Where Is Gambia and What
Is It Known For?

Pirang, Gambia. Two women and a boy carry laundry. The women are using the traditional method carrying the baskets on their heads.

The Republic of the Gambia, commonly known as the Gambia, or Gambia is the smallest country on mainland Africa, bordered to the north, east, and south by Senegal, with a small coast on the Atlantic Ocean in the west. Its borders roughly correspond to the path of the Gambia River, the nation's namesake, which flows through the country's center and empties into the Atlantic Ocean. Its size is almost 10,500 km² with an estimated population of 1,700,000. Banjul is Gambia's capital, but the largest conurbation is Serekunda.

On 18 February 1965, Gambia was granted independence from the United Kingdom and joined The Commonwealth. Since gaining independence in 1965, Gambia has enjoyed relative stability, with the exception of a brief period of military rule in 1994.

Sandy beaches are backed by mangrove swamps, beyond which are savanna. The climate is tropical, with most rainfall in the summer. Over 70 percent of Gambians are farmers, growing chiefly groundnuts (the main export), cotton, oil palms and food crops. Livestock rearing and fishing are important while manufacturing is limited. Re-exports, mainly from Senegal, and tourism are major sources of income.