• GDP: US$2.8 billion (2004 estimate).
• Main exports: Peanut products, fish, cotton, lint, palm kernals, palm oil, palm wood and beeswax.
• Main imports: Foodstuff, fuel, machinery and transport equipment.
• Main trade partners: Iran, Libya, Taiwan, Cuba and Nigeria.

The economy of The Gambia is basically agricultural, with groundnuts (in the form of nuts, oil and cattle cake) accounting for 50 per cent of total exports. Cotton and citrus fruits are also cultivated for export. Forestry and fishing are also important. Rice, millet and maize are the main staples, but The Gambia must import large quantities of rice along with various other foodstuffs and petroleum products. There are no viable mineral deposits although surveys have located some oil deposits. The small industrial sector is dominated by agro-industrial activities; drinks and construction materials are produced for the domestic market. After a disastrous spell following the 1994 coup, tourism is once again a viable generator of foreign exchange, and has performed relatively well since then. Principal markets for exports are Belgium, Luxembourg, Japan and Guinea. Government economic strategy aims to position The Gambia as a regional hub for trade, based on an important re-export trade (mostly of Senegalese goods) as well as finance and telecommunications: the strategy has had mixed success in the last few years. Overall, the economy has performed fairly well, achieving annual growth since 2000, averaging annual growth of 3 per cent in 2004. Substantial infrastructural progress has been made (such as the construction of schools and hospitals, a new airport terminal and modernised port facilities). In 1998, the government, unusually, renationalised the groundnut industry, which had been privatised four years earlier but performed poorly under private ownership. International aid remains essential to the health of The Gambia’s economy.

Businessmen wear jackets and ties for business meetings. A personal approach is important in Gambian business circles. Punctuality is appreciated and it is advisable to take business cards, although their use is not widespread. Office hours: Mon-Thurs 0800-1600, Fri 0800-1230.

The Gambia Chamber of Commerce and Industry
55 Kairaba Avenue, PO Box 3382, Serrekunda, Banjul, The Gambia
Tel: 437 8929.
Website: www.gambiachamber.gm or www.gcci.gm

The Gambia Investment Promotion and Free Zones Agency (GIPFZA)
GIPFZA House, 48 Kairaba Avenue, PO Box 757, Serrekunda, Banjul, The Gambia
Tel: 437 7377/8.
Website: www.gipfza.gm