🇬🇲 The Gambia

Arab traders and Muslim merchants established communities in West African commercial centres during the ninth and tenth centuries. They opened trans-Saharan trade routes carrying gold, ivory, captives sold as slaves and imported manufactured goods, embedding Islam and Arabic literacy in the region.

Neighbouring kingdoms adopted Islam, bringing literate Muslim administrators into royal courts. This spread Arabic literacy and Islamic governance norms into the wider Gambia River region.

By the beginning of the fourteenth century most of what is today The Gambia formed part of the Mali Empire. The region was thus integrated into one of West Africa's largest imperial trading systems before European arrival.

Portuguese navigators reached the Gambia River in the mid-fifteenth century and began to dominate overseas trade, though they never established significant trade there. They adopted a variation of the local name that was later anglicised to Gambia.

The claimant to the Portuguese throne sold trading rights on the river to English merchants, a grant confirmed by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I. This marked the beginning of English commercial involvement in the Gambia.

The royal charter formalised English trading activity along the Gambia River and the Gold Coast. It laid the institutional foundation for later English and British commercial dominance in the region.

Prince Jacob Kettler bought territory on the Gambia River, including Fort Jakob and Fort Jillifree, for the Baltic duchy, a vassal of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The colonies were formally ceded to England in 1664, consolidating English control.

After the capture of Senegal, a British expedition landed in the Gambia amid the long Anglo-French struggle for supremacy on the Senegal and Gambia rivers. The occupation began sustained British military presence in the territory.

Britain formally established a colony in the Gambia, beginning two centuries of colonial rule. Independence would follow exactly 200 years later in 1965.

The 1783 treaty confirmed British possession of the Gambia River, though France retained a small enclave at Albreda on the north bank. Albreda was finally ceded to the United Kingdom in 1856, completing British control of the river.

Bathurst was founded as a military post at the river mouth and became the colonial capital. Slave ships intercepted by the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron were brought to the Gambia, with freed people settled on MacCarthy Island.

The last French foothold on the Gambia River's north bank passed to Britain. This removed the rival European presence from the river and consolidated British territorial authority.

Bathurst had at times been governed from Sierra Leone; in 1888 the Gambia was constituted as a distinct colony. It was later divided administratively into the colony around Banjul and the protectorate covering the remaining territory.

An Anglo-French agreement defined the present borders of the Gambia along the river. A joint Boundary Commission began placing markers in 1891 and met resistance from local leaders whose lands were divided; final demarcation took nearly fifteen years.

The institution that shortly became the Bank of British West Africa began operating in 1894. By May 2009 twelve commercial banks operated in the Gambia, including an Islamic bank and subsidiaries of Nigerian and Lebanese-Canadian groups.

The colony gained its own executive and legislative councils, the first institutions of self-administration. This began a gradual progression towards self-government over the following six decades.

The Gambia Regiment existed from 1901 to 1958 and fought in both world wars. It constitutes the origin of the country's military tradition, though the Gambia had no army of its own between 1958 and 1985.

Slavery was abolished in 1906, and after a brief conflict between British colonial forces and indigenous Gambians, colonial authority was firmly established. The measure ended the legal basis of a trade that had shaped the river region for centuries.

Gambian troops served with Allied forces during the Second World War, principally in the Burma campaign, and a Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery lies at Fajara. Banjul hosted a US Army Air Forces airstrip and served as a port of call for Allied naval convoys.

The new constitution created an elected House of Representatives, but the 1960 election produced no party majority. In 1961 the British Governor appointed UP leader Pierre Sarr N'Jie as the country's first Chief Minister, an unpopular decision.

Following elections in 1962, Britain conceded full internal self-government the next year. Dawda Jawara held the office of head of government from 1962, positioning him to lead the country to independence.

Jawara wrote to the Permanent Committee on Geographical Names for British Official Use asking that the name retain 'the', partly to avoid confusion with the newly independent Zambia. The usage 'The Gambia' has persisted since independence.

Independence was granted on 18 February 1965 with Dawda Jawara as prime minister, and the Gambia joined the United Nations and the Commonwealth the same year. It remained a constitutional monarchy under Queen Elizabeth II until becoming a republic in 1970.

A second referendum, held on 24 April 1970, approved the change from a parliamentary monarchy to a republic within the Commonwealth, five years after independence. Prime Minister Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara assumed the executive presidency, combining head of state and head of government; the office of Prime Minister was abolished and the 1970 constitution established a presidential republic. Jawara, who had led the country since independence, was re-elected five times and governed until the 1994 coup.

The new currency was introduced in 1971, initially pegged to the pound sterling, replacing the Gambian pound. It remains the country's currency, divided into 100 butut.

The NCP became the main opposition to the dominant People's Progressive Party. Its ideological similarity to the PPP later prompted the emergence of the radical socialist PDOIS in the 1980s.

Leftist rebels of the National Revolutionary Council, drawn from Kukoi Samba Sanyang's SRLP and elements of the paramilitary Field Force, seized Banjul on 29 July 1981 while Jawara was in London for a royal wedding. Senegal deployed 400 troops on 31 July and some 2,700 by 6 August, defeating the rebels and restoring Jawara to power; between 500 and 800 people were killed. The intervention paved the way for the Senegambia Confederation.

The confederation took effect in February 1982, following Senegal's military intervention to help put down a coup attempt against President Jawara the previous year. It dissolved in 1989 after Gambian resistance to closer political union.

The country had lacked a military since 1958, relying on the paramilitary Gambia Field Force within the police. The GAF has since served in UN and African Union peacekeeping missions, including ECOMOG in Liberia from 1990 to 1991.

The union with Senegal was permanently dissolved after seven years. The projected merger of armed forces, economies and currencies was abandoned, leaving the Gambia to pursue an independent course.

As an ECOWAS member the Gambia sent soldiers to the community's ceasefire monitoring group in Liberia, where two Gambian soldiers were killed by 1991. It later contributed to ECOMIL in 2003 during the Liberian and Sierra Leonean conflicts.

The treaty sought to repair relations after the collapse of the Senegambia confederation, but tensions between the two neighbours have flared intermittently since then.

The Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council, led by the 29-year-old Lieutenant Yahya Jammeh, deposed the government in a bloodless coup on 22 July 1994, suspending the constitution and banning opposition political activity. The coup ended Jawara's 24 years in power and nearly three decades of multi-party rule, and strained relations with Western powers; the United States suspended most non-humanitarian assistance until 2002. Jammeh went on to rule the Gambia for 22 years, first as a military leader and later as an elected president.

Dangote agreed with President Adama Barrow on 7 July 2026 to build a 250-megawatt solar power plant and a new fuel storage tank farm, after talks on the sidelines of the African Caucus meeting in Banjul. The two sides agreed to formalise the partnership through feasibility studies and joint implementation structures.

Defence lawyers for the accused travel agent argued on 21 July 2026 that repeated prosecution delays breached his right to a speedy trial, in a case over funds allegedly collected for pilgrims' Mecca visas. The magistrate declined to strike out the case and adjourned it to 13 August 2026.

Keita said on 30 July 2026 that tax revenue had risen from 11 billion dalasi in 2022 to 25 billion in 2025, a gain of more than 124 per cent achieved without broad tax increases. He credited digital reforms including electronic invoicing and customs processing, which the IMF and World Bank cited when reviewing the Gambia's credit programme.

Barrow named Gomez acting Chief of Defence Staff on 1 June 2026 after Lieutenant General Mamat Cham resigned, citing unspecified allegations of misconduct and abuse of office. A local rights group called for an independent investigation into the circumstances of Cham's departure.

Sonko appeared before the Federal Criminal Court of Switzerland's appeals chamber in Bellinzona on 30 March 2026 to challenge his 2024 conviction, which carried a 20-year sentence, over torture committed during Yahya Jammeh's rule. The case was among the first convictions worldwide for crimes against humanity under universal jurisdiction.

The vessel, carrying more than 200 people believed to be bound for Europe, capsized overnight on 1 January 2026. Seven bodies were recovered and 96 survivors rescued, while dozens more remained unaccounted for.

The suspect was arrested in Senegal on 29 November 2025 and handed to Gambian authorities on 2 December, more than two decades after Hydara, a prominent editor and press-freedom advocate, was shot dead in Banjul. The killing had long been linked to Jammeh-era security officials.

Trump issued a proclamation on 16 December 2025 adding the Gambia to an expanded list of 39 countries facing new US travel curbs. The move formed part of a wider tightening of entry rules affecting citizens of African and other developing countries.

Tchiroma, who disputed Paul Biya's re-election as Cameroon's president and briefly claimed victory himself, arrived in Banjul on 7 November 2025 citing safety concerns after post-election protests were suppressed with dozens of deaths. Granting him asylum highlighted the Gambia's emerging role in regional political disputes.

The commission confirmed the date in October 2025, setting up a contest in which President Adama Barrow, seeking a third term, is expected to face opposition leader Ousainou Darboe. The vote follows years of stalled efforts to adopt a new constitution that would have imposed presidential term limits.

The census showed a 30.45% increase on the 2013 count, confirming rapid demographic growth in a country of 11,300 square kilometres. Life expectancy rose from 31.2 years in 1950 to about 64–68 years by 2023.

The country's first utility solar facility was opened in 2024, a step towards diversifying an energy base in a state with limited infrastructure. China has invested in the Gambia under its Belt and Road Initiative since 2017.

Authorities reported thwarting a plot, though the Gambian Armed Forces denied any coup was attempted. Barrow's reliance on foreign troops for his own security and for infrastructure protection has damaged his popularity.

Barrow was declared the winner by the electoral commission on 5 December 2021. The vote was seen as crucial for consolidating the young democracy after decades of authoritarian rule.

The Gambia accused Myanmar's military of genocide against the Rohingya community before the International Court of Justice. The action gave the small state unusual prominence in international justice.

The process began on 14 February 2017 and the formal application was presented to Secretary-General Patricia Scotland on 22 January 2018. Boris Johnson became the first British foreign secretary to visit since independence and welcomed the return, restoring the Gambia's place in the organisation.

Barrow removed the 'Islamic' title unilaterally imposed by Jammeh in December 2015. The reversal signalled a return to the secular constitutional order.

After Jammeh rejected the election result, regional forces invaded to enforce the outcome. On 20 January 2017 Jammeh agreed to step down and leave the country, and Barrow was sworn in at the Gambian embassy in Dakar on 19 January 2017.

Adama Barrow, backed by a coalition of opposition parties, defeated Yahya Jammeh in the presidential election of 1 December 2016, after opposition leader Ousainou Darboe was jailed for three years in July 2016 and disqualified from standing. Jammeh, who had ruled for 22 years, first conceded but then declared the result void and proclaimed a state of emergency, provoking a constitutional crisis. An ECOWAS-led military intervention in January 2017 forced Jammeh into exile in Equatorial Guinea, allowing Barrow to take office.

Jammeh proclaimed the change without legal authority, calling it a break from the colonial past, although the constitution remained secular. President Barrow reversed the change in January 2017.

On 3 October 2013 the Interior Minister announced the Gambia's immediate departure from the Commonwealth, ending 48 years of membership, with the government declaring it would never belong to a 'neo-colonial institution'. The step followed years of tension with Western countries over human rights and deepened the country's diplomatic isolation under Jammeh. The Gambia rejoined the Commonwealth in February 2018 under President Barrow.

Jammeh was elected president in every poll following the 1996 return to constitutional rule, most recently in late 2011. His victories entrenched more than two decades of personal rule over The Gambia.

The co-founder and editor of The Point newspaper was murdered shortly after restrictive press laws were enacted. His killing became emblematic of repression under Jammeh, alongside a student massacre at a protest in 2000 and threats against human rights defenders.

A 2002 law created a commission empowered to issue licences and jail journalists, followed by 2004 legislation permitting prison for libel and slander and cancelling all print and broadcast licences. Media groups were forced to re-register at five times the original cost.

Presidential, legislative and local elections were held and deemed free, fair and transparent by foreign observers. Jammeh took the oath of office again on 21 December 2001 and his APRC retained a strong National Assembly majority after the UDP boycotted the legislative poll.

Police and paramilitary units opened fire on students protesting alleged police brutality on 10 and 11 April 2000. At least a dozen people were killed; estimates of the exact toll vary and no official figure was ever settled.

The country's first university was created by statute in 1999, following the Gambia College founded in 1978. A new campus at Faraba was inaugurated on 12 March 2024.

Fees had long prevented many children from attending school; the gross primary enrolment rate had been 77.1% in 1995 with a net rate of 64.7%. Abolition aimed to widen access to basic education.

The IEC replaced the Provisional Independent Electoral Commission created in December 1995, taking charge of voter registration, elections and referendums. It organised the 2001–02 cycle of presidential, legislative and local elections that foreign observers deemed free and fair.

A new constitution and presidential elections in 1996, followed by parliamentary balloting in 1997, formally ended the period of overt military government, though Jammeh remained firmly in charge.

The August 1996 referendum approved a constitution drafted after Jammeh's 1994 coup, and he was elected president as a civilian candidate that September. The Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction, formed from the coup's ruling council, dominated Gambian politics for the next two decades.

Beijing severed diplomatic relations when Banjul established links with Taipei, and relations were only re-established in 2016. Jammeh meanwhile opened relations with Libya, suspended in 2010, and Cuba.