Szucs Tamas

Hungary - 28-Jul-24 -

I visited Bijagos Archipelago in 2000 - though I did not put my feet on the ground of any of the islands. What I remember is the pure fear of death. That time a close friend of mine - a Hungarian communication expert - was the aide of Gambian president Jammeh. He invited a group of Central European journalists and businessmen to the Gambia, to write about the country and boost the business between  Central Europe and Weast Africa. The highlight of the tour however was the one-day visit to Bissau Guinea financed by a local business tycoon (by the way of Lebanese origin). he chartered an old An 24, with a Russian crew, and we flew to Bissau. As it happened just after one of the coups in the country (there were many), we visited the presidential palace that was burnt out and half-ruined, and met the current interim government in an event hall. After the  B2B meetings, we were escorted back to the airport. One of the ministers joined us, and told us, that they take us on a journey to the most beautiful part of the country. That was Bijagos. The plane was flying at an extremely low altitude, with an extremely low speed almost reaching the tip of the trees. The Russians seemingly enjoyed the bravado - they were former military pilots.  The minister enthusiastically explained the natural beauty and the business - mainly tourism - opportunities of the islands, he wanted to make this the second smiling coast of Africa, after the Gambian Riviera. They wanted to sell entire islands to private entrepreneurs for development, the minister showed us the potential island for sale. One of the Hungarians seemed to be convinced. I was scared to death and recalled all the air crashes that happened in low altitudes. Finally, we turned back to Bissau, the minister disembarked and we flew back to Banjul. The government did not last for long, and the guy bought a private island in another African country. I do not think that Bijagos is open for visitors now. Unfortunately, Bissau did not become the second Gambia - rather the first narco-state of Africa, with constant instability and a ruined economy.