Fatu Network’s investigation focused primarily on the dispute between the shareholders behind the Bitcoin Tower and The Edge apartment developments. What began as a commercial disagreement gradually developed into criminal investigations, civil court proceedings, competing claims over company control, and broader public questions concerning investor protection, legal certainty and institutional conduct. Over the past months, The Fatu Network has examined contracts, court decisions, audit findings, financial records and the positions of all parties involved. The dispute has since evolved into a matter of national importance.

This article therefore asks a different question: What does this conflict mean for The Gambia itself?

Major investments begin long before the first stone is laid. They begin with trust. International entrepreneurs do not compare countries solely on taxes or land prices. They ask whether contracts are respected, whether institutions act reliably, and whether disputes are resolved fairly and transparently. Only when that trust exists are they willing to bring their capital, experience and international networks into a country.

It is precisely for this reason that the confidence shown by several well-known international investors at the time was widely regarded as an exceptionally important signal. Among them was internationally recognised investment expert and entrepreneur Thorsten Wittmann. Active in international investment for many years, Thorsten reaches a large global audience through his companies, conferences and media platforms. He helps people around the world identify countries that offer long-term investment opportunities.

Thorsten’s decision to invest in The Gambia through the Bitcoin Tower and The Edge project represented far more than a personal investment decision. Before making any recommendations, he chose to test The Gambia’s investment environment through his own investments and openly shared that journey with his international audience. The outcome will inevitably shape the message that reaches hundreds of thousands of potential investors around the world. His investment was therefore not only a vote of confidence in the Bitcoin Tower, but in The Gambia as a whole.

For the Gambian people, this development means far more than a discussion about international investors. Behind every major investment stand construction companies, masons, electricians, carpenters, drivers, security personnel, restaurants and traders. Behind every one of those jobs are families whose livelihoods depend on projects moving forward and businesses growing. That is why a prolonged standstill of such a project does not affect international investors first. It affects the people on the ground.

For this very reason, the current dispute extends far beyond the shareholders involved.

According to project management, construction has been at a standstill since March after the necessary payments were no longer released. The legal consequences of the corporate dispute will ultimately be decided by the competent courts. The economic consequences of the standstill, however, are already visible today. They affect not only those directly involved, but also many people who had hoped for new investment and employment opportunities.

The publicly known developments also include an internationally certified audit, court decisions and extensive media coverage. Following its review, The Fatu Network reported that the internationally certified audit found no indication that project funds had been misappropriated by Manuel or Angelika Mitterer. At the same time, the independent audit identified payments linked to Ebrima Solomon Tamba, the Gambian partner and local shareholder in the Bitcoin Tower project, which, according to the auditors’ findings, require further clarification. These findings do not replace a judicial decision, but they do illustrate why a transparent and independent review is of central importance for everyone involved.

Public reporting has also expanded significantly in recent weeks. Following The Fatu Network’s initial publications, additional individuals came forward with documents and accounts relating to projects associated with Tamba. The information has since been submitted to the new leadership of the Gambia Tourism Board (GTB), where tourism and development projects associated with Tamba are now being reviewed. The outcome of those examinations remains to be seen.

The Bitcoin Tower dispute is also not the first publicly documented conflict connected to projects involving Tamba. As early as 2015, The Standard reported on a dispute between a businessman, Ebrima Bojang, and Tamba over permits issued for Tamba’s Kasumai Beach Bar tourism development in Kololi. The dispute raised public questions about the legality of those permits. Since then, the Kasumai Beach Bar development has been expanded to include a hotel. Regardless of how the allegations made at the time are ultimately assessed, the case demonstrates that questions concerning permits and transparency have been part of the public debate for many years. Such developments underline why unresolved public questions deserve independent and transparent examination.

This is precisely where the true responsibility of public institutions begins. When significant investment projects repeatedly become the subject of public disputes and additional individuals bring similar concerns to the media or public authorities, it is in the interest of the entire country that these matters be examined transparently, independently and without unnecessary delay. Not to prejudge any individual, but to strengthen confidence in the rule of law and demonstrate that The Gambia is prepared to take responsibility.

The real question is therefore directed at policymakers and public institutions: What message does The Gambia want to send to the world?

The way this dispute is ultimately resolved will shape international perceptions of The Gambia far beyond this single project. Every transparent and credible investigation strengthens confidence in the country as an investment destination. Every avoidable uncertainty weakens it.

Ultimately, this is about far more than the Bitcoin Tower. It is about the future of The Gambia as an investment destination.

Every country faces disputes. What distinguishes successful investment destinations is not the absence of conflict, but the willingness to resolve it transparently, fairly and under the rule of law. That is how confidence is built, investment returns, jobs are created, and long-term prosperity becomes possible.