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The Gambia

Population: 1,782,893 (est.)

Language(s): English

Capital: Banjul

Interesting Facts:

The Gambian dalasi is the official currency of the Gambia.
Sunni Muslims constitute more than 90 percent of the population of the Gambia. An estimated 9 percent of the population is Christian, and less than 1 percent practice indigenous animist.
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.
The Gambia is the smallest country on mainland Africa.
About a third of the population lives below the international poverty line of US$1.25 a day.
The Gambia follows a republican form of government and has a constitution that was approved by national referendum on August 8, 1996 and became effective on January 16, 1997.
The legal system of Gambia is a mixture of English common law, customary law and Islamic law.
Most of the population of Gambia is a mix of people belonging to the people from various tribes like Mandinka, Fula, Wolof, Wolof, and Serahuli.
The weather in Gambia is mostly tropical weather with well defined dry and rainy seasons. In spite of this, the rainfall in Gambia has fallen by 30% in the last 30 years, leaving it prone to droughts.

The Gambia (officially the Republic of the Gambia), also commonly known as Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is surrounded by Senegal, apart from a short strip of Atlantic coastline at its western end. It is the smallest country on mainland Africa.

The country is situated either side of the Gambia River, the nation’s namesake, which flows through the country’s centre and empties into the Atlantic Ocean. Its area is 11,295 km² with an estimated population of 1.7 million.

On 18 February 1965, the Gambia gained independence from the United Kingdom and joined the Commonwealth of Nations. Banjul is the Gambia’s capital, but the largest cities are Serekunda and Brikama.

The Gambia shares historical roots with many other West African nations in the slave trade, which was the key factor in the placing and keeping of a colony on the Gambia River, first by the Portuguese and later by the British. Since gaining independence in 1965, the Gambia has enjoyed relative political stability, with the exception of a brief period of military rule in 1994.

Thanks to the fertile land of the country, the economy is dominated by farming, fishing, and tourism. About a third of the population lives below the international poverty line of US$1.25 a day.

Source: Wikipedia