The Gambia

• 1. Introduction

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  The Gambia is the smallest country on the African mainland, and in 1964 its prime minister wrote a letter to protect a single word. Dawda Jawara asked a British committee on geographical names to let the country keep the definite article in its name. One reason he gave was to avoid confusion with Zambia, which had also just become independent. At the census of the 1st of May 2024, 2,422,712 people lived there. They share a thin strip of land that hugs a river as it runs inland from the Atlantic. Why does a nation take its outline from a waterway? Who drew its edges, and who has ruled inside them? And what happens when a president loses an election and refuses to leave?

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• 2. Borders Drawn in Paris

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  At its widest point, the Gambia measures less than 50 km across. Its total area is 11,295 square kilometres, slightly more than the island of Jamaica. About 1,300 square kilometres of that, or 11.5 percent, is water. Senegal wraps around the country on three sides, and only 80 km of Atlantic coastline on the west breaks the enclosure.

  The lines on the map come from an agreement reached in 1889 between the United Kingdom and France. During the negotiations in Paris, the French first gave the British around 200 miles of the Gambia River to control. Boundary markers started going up in 1891, when a joint Anglo-French commission met resistance from local leaders whose lands the border would divide. Nearly 15 years passed after the Paris meetings before the final borders were settled. The result was a set of straight lines and arcs that gave Britain control of land about 10 miles north and south of the river.

  Three terrestrial ecoregions meet inside this narrow territory. They are the Guinean forest-savanna mosaic, the West Sudanian savanna and the Guinean mangroves. Mangrove swamp lines the river, wetlands fill the lowlands, savanna woodland follows, and sandhills dominate a plateau in the upland region. A short rainy season usually runs from June until September. The climate is tropical savannah and closely resembles that of Senegal, Mali and northern Guinea.

  More than 500 bird species live in the country year-round. The national animal is the spotted hyena. Pygmy hippopotamuses and crocodiles may be found in the river system, while chimpanzees, baboons, antelopes and warthogs also live there. Surveys have recorded 30 amphibian species and 74 reptile species, including tortoises, snakes and lizards. More than 500 fish species swim in its marine and freshwater habitats, alongside dolphins, whales and the rare West African manatee. Its biodiversity is considered globally significant for a country so small.

  Still, the country scored only 4.56 out of 10 on the 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index, ranking 120th of 172 countries. Gambians themselves usually call the waterway at the heart of all this simply the River.

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• 3. Trade Routes and Rival Crowns

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  Arab traders wrote the first accounts of the Gambia region in the 9th and 10th centuries. They bartered with indigenous West Africans along trans-Saharan routes and carried Islam into Western Sudan. Gold and ivory travelled north on those routes, and so did people seized in raids and sold into slavery. Manufactured goods came back the other way. During the 10th century, Muslim merchants and scholars set up communities in several West African commercial centres.

  By the 11th or 12th century, the rulers of Takrur, ancient Ghana and Gao had converted to Islam. They appointed Muslims who could read and write Arabic to their courts. At the start of the 14th century, most of today's Gambia belonged to the Mali Empire.

  In 1455 the Portuguese became the first Europeans to enter the Gambia, though they never built significant trade there. The name itself comes from the Mandinka word for the river, Kambra or Kambaa. Portuguese explorers adopted a variation of it, and British colonial rule later turned it into Gambia. A rival theory points to the Serer gamba, a sacred drum made from a calabash and beaten when a Serer elder dies.

  In 1588 António, Prior of Crato, who claimed the Portuguese throne, sold exclusive trade rights on the river to English merchants. Queen Elizabeth I confirmed the grant with letters patent. In 1618 King James I granted a charter to an English company to trade with the Gambia and the Gold Coast, now Ghana.

  Between 1651 and 1661, parts of the Gambia belonged to the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia. This vassal state of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth lay in what is now Latvia. Prince Jacob Kettler bought St. Andrew's Island, home to Fort Jakob, along with St. Mary Island, now Banjul, and Fort Jillifree. The colonies were formally ceded to England in 1664.

  Through the late 17th century and the 18th, Britain and France struggled for supremacy around the Senegal and Gambia rivers. An expedition led by Augustus Keppel landed after the capture of Senegal in 1758, and Britain established a colony in 1765. The 1783 Treaty of Versailles gave Great Britain possession of the river, but France kept a tiny enclave at Albreda on the north bank. That last French foothold passed to the United Kingdom only in 1856.

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• 4. Under the Crown

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  In 1816 the British established the military post of Bathurst, which is now Banjul. Ships carrying captives were intercepted in the Atlantic by the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron, and the people aboard were brought to the Gambia. They were released on MacCarthy Island, far up the river, where they were expected to build new lives.

  In the years that followed, Bathurst at times fell under the British Governor-General in Sierra Leone. In 1888 the Gambia became a separate colony. It then became a Crown colony called British Gambia. For administration it was split into the colony, meaning Banjul and its surroundings, and the protectorate, meaning everything else. Executive and legislative councils arrived in 1901, and the territory edged gradually toward self-government.

  Slavery was abolished in 1906. After a brief conflict between colonial forces and indigenous Gambians, British authority was firmly established. In 1919 a romantic relationship between Travelling Commissioner J. K. McCallum and a Wolof woman named Fatou Khan scandalised the colonial administration.

  The Gambia Regiment of the British Army existed from 1901 to 1958 and fought in both world wars. In World War II, some Gambian soldiers fought with the Allies, mostly in Burma. Some died closer to home, and a Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery stands at Fajara, close to Banjul. Banjul also had an airstrip for the US Army Air Forces and served as a port of call for Allied naval convoys.

  After general elections in 1962, the United Kingdom granted the Gambia full internal self-governance in 1963.

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• 5. Jawara's Republic

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  On the 18th of February 1965, the Gambia became independent as a constitutional monarchy within the Commonwealth. Elizabeth II was Queen of The Gambia, represented by a Governor-General. Shortly afterwards, a referendum on becoming a republic missed the two-thirds majority needed to amend the constitution. Even so, it won attention abroad as proof of secret balloting, honest elections and respect for civil liberties.

  A second referendum succeeded, and on the 24th of April 1970 the country became a republic within the Commonwealth. The long-form name became the Republic of The Gambia. Only one other country, the Bahamas, officially keeps the word "the" in its short English name, and only the Gambia capitalises it. Jawara, who had led the government since 1962, became President in an executive post that combined head of state and head of government.

  The politics around him began crowded. There were four parties at first: his own People's Progressive Party, the United Party, the Democratic Party and I.M. Garba-Jahumpa's Muslim Congress Party. In 1961 the British Governor chose United Party leader Pierre Sarr N'Jie as the first head of government, with the title Chief Minister. The choice was unpopular. In 1962 the People's Progressive Party won a majority and formed a coalition with the Democratic Congress Alliance, a merger of the Democratic Party and the Muslim Congress Party. The United Party was invited in during 1963 and left in 1965.

  Between 1966 and 1992, Jawara's party won between 55 and 70 percent of the vote in every election. One assessment described a "one-party monopoly of state power centred around the dominant personality of Sir Dawda Jawara". The business class refused to finance the opposition. In the 1980s a radical socialist party, the People's Democratic Organisation for Independence and Socialism, emerged. A 1991 court challenge it brought over irregularities on the Banjul electoral register was dismissed on a technicality.

  On the 29th of July 1981, while Jawara was in London for the royal wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana, rebels tried to seize power. The attempt followed a weakening economy and allegations of corruption against leading politicians. The plotters called themselves the National Revolutionary Council. They were Kukoi Samba Sanyang's Socialist and Revolutionary Labour Party plus elements of the Field Force, a paramilitary force that formed the bulk of the armed forces.

  Jawara asked Senegal for military aid. It sent 400 troops on the 31st of July and some 2,700 by the 6th of August, defeating the rebels. Between 500 and 800 people were killed in the coup and the violence that followed. In 1982 the two countries signed a treaty of confederation, aiming to combine their armed forces, economies and currencies. The Gambia withdrew permanently from the Senegambia Confederation in 1989.

  In April 1992, Jawara won a fifth term as president. He would not finish it.

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• 6. Jammeh's Grip

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  On the 22nd of July 1994, a bloodless coup ended the Jawara era. The Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council seized power under Lieutenant Yahya Jammeh, who was just 29 years old. The council suspended the constitution, banned all political parties and imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew. The United States suspended most non-humanitarian assistance until 2002.

  Two years of direct rule followed. A new constitution was written in 1996, though the process was manipulated to benefit Jammeh. In a 1996 referendum, 70 percent of voters approved it, and Jammeh was elected president in December 1996. All pre-coup parties except the People's Democratic Organisation for Independence and Socialism stayed banned, and former ministers were barred from public office.

  The 1996 constitution made no reference to term limits. The president is head of state, head of government and commander-in-chief, with total executive power. He appoints the vice president, the cabinet, the judges of the superior courts, regional governors and district chiefs. He is directly elected to five-year terms by a simple majority. Foreign observers deemed the cycle of presidential, legislative and local elections around 2001 and 2002 free, fair and transparent. The main opposition United Democratic Party boycotted the legislative vote, so Jammeh's party kept a strong majority.

  The press felt the pressure first. A 2002 law created a commission with power to issue licences and imprison journalists. A 2004 law allowed prison sentences for libel and slander and cancelled all print and broadcast licences. Outlets had to re-register at five times the original cost. Two days after it passed, Deyda Hydara, a co-founder and editor of The Point, was shot dead. Reporters Without Borders found that "most of the key witnesses were convinced of the government's involvement".

  Jammeh was accused of abuses against activists, political opponents and the media, who faced exile, harassment, arbitrary imprisonment, murder and forced disappearance. Examples include a student massacre at a protest in 2000, public threats to kill human rights defenders in 2009 and public threats toward homosexuals in 2013. Human rights groups believe Ebrima Manneh of the Daily Observer was arrested in July 2006 after trying to republish a BBC report critical of Jammeh. Amnesty International considers him a prisoner of conscience. In 2019 The Trumpet reported that he had died in captivity in mid-2008. In 2010 the ECOWAS Court in Abuja awarded Musa Saidykhan, former editor of The Independent, US$200,000 after finding the government guilty of torture during detention without trial.

  Abroad, Jammeh broke with old habits. China cut ties in 1995 after the Gambia established diplomatic links with Taiwan, and restored them in 2016. He established relations with Libya, suspended in 2010, and with Cuba. The Gambia also backed MFDC rebels in Casamance in southern Senegal. On the 2nd of October 2013, the Interior Minister announced the Gambia's immediate exit from the Commonwealth after 48 years. The government said it "decided that The Gambia will never be a member of any Neo-Colonial institution and will never be a party to any institution that represents an extension of colonialism".

  On the 11th of December 2015, Jammeh declared the Gambia an Islamic Republic without any legal authority. He called it a break from the colonial past, though the constitution remained secular. A presidential election was less than a year away.

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• 7. The Standoff and After

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  In the tense months before the 2016 presidential election, Solo Sandeng, youth leader of the main opposition United Democratic Party, died in detention at the National Intelligence Agency. Party leader Ousainou Darboe and many senior members went to jail for demanding his release, dead or alive. In July 2016 the high court sentenced Darboe, a human rights advocate, to 3 years in prison. That disqualified him and let Adama Barrow contest under the party's ticket, backed by a coalition of opposition parties. Mamma Kandeh of the Gambia Democratic Congress also ran against Jammeh.

  On the 1st of December 2016, the elections commission declared Barrow the winner. Jammeh first said he would step down, then declared the results void and called for a new vote. The crisis ended with a military intervention by a coalition from the Economic Community of West African States, known as ECOWAS. On the 19th of January 2017, Barrow was sworn in at the Gambian embassy in Dakar, Senegal. The next day Jammeh announced he had agreed to step down and leave the country.

  Barrow pledged to head a three-year transitional government. On the 29th of January 2017, he dropped the word "Islamic" and restored the name Republic of The Gambia. On the 14th of February 2017 the country began the process of rejoining the Commonwealth. It formally applied to Secretary-General Patricia Scotland on the 22nd of January 2018. Boris Johnson, the first British foreign secretary to visit since 1965, welcomed the move. The Gambia officially rejoined on the 8th of February 2018.

  On the 28th of February 2018, women's rights activist Jaha Dukureh was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for her work against female genital mutilation. The World Health Organization estimates that 78.3 percent of Gambian girls and women have suffered it. LGBT activity remains illegal and punishable by life imprisonment. The Barrow administration promised not to prosecute consenting same-sex couples but said it would not repeal the law. In November 2019 the Gambia filed a case in The Hague accusing Myanmar's military of genocide against the Rohingya.

  Enthusiasm for Barrow cooled. The Nigerian Centre for Democracy and Development described a "fragile peace", with tensions between farmers and larger communities in rural areas. It said Barrow needed to restore "citizen's trust and confidence in the public sector". In February 2017-51 supporters of Jammeh were arrested for harassing supporters of Barrow. The constitution was under review in 2018, with a two-term limit and other changes expected.

  On the 5th of December 2021, the electoral commission declared Barrow re-elected. It was the first election since Jammeh fled into exile and was seen as crucial for the young democracy. On the 20th of December 2022, a supposed coup attempt was foiled and four soldiers were arrested, though the armed forces denied any attempt had been made. Barrow's use of foreign troops for his security and for protecting some infrastructure has hurt his popularity.

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• 8. Peoples and Daily Life

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  Provisional 2024 figures show Brikama's local government area holding 1,151,128 people, while the capital, Banjul, holds 26,461. Banjul has shrunk from 35,061 in 2003, and Brikama has grown from 688,744 in 2013. The national total rose 30.45 percent from the 2013 census. The Mandinka are the most numerous ethnic group, followed by the Fula, Wolof, Jola, Serahule, Serer, Manjago, Bambara, Aku Marabou and Bainunka. The Krio people, known locally as Akus, descend from Sierra Leone Creole people and are one of the smallest minorities. About 3,500 residents are non-African, including Europeans and families of Lebanese origin.

  English is the sole official language and is used in schools and government. Mandinka is the first language of 38 percent of people, Pulaar of 21 percent, Wolof of 18 percent, Soninke of 9 percent and Jola of 4.5 percent. English is the first language of 0.5 percent. The constitution mandates free and compulsory primary education, but a lack of resources has made that hard to deliver. In February 1998, Jammeh ordered an end to school fees for the first six years. About 20 percent of school-age children attend Quranic schools. The University of the Gambia was established by an act of the National Assembly in 1999, and its new campus at Faraba was inaugurated on the 12th of March 2024. The International Open University, with more than 435,000 enrolled students from over 250 countries, has its global headquarters in the Gambia.

  About 96 percent of Gambians identify as Sunni Muslim, mostly Malikite Sufi. Virtually all commercial life stops during Eid al-Adha and Eid ul-Fitr. Christians make up about 4 percent, mostly Roman Catholic in the west and south, and intermarriage between Muslims and Christians is common. Serer religion centres on a supreme deity called Roog, and adherents make an annual pilgrimage to Sine in Senegal for the Xooy divination ceremony. Muslim festivals such as Tobaski, Gamo, Koriteh and Weri Kor carry names borrowed from ancient Serer festivals. The Jola hold their own major ceremony, Boukout. A small Jewish community, cited at roughly 40 in 2011, built a synagogue in Banjul.

  Alex Haley's book and TV series Roots is set in the Gambia. The country also keeps a tradition of oral literature through its griots, the traditional storytellers and musicians. Lenrie Peters is considered the founding father of English-language Gambian literature, which has emerged since the 1960s. Domoda is a savoury peanut stew with meat and vegetables. Superkanja is an okra stew with palm oil, meat and smoked fish. Yassa is marinated fish or chicken seasoned with lemon, onions and mustard.

  Wrestling is the national and most popular sport. The football team, nicknamed the Scorpions, has never qualified for the FIFA World Cup. It reached the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in 2021 and again in 2023, in Ivory Coast. The Gambia won CAF U-17 championships in 2005, when it hosted, and in 2009 in Algeria.

  Farming, fishing and especially tourism dominate the economy. Agriculture accounts for roughly 30 percent of GDP and employs about 70 percent of the labour force. Peanut production alone makes up 6.9 percent of GDP. In 2022-17.2 percent of the population lived in extreme poverty, on less than US$2.15 a day. The country has 3,742 km of roads, only 723 km of them paved, and no railways. Its one port is at Banjul, and its one international airport is at Yundum, 26 km from the capital. Since 2017, China has invested in the Gambia under its Belt and Road Initiative, with a focus on processing locally caught fish into fish meal. The economic and environmental effects of that work are controversial. In 2024, the first solar power plant was inaugurated.

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