Gambian president recounts challenges after 1 year in office

BANJUL, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- The Gambian President Adama Barrow said on Tuesday that debt burden, energy crisis, poor road networks and infrastructure remained biggest challenges under his first year of administration.

"As you are aware, our debt burden is currently unsustainable with a GDP ratio of 125 percent. This means a huge quantity of our revenue goes to servicing our debt rather than investing in education, health or other social developing projects," he said while addressing top civil servants at State House as part of his first anniversary as president.

He said beyond the economic challenges, his administration is also crippled by a major energy crisis, poor road networks and inadequate infrastructure. "The potentials of agriculture subsector still remain largely untapped due to limited investment and the resultant use of primitive farming methods," Barrow added.

However, he said such challenges are by no means impossible to overcome. Enditem