5 divisions and 1 city*; Banjul*, Lower River, Central River, North Bank, Upper River, Western.
Population:
1,411,205 (July 2001 est.)
Currency:
dalasi (GMD)
Languages:
English (official), Mandinka, Wolof, Fula, other indigenous vernaculars
Elevation:
highest point: unnamed location 53 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Natural hazards:
drought (rainfall has dropped by 30% in the last 30 years)
Climate:
tropical; hot, rainy season (June to November); cooler, dry season (November to May)
Agricultural:
peanuts, millet, sorghum, rice, corn, sesame, cassava (tapioca), palm kernels; cattle, sheep, goats; forest and fishery resources not fully exploited.
Economy:
The Gambia has no important mineral or other natural resources and has a limited agricultural base. About 75% of the population depends on crops and livestock for its livelihood. Small-scale manufacturing activity features the processing of peanuts, fish, and hides. Reexport trade normally constitutes a major segment of economic activity, but a 1999 government-imposed preshipment inspection plan, instability of the Gambian dalasi, and the stable political situation in Senegal have drawn some of the reexport trade away from Banjul. The government's 1998 seizure of the private peanut firm Alimenta eliminated the largest purchaser of Gambian groundnuts; the following two marketing seasons have seen significantly lower prices and sales. A decline in tourism from 1999 to 2000 has also held back growth. Unemployment and underemployment rates are extremely high. Shortrun economic progress remains highly dependent on sustained bilateral and multilateral aid, on responsible government economic management as forwarded by IMF technical help and advice, and on expected growth in the construction sector.
