RESTRICTED  
  
WT/TPR/G/365  
21 November 2017  
(17-6321) Page: 1/14 
Trade Policy Review Body   Original: English  
 
 
TRADE POLICY REVIEW  
REPORT BY  
THE GAMBIA 
Pursuant to the Agreement Establishing the Trade Policy Review Mechanism (Annex 3 of the 
Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization), the policy statement by 
The Gambia  is attached.  
 
 
Note: This report is subject to restricted circulation and press embargo until the end of the first 
session of the meeting of the Trade Policy Review Body on The Gambia . WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 Contents  
ABBREVIATIONS  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..............  3 
1   ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT  AND PERFORMANCE  ................................ ..........................  4 
1.1   The Country Profile  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 4 
1.2   Economic Overview  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 4 
1.3   Macroeconomic Environment  ................................ ................................ .........................  5 
1.3.1    Fiscal policy  ................................ ................................ ................................ .............  5 
1.3.2    Monetary policy  ................................ ................................ ................................ ........  5 
1.3.3    Debt sustainability  ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 5 
2   SECTORIAL PERFORMANC E ................................ ................................ .........................  6 
2.1   Agriculture  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................  6 
2.2   Tourism  ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................  7 
2.3   Transport  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................  8 
2.4   Manufacturing  ................................ ................................ ................................ .............  9 
2.5   Fishery ................................ ................................ ................................ .......................  9 
2.6   Forestry  ................................ ................................ ................................ .....................  9 
2.7   Energy  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................... 10 
2.8   Information and Communication Technology  ................................ ................................ ..10 
3   TRADE POLICY ENVIRON MENT  ................................ ................................ ..................  11 
3.1   Trade -Related Policies  ................................ ................................ ................................ .11 
3.2   Trade Facilitation  ................................ ................................ ................................ ........ 12 
3.3   Market Opportunities  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..12 
3.4   Mainstreaming Gender in Trade  ................................ ................................ .................... 13 
4   REGIONAL INTEGRATION  ................................ ................................ ..........................  13 
4.1   ECOWAS  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................... 13 
4.1.1    Protocol on Free Movement of People and Goods  ................................ ......................... 13 
4.1.2    ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS)  ................................ .............................. 14 
4.1.3    ECOWAS Inter -State Road Transit (ISRT) Scheme  ................................ ....................... 14 
4.1.4    ECOWAS Regional Competition Authority (ERC A) ................................ ......................... 14 
5   CONCLUSION ................................ ................................ ................................ .............  14 
 
  WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 ABBREVIATIONS  
AFDB    African Development Bank  
ANR   Agriculture and Natural Resource Policy  
BADEA   Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa  
CBG   Central Bank of The Gambia  
CET   Common External Tariff  
ECOWAS    Economic Community of West African States  
EIF   Enhanced Integrated Framework  
FASDEP   Food and Agriculture Sector Development Project  
FAO   Food and Agriculture Organization  
GBOS    Gambia Bureau of Statistics  
GDP    Gross Domestic Product  
GNAIP   Gambia National Agriculture Investment Programme  
MOFEA   Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs  
MOICI   Ministry of Information and Communication Infrastructure  
MOTIE   Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employm ent 
NAWEC   National Water and Electricity Company  
NEMA    Land and Water Management Project  
SOEs   State -Owned Enterprises  
UNCTAD   United Nations Conference on Trade and Development  
 
 
  WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 1  ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT  AND PERFORMANCE  
1.1  The Country Profile  
1.1.  The Gambia, a West African country bordered by Senegal on three sides and the Atlantic 
Ocean on the West, is one of the smallest countries in mainland Afr ica with a population over 
1.85 million (GBOS 2013). The Gambia however remains one of the least developed and low 
income countries in the world. The country has a total land area of 11 ,000 square kilometres, 
which extends about 500 km inland and its width varies from 24 to 28 km. Subsistence, rural and 
rain fed agriculture is one of the major drivers of The Gambia 's economy and also serves as the 
main source of livelihood of the majority of the rural population. The GDP per capita income of The 
Gambia was estimated around US $440 in 2014 by World Bank. Domestic cereal production 
accounts for around 60% of annual consumpt ion requirements and the country relies heavily on 
food imports. Foreign exchange earnings are based primarily on groundnut exports, tourism, and 
remittances. The relatively undiversified economy makes the Gambian economy highly vulnerable 
to external shoc ks. 
1.2  Economic Overview  
1.2.  The Gambian economy has been generally stable with robust economic growth over the last 
five years until recently when economic growth contracted from 4.3% in 2015 to 2.2% in 2016. 
Following the 2011 drought -induced contraction of T he Gambia 's gross domestic product (GDP), 
the country 's economy recovered moderately in 2012 and 2013. However, the GDP growth rate 
saw a sharp drop from 4.8% in 2013 to 0.9% in 2014 compared to earlier estimated GDP growth 
of 2% to 5%. The principal factor s behind the poor growth outturn are the decline in tourism 
earnings and reduced agricultural outputs due to delayed rains in 2014.  
1.3.  The global recovery of the Western Economies from the global economic crises is slow but is 
increasing with little momentum . However, despite the unfavorable West Africa Ebola crisis along 
with the country 's political climate leading towards the 2016 elections. The real GDP  growth  for 
2016 declined to 2.2% from 4.3 the year earlier. The outlook of The Gambian economy is positi ve 
with the anticipated real GDP growth rate of 3.0%.  
1.4.  The service sector is however on a decline, with a growth of only 3.7% in 2015 compared to 
6.0% the previous year. The underperformance of the sector was attributed to the low turnout of 
tourist as a re sult of the 2014 Ebola crisis. This contributed to the m inimal growth of wholesale 
and r etail trade accounting for only 2.88% and a decline of 13.6%  for hotels and r estaurants. 
Nevertheless, hotels and r estaurants grew by 6.0% in 2016 and the service secto r grew by 5.1% 
indicating a recovery from the epidemic. Similarly, there is an expected growth in agriculture as 
well as t ourism through the increase of investment and policy coordination amongst key 
stakeholders in 2017. The Agricultural sector has improv ed from erratic rainfalls in 2011 and 2014. 
In 2015, the agricultural sector saw a modest growth of 3.8%, projected to account for 21% of 
The Gambia 's GDP in 2016, compared to 20% in 2015. Since 2010, liabilities of the insurance and 
finance sectors droppe d by 7% and 7.7%, respectively.  
1.5.  The development of the private sector remains essential for The Gambia Government. 
However, private investments from domestic sources declined due to high domestic borrowing by 
the Government. Investment as a percentage of GDP accounted for 11% in 2016 as compared to 
13% in 2014 and 2015. Domestic credit to the private sector as a percentage of GDP accounted 
for up to 10% in 2016 compared to 13% in 2015 and 16% in 2014. This was caused by high cost 
of borrowing, which was pe gged at 22%.  
1.6.  Prices of goods and services were relatively unstable in 2015. Food imports reflected a 
decline of 22.5% mainly due to the depreciation of the Dalasi against the U .S. dollar and other 
major trading currencies. Consumer food inflation was the m ain dri ver of overall inflation in 
The Gambia. Food inflation recorded 8.8% in 2016 compared to 7.6% during the same period of 
2015. Given these trends, inflation on a year -on-year basis for 2016 in terms of the Consumer 
Price Index was 7.1% compared to 7. 2% re corded in December 2015. The 12 -month average 
inflation rate has to a large extent remained stable at 7.9% for both periods. However, this rate is 
still above the Central Bank 's target of 5%.  WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 1.3  Macroeconomic Environment  
1.3.1   Fiscal p olicy  
1.7.  Fiscal measures focused on more effective revenue mobilization, reduction in the fiscal deficit 
and the creation of a competitive business environment. This will enhance private sector 
development as well as attract investments. In that regard, the Governm ent continues to adopt 
fiscal measures that will help achieve these objectives.  
1.8.  Following the adoption of a Common External Tariff (CET) by the ECOWAS Commission, 
The Gambia in 2006, started aligning its tariff rates with those of the ECOWAS Common External 
Tariff (CET). Since January 2017, The Gambia has started implementing the CET. Even though the 
adoption of the CET has to some extent reduced the competitive tariff advantage of The Gambia, 
the overall advantage of an effective economic integration in West Africa is greater for The Gambia 
in the long term. The Government also reduced the corporate tax from 33% to 30% from 2010 to 
2016 using 0.5% yearly deduction rate.   
1.9.  The Gambia has been implementing the new Customs and Excise Act 2010. This has helped 
in reducing the duty exemption for inputs for producers in line with the provisions of the ECOWAS 
CET.  
1.10.   The Government will continue to pursue tax reforms over the medi um term to enhance 
further revenues and strengthen the business environment. This will involve further simplification 
of the tax system, gradual reduction of corporate and income tax rates, and eliminating 
discretionary exemptions and investment incentives . Reforms to tax administration are ongoing 
with continued capacity building of the personnel of The Gambia Revenue Authority and Ministry of 
Finance and Economic Affairs.  
1.3.2   Monetary p olicy  
1.11.   The focus of monetary policy since 2010 is geared towards maintaini ng price stability 
aligned with the government's macroeconomic objectives of sustainable growth and poverty 
reduction. Monetary policy will continue to hold inflation to no more than 5% to prevent further 
price increases. Reserve money at  end December 2016  recorded D8,295 million from 
D6,626 million the same period the previous year. This represents a 25% increase of reserved 
money in 2016. The increased growth of broad money was mainly due to the corresponding 
increments in the net domestic assets (NDA) of  the banking sector particularly that of the claims 
on Government net.  
1.12.   In the financial sector, the Government along with the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is 
committed to tightening up the monetary policy and the continued strengthening of the 
supervisi on of the banking system to ensure compliance with the banking rules and operations. 
There are currently 12 banks operating in The Gambia. As of September 2016, all the banks are 
above the minimum capital requirement of D200 million. The total assets (loan s and investments) 
from the banking industry increased from D28.3 billion in 2015 to D31.3 billion in 2016. In 
addition, with the advances in technology, the fourth component of Gamswitch was spearheaded 
by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs (MOF EA) with the Central Bank of The Gambia 
(CBG) to push for a greater and more efficient means of financia l transaction processing in 
The Gambia.  
1.3.3   Debt s ustainability  
1.13.   The total public debt of the Gambia in 2016 exceeded 100% of GDP, with 71.9% and 54.2% 
of GD P for external and domestic debt, respectively. Total domestic debt raised  to 
US$589.4  million in 2016, in other words, an increase of 22.65% from the previous year. This was 
essentially due to the inability of state -owned enterprises to service external o bligations forcing 
the Government to bail them out. However, measures will be put in place to end the recurring 
trend of bailing out state -owned enterprises (SOEs) to prevent any further debt distress and 
ensure lasting sustainability.  WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 1.14.   In 2014, MOFEA devel oped a Medium Debt Management Strategy in order to tackle the debt 
challenges faced in the country. This is to ensure restructuring and reorganizing SOEs for debt 
sustainability in The Gambia.  
2  SECTORIAL PERFORMANC E 
2.1.  The Gambia Government gives high prio rity to the development of the t ourism, fisheries and 
the agriculture sector because of their pro -poor and women empowerment effects. These sectors 
combined contribute nearly half of the country's GDP and employs more than 75% of the 
workforce.  
2.1  Agriculture  
2.2.  16. The agriculture sector continues to be rain -fed reliant, which has been erratic over the 
years. The Gambia has experienced droughts since the last Trade Policy Review in 2010. The 
Gambia Government, however, continues to pursue the medium term goals of th e sector which are 
aimed at achieving food security through the promotion of sustainable diversified food production 
programs, with emphasis on cereal production. It is envisaged that it will create employment and 
generate income for the rural population w ho are highly dependent on primary production. 
Approximately 46% of the population1 works in agriculture  Aged 7 years and above (Integrated 
Household Survey 2015/16).  The agricultural sector accounted for 21% of GDP in 2016 compared 
to 20% in 2015. The sec tor also generates substantial export earnings and continues to be a major 
contributor to household income. Notwithstanding, domestic food production caters for half the 
national consumption requirements with the gaps filled by imports, particularly in ric e. 
2.3.  The performance of the sector from 2010 to 2015 has been declining. Total agricultural 
output from 2010 -2015 dropped from 308,141 ton nes to 268,543 ton nes. Similarly, total cereal 
production also dropped from 209,662 to 181,897 ton nes for the same period. In addition, rice 
production also decreased from 62,926 ton nes in 2010 to 53,309 ton nes in 2015. For the 2016 
cropping season, the 2016 pre -harvest survey records that total production is estimated to decline 
by 3%. Total cereal production is also expected to decline by 3% as a result of the delay in 
planting due to late rains and early cessation. Moreover, the sector has also performed re asonably 
well during the 2010 -15 cropping periods in terms of an overall increase in area cultivated for 
cereals . Nonetheless, due to the decrease in cultivated area for cash crops, total area for all crops 
also plummeted by 9%. The total cultivated area in the 2016 cropping season is estimated at 
317,959 hectares, an increase of 3% over 2015. This increase is attri buted to the intervention of 
projects through the provision of seeds, fertilizer, and other inputs to farmers. Furthermore cereal 
cultivation recorded an increase of 2%.  
Table 2.1 Cultivated area field c rops,  2010 -15 
(Ha) 
Crop 2010  2011  2012  2013  2014  2015  
Early Millet  93,456  89,499  95,127  82,566  78,469.05  69,440.3  
Late Millet  18,123  20,986  21,693  23,226  22,360.54  21,709.1  
Sorghum  25,325  29,576  31,091  28,720  27,235.18  25,146.0  
Maize  38,390  25,256  28,288  33,170  36,703.80  36,803.5  
Rice 40,671  62,026  63,592  66,380  66,286.49  67,651.6  
Findia 429 507 521 491 510.05  1,239.1  
Cereals  216,394  227,850  240,312  234,553  231,565  221,989  
Groundnuts  122,699  111,924  116,507  100,305  81,026.53  82,161  
Sesame  3,303  7,778  7,988  1,582  2,074.58  3,180.4  
Cowpea  N/A N/A N/A N/A 475.46  2,662.3  
Cash crops  126,002  119,702  124,495  101,887  83,577  88,003.7  
Total  342,396  347,552  369,954  336,440  315,141.68  309,993  
a Hungry r ice. 
Source:  Planning Services Unit, Department of Agriculture . 
                                                
1 Aged 7 years and above (Integrated Household Survey 2015 -16). WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 Table 2.2 Agricultural output, 2010 –15 
(Tonnes)  
Crop  2010  2011  2012  2013  2014  2015  
Early Millet  77,505  72,941  96,467  71527  59,116.33  55,968.88  
Late Millet  18,872  14,293  19,622  22,272  17,700.72  18,300.77  
Sorghum  14,440  20,556  23,146  30,390  20,289  21,625.56  
Maize  35,761  23,613  28,934  33,060  30,289.39  32,019.05  
Findi 157 319 367 416 396.33  672.83  
Rice 62,926  51,136  54,219  69,704  46,674  53309.46  
Total c ereal  209,662  182,858  222,755  227,369  174,466  181,897  
Groundnuts  97,516  83,858  119,614  93,862  80,653  82,653.97  
Sesame  963 2,659  2,928  509 177.41  2,232.64  
Cowpea  N/A - - - - 1,759.78  
Total cash c rop 98,479  86,517  122,542  94,371  82,432  86,646  
National t otal 308,141  269,375  345,297  321,740  256,898  268,543  
Source:  Planning Services Unit, Department of Agriculture . 
2.4.  Reducing the sector's reliance on rain fed agriculture through a well -developed irrigation 
system and the gradual and sustainable transformation of agriculture from subsistence to a more 
commercially –oriented farming continues to be the main challenge of the Government in its quest 
to modernize the sector and improve its performance.  
2.5.  The Government of The Gambia continues to prioritize the agriculture sector in its 
development agend a and reinforces relationships with development partners to promote 
agricultural production and food productivity for food security and enhanced rural livelihoods.  
2.6.  Government efforts in addressing the challenges in the agricultural sector include the 
introduction of the Land and Water Management project (NEMA). This project is expected to 
construct additional 12,400 hectares of lowland and 2,000 hectares of tidal irrigation for rice 
production. Moreover, The Ministry of Agriculture, through the Food and Agr iculture Sector 
Development Project (FASDEP) will construct additional 200  km feeder roads to enhance access to 
markets for agricultural produce. In addition, the Ministry in collaboration with the African 
Development Bank (AfDB) carried out various studie s under the conceived Agricultural 
Transformation Programme. The Gambia National Agriculture Investment Programme (GNAIP) has 
been reviewed and the Ministry is currently working on the second generation of GNAIP.  
2.7.  The current policy on the developm ent of t he agriculture sector, t he Agriculture and Natural 
Resource (ANR) Policy (2009 -2015), which is currently under review, takes into consideration the 
importance of agricultural productivity through improvements in smallholder farming. The policy 
also emphasi zes the comparative advantage of resources and the commitment of government to 
improve the agricultural environment to attract commercial investment in the sector.  
2.8.  The Government continues to promote private commercial investment in agriculture. In order 
to enhance private participation across the value chain, a number of initiatives have already 
commenced through the matching grants in three projects. This will be further expanded to include 
access to agricultural land and agro -industry processing equipme nt through a multi -stakeholder 
consultative process. In addition, Government will continue to pursue projects that will provide 
cold-storage facilities that will address post -harvest losses in agricultural production.  
2.2  Tourism  
2.9.  23. Growth in the tourism sec tor in The Gambia since the last Trade Policy Review has been 
fluctuating. Tourist arrivals for 2016 was 161,127 as compared to 134,560 in 2015, this represents 
an increase of 19.7%, showing signs of a recovery from the Ebola crisis in 2014. Even though 
there has been an increase in 2015 -16, the projected figures of 200, 000 were not achieved. The 
2016-17 season air arrivals are projected to reach 250,000. The sector has benefited from a 
number of significant investments in hotels by the private sector as we ll as improvement in roads 
and other tourist related infrastructure by the Government. To spearhead the development of the 
industry, the Ministry continues to implement the strategies outlined in the 2015 -2020 Tourism 
and Culture and Hospitality Strategy P lan. The plan aims at intensifying the e -marketing program 
and increasing PR marketing by the Gambia Tourism Board. The strategic importance of the sector 
implies that Government will continue to support the Tourism Board with innovations such as WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 increased  use of e -marketing, strong promotional campaign and diversification of tourism 
products.  
2.10.   Tourism development is a priority within our development plan, given the sector's 
contribution to GDP and employment. The Government continues to intensify efforts in  e-
marketing and PR program mes to attract arrivals from non -traditional markets such as Eastern 
Europe and the ECOWAS region.  
2.11.   As part of this diversification process, The Gambia will aim to continue to position itself as a 
preferred destination for Confer ence Tourism. The Government will also continue to promote the 
development of good quality hotel infrastructure to compliment the development of roads and the 
upgrading of various craft markets in the Touris m Development Area. Similarly, t he National 
Cente r for Arts and Culture continues to make significant progress with the action plans outlined in 
the 2015 -2020 Strategy Plan and the implementation of its broad mandate in preserving, 
promoting, and developing arts and culture.  
2.12.   The Government will continue  to collaborate with Private Sector and Civil society to promote 
the linkages between the accommodation sector and agricultural suppliers through the 
implementation of the proposed Inclusive Tourism project and the revitalization of "The Gambia is 
Good Pro gramme". These programmes are aimed at ensuring quality fresh fruits and vegetables, 
which meet the requirements for the hotels and restaurants as local supply.  
2.3  Transport  
2.13.   Developing good road networks to facilitate the movement of people and goods is one of the 
main policy objectives of the Government in the transport sector. The overall objective is to 
develop an efficient transport network that will support production in the economy as well as 
continue to position The Gambia as a transit hub in the regio n. To this end, the Government 
continues to make significant progress in the improvement of The Gambia's primary road network. 
In 2015, the missing link of the South Bank primary road network, the Brikama -Darsilami -
Dimbaya Road, was completed and the imple mentation of the first phase of the construction of the 
Trans -Gambia Bridge commenced.  
2.14.   Moreover, heavy investment has been made in road construction on both the South and 
North Bank trunks. Regarding the south bank, Government has approached funding partn ers to 
finance the construction of the only remaining stretch, Basse -Fatoto -Koina road, including the 
Wulli Bridge. On the North Bank stretch, the construction of the remaining section, Laminkoto -
Passamas, has already been contracted in November 2016 and w ork has commenced. Additionally, 
following the upgrading of the Sankandi -Karantaba road to gravel, funding partners have been 
approached to raise the standard of the road to bitumen. As a result, an agreement has been 
reached with Management of the Arab Ba nk for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA).  
2.15.   With the objective of maintaining The Gambia as a transit hub, the maritime transport 
strategy of the Government of The Gambia focuses on strengthening the position of the Port of 
Banjul as a gateway to The G ambia and the ECOWAS region in line with the Freeport initiative. 
However, the Port of Banjul is faced with intense competition from other regional ports in the 
hinterland countries of the port, namely, Senegal, Guinea Bissau, and Guinea Conakry. Therefore , 
there is an immense need for the Banjul Port to continually improve its efficiency as well as 
improve on the port's logistics for better services. Consequently, the authorities are forging Public -
Private Partnerships in addressing these challenges.  
2.16.   The m anagement of the Port of Banjul still operates under a Public Service Model while most 
ports have shifted from this traditional model to Landlord Ports as a means of enhancing their 
productivity and efficiency and creating room for private sector intervent ion. In light of this, the 
Ministry of Transportation, Works and Infrastructure encourages institutional and procedurals 
reforms in order for the Port of Banjul to enhance its competitiveness and to transform The 
Gambia into a trade hub in the sub -region.  WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 2.4  Manufacturing  
2.17.   The Government of The Gambia is committed to a comprehensive development effort aimed 
at transforming the Gambian economy from low levels of output and income and dependence on 
agriculture and tourism to a diversified and export -led economy. The Government 's strategy is to 
build on the small domestic base to encourage companies to supply the Gambian and regional 
markets as well as innovate and improve supply  to the US and EU markets. The G overnment's 
commitment to transform the sector is supported by the In dustrial Policy, which is currently being 
reviewed with the support of UNCTAD.  
2.18.   Some of the key prerequisites as a way forward to improve and attract investment in the 
manufacturing sector are reliable and affordable energy, better transportation and qualit y 
infrastructures, which T he Gambia is working to accomplish in the new National Development Plan. 
With be tter quality infrastructure in T he Gambia, manufacturing companies can apply techniques 
such as Lean Manufacturing to reduce waste and Six Sigma to im prove quality as well as acquire 
certifications for entry into markets in Europe and America.  
2.19.   According to the Gambia Bureau of Statistics, the revised sectorial growth rate, industry 
contracted by 3.1% in 2016 compared to 8.2% in 2015. This was as a resu lt of a decline in mining  
and quarrying and construction of the sub -sectors. The mining and quarrying sub -sector 
contracted by 10.3% in 2015 compared to a decline of 6.5% the previous year. In addition, 
construction also recorded a negative growth of 5.9% in 2016 compared to 24.1% in 2015. As a 
result, the sector's share of contribution to GDP declined from 15% in 2015 to 11% in 2016.  
2.5  Fishery  
2.20.   The fisheries sector also continues to be a priority sector for the Government because of its 
great potential for f ood security and the overall economic development of the country. For this 
reason, the Fisheries Act, 2007 and the Fisheries Regulations, 2008 are under review. The overall 
goal of the sector policy is to encourage responsible fishing and fish utilization practices as well as 
sustainable development of fishing for food security and poverty alleviation in The Gambia. In 
addition, the policy also aims at enhancing the development of the aquaculture sector as one of 
the priority areas in the development of the  fisheries sector.  
2.21.   In line with the Draft Fisheries Bill (2007) and Fisheries Regulations (2008), the Department 
of Fisheries intends to increase their monitoring and regulation of the fishing sector, both industrial 
and artisanal. In addition, the Governm ent of The Gambia is currently engaged in a two year 
Technical Cooperation Programme with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) aimed at 
improving the development of the artisanal fisheries sector in The Gambia. The programme will 
help to enhance you th and women participation in the fisheries value chain to alleviate poverty, 
create employment opportunities, and raise awareness in fish handling and greater involvement of 
Gambians in fisheries matters.  
2.22.   The sector has made significant strides in addres sing challenges that constrain its 
development. For instance, with the support of various donor agencies, a considerable number of 
developmental progress have been achieved in the artisanal fisheries sub -sector by various 
interventions such as the improvem ent of fish landing sites, the provision of ice plants and cold 
stores, improved fish smoking and drying facilities, stores for cured fish products, machinery and 
equipment in several fishing communities. Additionally, access to credit facilities for opera tors in 
the artisanal fisheries subsectors has been improved through the establishment of micro -finance 
credit schemes for the procurement of needed implements.  
2.23.   In 2013, The Gambia Government commissioned the Banjul Fisheries Jetty to facilitate the 
landin g of fish for processing and export.  
2.6  Forestry  
2.24.   The forest legislation of 1998 mandates the Forestry Department for managing state forests 
and forest parks. It empowers the Forestry Department (FD) to regulate the exploitation of any 
type of forest product for domestic and commercial purpose including the determination of fees for 
such products.  WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 2.25.   The Forest Policy (2010 –19) was formulated with the objective of establishing an 
institutional framework for the Department of Forestry (DoF) and non -governmental st akeholders 
to manage and implement natural resources programmes within the country 's forests, woodlands 
and savannas. An important component of The Gambia 's existing Forest policies is the promotion 
of decentralized natural resource management (including inter alia community forests, forest 
reserves and conservation areas) to community -based committees. The Gambia has recognized 
the importance of the potential contributions that could be made by community -based 
management committees towards the country 's objectives of sustainable management of the 
environment and natural resources. The principle of community -based management as a cost -
effective approach to support sustainable management of natural resources is widely recognized in 
The Gambia.  
2.26.   In the area of  protection, development and sustainabl e use of forest resources, the 
Government has consolidated its achievement in community forestry programme by handing over 
78 community forests to local management committees, covering a total area of 5,335 hectares i n 
2015. This brought the total area of forest under community ownership and management to 
37,000 hectares. This figure is expected to increase as there are over 450 communities nation -
wide participating in community forest that are yet to be handed over to  the communities. 
Additionally, under the Green Climate Fund, the Department of Parks and Wildlife Management 
together with the Department of Forestry is currently implementing programs aimed at improving 
the Protected Area Network and enhanced community l ivelihood through sustainable land 
management.   
2.7  Energy  
2.27.   Energy is one of the major drivers of any meaningful development, from supply of basic 
household energy needs to the demand of manufacturing industry. The Ministry of Energy and 
Petroleum in collaborat ion with their development partners, continues to implement strategic 
policies geared towards expansion of electricity generation, transmission and distribution in the 
country. Steps into renewable energies, reliable medium voltage networks, electrificatio n of rural 
areas, interconnection initiatives with neighboring countries and adequate expansion of the water 
services are in progress. In 2016, NAWEC increased its electricity production by about 34% over 
2015 and continues to push for meeting current and future demands.  
2.28.   The Gambia relies almost entirely on biomass (wood fuels) and imported petroleum 
products to meet its energy requirements. However, in the face of rapid depletion of forest 
reserves due to rapid urbanization, bush fires, farming, etc. the energy options based on biomass 
are very limited. Furthermore, due to high cost of imported petroleum products, the National 
Water and Electricity Company (NAWEC) is finding it extremely difficult to service the growing oil 
import bills particularly for el ectricity generation. In addition, NAWEC needs to meet the demand 
of up to 350,000 customers, but due to the limitations highlighted, the company only serves 
120,000 electricity customers.  
2.29.   Government has made attempts to engage partners and donors to secu re support and 
financing towards rehabilitating and expansion of NAWEC facilities and the energy infrastructure. 
For instance, the West African Power Pool (WAPP) has since been operational and currently serves 
as an important intervention programme in the integration and development of the regional power 
network. As part of the initiative, WAPP has stepped in to partner with the OMVG (Gambia River 
Basin Development Organization Energy Project), which involves the following four countries, 
Senegal, The Gambi a, Guinea -Bissau, and Guinea, and implement part of the 225  KV 
interconnection.  
2.8  Information and Communication Technology  
2.30.   Guided by the National Information and Communication Infrastructure (NICI) II Policy, the 
Government of The Gambia, through the Minist ry of Information and Communication 
Infrastructure (MOICI), is determined to pursue ICT services delivery and mainstreaming to breed 
a service -based and knowledge -driven sustainable economy. For this reason, strengthening of 
cyber security, enabling open a ccess market and further liberalization of the telecoms sector is 
being pursued at the  highest level. In particular, the broadcasting sector and data gateway have WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 already been liberalized during the period under review while necessary arrangements are at a n 
advanced stage for liberalization of the Voice Gateway.  
2.31.   For the first time in The Gambia a Digital Broadcasting Policy has been adopted, which 
among other things provides for full liberalization of the sector to promote pr ivate sector 
participation and foreign direct i nvestment; however, the policy has limited foreig n ownership in 
the sector to 60 %. The Gambia Government is committed for full Digital Switch Over by 
December  2017.  
2.32.   The Public Utility Regulatory Authority (PURA) remains the regulator for th e sector guided 
by the Information and Communication Act 2009 which promotes interconnection, access and co -
location among operators. From 2010 to date several significant developments in the 
telecommunication infrastructure have taken place. Most importan tly, in 2012, for the first time, 
ACE Submarine Cabl e landed at the shores of T he Gambia bringing over 10  GB (now increased to 
over 100  GB) capacity at the landing Station. In 2015 the National Fibre Optic Backbone (NFOB)  
was replaced with an IP based stat e-of-the-art Next Generation Network. This covers 947  km of 
the country including both sides of the river, thus significantly increasing the internet penetration 
rate. 
Table 2.3 Internet penetration r ate 2011,  2014 and 2016  
Year Penetration Rate  % Increment  
2011 10.87  Base (pre -ACE) 
2014 15.56  43 (pre -NFOB)  
2016 18.50  19 
Source:  MOICI . 
2.33.   Similarly, the mobile telecommunication industry has also witness signi ficant growth during 
the 2010 –2016 periods . It is widely reported that 94% of the country was covered with at least 
two mobile operators in 2015, up from 57% in 2010. Additionally, annual mobile penetration rate 
has grown high at a percentage increment of 57.4 from annual penetration rates of 22.39 to 35. 25 
for 2010 and 2016 respectively. The voice subscribers have increased  from 1, 478, 349 in 2010 to 
2, 838, 127 in 2016, a percentage increment of 92.0.  
Table 2.4 Mobile p enetration and voice subscription, 201 0 and 2016  
 2010  2016  Increment  % increment  
Annual mobile p enetration rate  22.39  35.25  12.86  57.4 
Number  of voice subscribers  1, 478, 349  2, 838, 127  1, 359, 778  92.0 
Source:  MOICI . 
2.34.   In its effort to provide broadband services to the underserved, the Government of 
The Gambia has signed a contract to expand the National Broadband Network throughout the 
country reaching those communities that are away from the main ring. This will provide these 
underserved communities wired broadband services as well as offer all mobile operators to connect 
their cell sites using fibre instead of micro wave.  
3  TRADE POLICY ENVIRON MENT  
3.1  Trade -Related Policies  
3.1.  The G overnment of The Gambia, through the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional 
Integration, and Employment (MOTIE) continues to commit itself to policies aimed at improving 
the competi tiveness of Gambian trade. The G overnment currently has several policies in place to 
attain its goals of boosting exports, economic development, job creation, and increasing the 
country 's market share in an increasingly globalized world.  
3.2.  In line with this, a National Trade Policy (NTP) was formulated and adopted in 2011. The 
broad objective of the policy is to maintain an open and liberal trading environment and to better 
integrate The Gam bia into the global economy. It also aims at providing direction for 
mainstreaming trade in the productive sectors to make its contribution to the attainment of 
national goals of growth, development, and poverty reduction. The NTP also highlights the curre nt WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 Trade Policy instruments, which includes customs duties and other taxes such as VAT, E COWAS  
levy, etc. The policy also provides clear guidelines for the implementation of the government 's 
domestic and international trade agendas as well as trade facilit ation, market access, quality and 
regional integration issues. To overcome quality -related challenges that impact on the 
competitiveness of Gambian trade, the Government has put in place the Quality Policy for The 
Gambia 2014. The implementation of the Qua lity Policy will ensure that the requisite compliance 
support infrastructure and services are available to enable exporters to prove compliance with 
international standards and technical regulations.  
3.3.  In addition, the following are the trade policy strategi es and achievements concerning tra de 
policy making in The Gambia:  
 Medium -Term Plan f ormulated 2016 –2020; 
 National Export Strategy 2013 –2017; 
 DTIS updated 2013 . 
3.2  Trade Facilitation  
3.4.  Government will continue to invest sustainably and adopt rules and regulation s to improve 
the trade facilitation systems in The Gambia. Now that the Trade Facilitation Agreeme nt has been 
adopted by the WTO M embers by concession in December 2013 in Bali, The Ga mbia has ratified 
the protocol a mending the Marrakesh Agreement in March 2017. With this development, the 
Government will continue to put focus on improving trade facilitation procedures, publication of 
trade information, and trade facilitation infrastructure such as roads, customs clearance of goods, 
and delivery of ports serv ices. The overall policy objective is to expedite the movement, release, 
and clearance of goods.  
3.5.  To monitor trade facilitation reforms and foster dialogue on trade facilitation issues, the 
Government has created a Trade Facilitation Committee housed at MO TIE and chaired by the 
Gambia Revenue Authority.  
3.6.  The Cargo Complex at the Banjul International Airport serves as one of the most important 
trade facilitation infrastructures recently, supported by the Government of The Gambia. The 
complex is funded by the  EIF project under its trade facilitation component. This will address the 
storage shortcoming for agriculture, horticulture, and fishing products for exports.  
3.7.  The Single Window business registration which is fully operational since 2013 has reduced 
the n umber of days it takes to register a business from 27 days to 24 hours with a cost of just 
D 500. This has been an added advantage to the ease of doing business by cutting the red -tapes 
and cumbersome procedures to register a business in The Gambia. In add ition, the clearance of 
goods in The Gambia takes less than 24 hours as a result of improvements in the customs 
clearance and ports services.  
3.3  Market Opportunities  
3.8.  The Gambia as a member of the World Trade Organization benefits from non -reciprocal duty-
free preferential treatment from many industrialized countries under the Generalized System of 
Preferences (GSP).  The Gambia also benefits from the European Union 's Everything But Arms 
(EBA) Initiative.  
3.9.  The Gambia as an LDC also benefits from Duty -free and Quota -free (DFQF) accorded to LDCs 
by India, Republic of Korea  and Morocco. Following the revival of diplomatic ties and bilateral 
cooperation with the People 's Republic of China, goods originating from The Gambia have been 
accorded DFQF preferences.   WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 Table 3.1 Direction of i mports and exports by region 2015 -16 
Region  Direction of i mports  Direction of e xports  
 2015  2016  2015  2016  
ECOWAS  5,718,811  3,517,518  2,962,907  3,226,858  
EU 4,041,838  5,282,042  218,181  76,394  
Asia 4,223,348  4,372,269  435,625  639,548  
Americas  2,536,760  2,513,436  103,260  5,276  
Others 644,136  669,737  58,541  11,361  
Total 17,164,892  16,355,001  3,778,514  3,959,437  
Source:  MOTIE Trade Information Center.  
3.4  Mainstreaming Gender in Trade  
3.10.   The positive impact trade has on gender empowerment is wide ly seen. For the Government 
of The Gambia, this is evident in the prioritization and promotion of sectors which are focused on 
creating economic opportunities for women for enhanced livelihoo ds and quality of life. The 
Government also continues to engage stakeholders in order to strengthen the mainstreaming of 
gender in trade. Women constit ute majority of the traders in T he Gambia especially in the fisheries 
sector, where an estimated 80 % of fish processors and 50 % of small scale fish traders are  women. 
In the horticulture sub -sector, which is one of the key priority areas of women inclusion and 
empowerment, has an estimated 88 % participation of women in individual and communal gardens.  
3.11.   The Ga mbian economy is characterized by players in the informal sector. Women play a 
pivotal role. 63% of MSME 's are micro enterprises and 90% of the micro enterprises are informal 
with 80% comprising of women involved in distributive trade, gardening and other handicrafts and 
artisanal trade. Our women entrepreneurs are predominantly active in rural areas, often in lower 
paid sectors, and responsible for unpaid care work, they often face barriers to access information, 
finance and labor - saving devices/technolo gies in order to increase their incomes through 
productivity.  
3.12.   Women 's economic empowerment is very high on the government 's development agenda 
especially in the work of the Ministry of Trade. The G overnment will continue to make efforts to 
promote gender equality through the establishment of the National Gender Policy 2010 -2020. The 
most recent Private Sector Development Strategy 2015 -2019 also identifies numerous gender 
issues that still need to be  addressed such as lack of adequate sex -disaggregated data, low skills 
and limited access to market opportunities for women entrepreneurs, and male dominant attitudes 
of existing policies and laws. In delivering tangible results, the Government of The Gamb ia is 
focusing on providing access to both local and global value chains to producers with special focus 
on meeting the required quality and sanitary and phytosanitary standards.  
4  REGIONAL INTEGRATION  
4.1  ECOWAS  
4.1.  The Gambia as a member of the Economic Community  of West African States (ECOWAS) is 
benefiting from several trade and economic development programs. As a regional bloc, ECOWAS 
has put in place protocols and programs that guide its regional integration and economic 
development agendas for the benefit of  its member S tates. Key among them that are relevant for 
trade includes the Protocol on Free Movement of People and Goods, the ECOWAS Inter -State Road 
Transit Scheme (ISRT), and the ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS).  
4.1.1   Protocol on Free Movement of People and Goods  
4.2.  The Gambia has ratified the Free Movement Protocol and all its supplementary protocols. As a 
result, The Gambia is implementing the components of the Free Movement Protocols by issuing the 
ECOWAS passport and adopting the travel certificat es as an alternative. Under this protocol all 
ECOWAS citizens enjoy a free period of 90 days stay before regularizing their stay in The Gambia.  WT/TPR/G/ 365 • The Gambia  
 
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 4.1.2   ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS)  
4.3.  ECOWAS is currently implementing an ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Schem e (ETLS), as part 
of the regional programmes to promote intra -ECOWAS trade particularly for industrial goods. 
Companies and goods that meet the set criteria are certified by ECOWAS to operate under the 
Scheme. Such certified companies can export to all the  ECOWAS member states markets, duty 
free and quota free, which has a population of over 300 million.  
4.4.  The Gambia is currently  implementing the ETLS and there are  22 registered and qualified 
companies under the scheme . There are strategies and structures wh ich work with companies 
towards qualification under the scheme . The scheme is open to any company, industry , and 
product registered in The  Gambia.  
4.1.3   ECOWAS Inter -State Road Transit (ISRT) Scheme  
4.5.  In July 2013, The Gambia also started the implementation of the Inter -State Road Transit 
(ISRT) Scheme and designated The Gambia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) as the 
National Guarantor for the scheme. The objective of the scheme is to facilitate the smooth 
movement of transit goods from The Gambia to their final destinations in the region. Since then, 
all transit goods through the Port of Banjul are transported to the sub -region under the ISRT 
Scheme and all escort fees have been eliminated. The n umber of containers for transit goods 
transported from Banjul increased by 3.7% from 5,599 Twenty -foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) in 
2014 to 5,808 TEUs in 2015. This led to an increase in the value of transit goods by 36.8 % from 
D414.1 million in 2014 to D56 6.3 million in 2015.  
4.1.4   ECOWAS Regional Competition Authority (ERCA)  
4.6.  The Gambia was awarded in May 2015 to host the Headquarters of the ECOWAS Regional 
Competition Authority (ERCA).The objective of the Authority is to regulate anti -competitive 
practices withi n the ECOWAS regional market. The Gambia signed the Headquarters Agreement in 
2016, paving the way to take all necessary steps for the effective start of the Authority. In this 
regard, T he Gambia n Government has started work to put in place the necessary s tructures and 
logistics towards the full establishment of the ERCA in 2017.  
5  CONCLUSION  
5.1.  The Government of The Gambia will continue to adopt prudent macroeconomic policies to 
sustain the stability of the economy and will pursue liberal trade policies as wel l as adopt measures 
that will ensure a competitive trading environment. The Government will also continue to 
strengthen its productive sectors to continue diversify the economy and will therefore seek the 
support of development pa rtners under the Aid -for-Trade I nitiati ve to achieve these objectives.  
5.2.  The Government will continue to be committed to the multilate ral trading system and call on 
members of the WTO to con tinue to support the effort of s mall economies like The Gambia in the 
implementation of the WT O commitments and to enhance their integration into the global 
economy.  
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