Kaolinitic Clay
Deposits of Kaolinitic clay stone amounting to 3,065,903 tones exist at Kundam, Upper River Region. The raw material is suitable for the manufacture of ceramic products.
Plastic Clay
Alluvial clay deposits are widely distributed throughout The Gambia and large deposits occur mainly at Fatoto, Sara Alpha, Alohungari, Pirang, Mandinari and Busumbala. The clay from these localities has been tested and proved to be suitable raw materials for making drinking jars, pots and bricks for houses. The minable clay reserves in these localities total 10,575,000 tons.
Quartz Sand Potential
The Gambia is rich in quartz sand resources. They are distributed in 9 known localities and is estimated to be over 50 million tons of prospective reserves. Previous studies have evaluated the geological prospects of the quartz sands at Brufut, Fass, Abuko, Lamin, Darsilami and other places.
The quartz sands have a high value of development and utilization. They can be used to produce special industrial glass as well as a polished, high-quality plate and high-grade piezo-ductile glasses. The quartz by-products can be used in producing common plate glass, piezo-ductile glass, glass containing wires, and glass fibre.
Quarrying Sector in The Gambia
The quarrying for construction aggregates for domestic consumption continues to be a key to our economic development. The sector is also known as the development mineral sector is predominantly made of local low-tech, labour-intensive quarrying and mineral processing and mid-sized mechanized quarries. The sector involves extracting wide-range of commodities including construction sand and gravel or laterite.
The extraction of these materials continues to make significant contributions to the economy and is the driving force behind the infrastructural development in the country. However, despite the significant progress made over the years, the sector faces many challenges which require national attention such as the search for alternatives to coastal sand dunes. The private sector is invited to promote the use of alternative materials and other sources of sand for construction such as dredging of river sand.