The first week of 2026 began on a positive note for Askanwi Media after it blew the whistle on telecom operators for failing to comply with the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority’s (PURA) D75 per 1GB price ceiling, announced on 19th December 2025.

Follow Askanwi’s week-long advocacy journalism for the reduction of data prices under the price floor, which featured interviews with PURA and Gamcel.

After Askanwi blew the whistle yesterday, 6th January 2026, Africell and QCell revised their data tariffs from D130 to D65 per 1GB. This leaves Gamcel as the only telecom operator still charging D130 per 1GB—D55 above the price ceiling set by the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA).

Our reporter spoke to PURA and Gamcel about the lack of compliance and if customers will be refunded for overcharging during the first six days of 2026.

Almost one week into 2026, Askanwi Media can reveal that only Comium appears to be complying with the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority’s (PURA) newly announced data price ceiling. Months after over 23 protestors were jailed for petitioning PURA’s D50 per 1GB price floor, PURA eventually succumbed to their demands to abolish the price floor and introduce a price ceiling, but it appears telecom companies are still not in compliance. More in the news report.

It has been more than six weeks since President Adama Barrow’s government established a committee to look into the D50 per 1GB data price floor introduced by the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) on 20th August 2025. A group of civil society advocates issued a statement calling for the government to act on the report which the Minister for Communications and Digital Economy noted was completed since 3rd October 2025. More in the statement.

The Ministry of Information has released a presser lauding the Parliamentary Approval of the Personal Data Protection and Privacy Bill. More in the press release.

Bijilo, The Gambia – 8th May 2025 – At a key side event during the 83rd Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR), human rights leaders and civil society actors issued a strong call for bolstering early warning systems, emphasising that timely, credible data is essential to preventing rights violations across Africa. More in the report.

ActionAid The Gambia urged journalists and bloggers to take a leading role in amplifying youth voices and fostering greater civic engagement during a three-day training in Jarra Soma. More in the report.