80; 134,665 fit for military service; 9,262 reach military
age (20) annually
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $102 million, 3.2% of GDP (1990 est.)

:The Gambia Geography

Total area:
11,300 km2
Land area:
10,000 km2
Comparative area:
slightly more than twice the size of Delaware
Land boundaries:
740 km; Senegal 740 km
Coastline:
80 km
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone:
18 nm
Continental shelf:
not specific
Exclusive fishing zone:
200 nm
Territorial sea:
12 nm
Disputes:
short section of boundary with Senegal is indefinite
Climate:
tropical; hot, rainy season (June to November); cooler, dry season (November
to May)
Terrain:
flood plain of the Gambia River flanked by some low hills
Natural resources:
fish
Land use:
arable land 16%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures 9%; forest and
woodland 20%; other 55%; includes irrigated 3%
Environment:
deforestation
Note:
almost an enclave of Senegal; smallest country on the continent of Africa

:The Gambia People

Population:
902,089 (July 1992), growth rate 3.1% (1992)
Birth rate:
47 births/1,000 population (1992)
Death rate:
17 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
Net migration rate:
0 migrants/1,000 population (1992)
Infant mortality rate:
129 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
Life expectancy at birth:
47 years male, 51 years female (1992)
Total fertility rate:
6.4 children born/woman (1992)
Nationality:
noun - Gambian(s); adjective - Gambian
Ethnic divisions:
African 99% (Mandinka 42%, Fula 18%, Wolof 16%, Jola 10%, Serahuli 9%, other
4%); non-Gambian 1%
Religions:
Muslim 90%, Christian 9%, indigenous beliefs 1%
Languages:
English (official); Mandinka, Wolof, Fula, other indigenous vernaculars
Literacy:
27% (male 39%, female 16%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Labor force:
400,000 (1986 est.); agriculture 75.0%, industry, commerce, and services
18.9%, government 6.1%; 55% population of working age (1983)
Organized labor:
25-30% of wage labor force

:The Gambia Government

Long-form name:
Republic of The Gambia
Type:
republic under multiparty democratic rule
Capital:
Banjul
Administrative divisions:
5 divisions and 1 city*; Banjul*, Lower River, MacCarthy Island, North Bank,
Upper River, Western
Independence:
18 February 1965 (fr