The Gambia

• tropical;
• hot, rainy season (June to November);
• cooler, dry season (November to May)

total:

0.03 cu km/yr (23%/12%/65%)

per capita:

20 cu m/yr (2000)

• deforestation;
• desertification;
• water-borne diseases prevalent

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified:

none of the selected agreements

noun:

Gambian(s)

adjective:

Gambian

at birth:

1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.01 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.98 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.98 male(s)/female

total population:

1 male(s)/female (2011 est.)

degree of risk:

very high

food or waterborne diseases:

bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases:

malaria

water contact disease:

schistosomiasis

respiratory disease:

meningococcal meningitis

animal contact disease:

rabies (2009)

conventional long form:

Republic of The Gambia

conventional short form:

The Gambia

name:

Banjul

geographic coordinates:

13 27 N, 16 34 W

time difference:

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

chief of state:

• President Yahya JAMMEH (since 18 October 1996);
• note - from 1994 to 1996 he was chairman of the junta;
• Vice President Isatou NJIE-SAIDY (since 20 March 1997);
• note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:

President Yahya JAMMEH (since 18 October 1996); Vice President Isatou NJIE-SAIDY (since 20 March 1997)

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by the president; (For more information visit theWorld Leaders website)

elections:

president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (no term limits); election last held on 24 November 2011 (next to be held in 2016)

election results:

Yahya JAMMEH reelected president; percent of vote - Yahya JAMMEH 71.5%, Ousainou DARBOE 17.4%, Hamat BAH 11.1%

• Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction or APRC [Yahya A. J. J. JAMMEH] (the ruling party);
• Gambia People's Democratic Party or GPDP [Henry GOMEZ];
• National Alliance for Democracy and Development or NADD [Halifa SALLAH];
• National Convention Party or NCP [Sheriff DIBBA];
• National Reconciliation Party or NRP [Hamat N. K. BAH];
• People's Democratic Organization for Independence and Socialism or PDOIS [Halifa SALLAH];
• United Democratic Party or UDP [Ousainou DARBOE]

• National Environment Agency or NEA;
• West African Peace Building Network-Gambian Chapter or WANEB-GAMBIA;
• Youth Employment Network Gambia or YENGambia

other:

special needs group advocates; teachers and principals

chief of mission:

Ambassador Alieu Momodou NGUM

chancery:

Suite 240, Georgetown Plaza, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007

telephone:

[1] (202) 785-1379, 1399, 1425

FAX:

[1] (202) 785-1430

chief of mission:

Ambassador Pamela WHITE

embassy:

Kairaba Avenue, Fajara, Banjul

mailing address:

P. M. B. No. 19, Banjul

telephone:

[220] 439-2856, 437-6169, 437-6170

FAX:

[220] 439-2475

• three equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue with white edges, and green;
• red stands for the sun and the savannah, blue represents the Gambia River, and green symbolizes forests and agriculture;
• the white stripes denote unity and peace

name:

"For The Gambia, Our Homeland"

lyrics/music:

Virginia Julie HOWE/adapted by Jeremy Frederick HOWE

note: adopted 1965; the music is an adaptation of the traditional Mandinka song "Foday Kaba Dumbuya"

agriculture:

75%

industry:

19%

services:

6% (1996)

lowest 10%:

2%

highest 10%:

36.9% (2003)

general assessment:

adequate microwave radio relay and open-wire network; state-owned Gambia Telecommunications partially privatized in 2007

domestic:

combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity, aided by multiple mobile-cellular providers, approached 85 per 100 persons in 2009

international:

• country code - 220;
• microwave radio relay links to Senegal and Guinea-Bissau;
• a landing station for the Africa Coast to Europe (ACE) undersea fiber-optic cable is scheduled for completion in 2011;
• satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2009)

• state-owned, single-channel TV service;
• state-owned radio station and 4 privately-owned radio stations;
• transmissions of multiple international broadcasters are available, some via shortwave radio;
• foreign cable and satellite TV subscription services are obtainable in some parts of the country (2007)

total:

3,742 km

country comparison to the world: 159

paved:

723 km

unpaved:

3,019 km (2004)

males age 16-49:

423,306

females age 16-49:

438,641 (2010 est.)

males age 16-49:

315,176

females age 16-49:

347,017 (2010 est.)

male:

20,508

female:

20,853 (2010 est.)

current situation:

• The Gambia is a source, transit, and destination country for children and women subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking;
• within The Gambia, women and girls and, to a lesser extent, boys are subjected to sex trafficking and domestic servitude;
• women, girls, and boys from West African countries - mainly Senegal, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana, Nigeria, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, and Benin - are recruited for exploitation in the sex trade

tier rating:

• Tier 2 Watch List - the government did not demonstrate increasing efforts to address human trafficking over the previous year;
• the Gambian Government failed to use its adequate anti-trafficking legal framework to investigate or prosecute any suspected trafficking cases (2011)