|
Economy - overview:
|
The Gambia has no
significant mineral or natural resource deposits and has a limited
agricultural base. About 75% of the population depends on crops and
livestock for its livelihood. Small-scale manufacturing activity
features the processing of peanuts, fish, and hides. Reexport trade
normally constitutes a major segment of economic activity, but a
1999 government-imposed preshipment inspection plan, and instability
of the Gambian dalasi (currency) have drawn some of the reexport
trade away from The Gambia. The government's 1998 seizure of the
private peanut firm Alimenta eliminated the largest purchaser of
Gambian groundnuts; the following two marketing seasons saw
substantially lower prices and sales. Despite an announced program
to begin privatizing key parastatals, no plans have been made public
that would indicate that the government intends to follow through on
its promises. Unemployment and underemployment rates remain
extremely high; short-run economic progress depends on sustained
bilateral and multilateral aid, on responsible government economic
management, on continued technical assistance from the IMF and
bilateral donors, and on expected growth in the construction sector.
|
|
GDP:
|
purchasing power
parity - $2.799 billion (2004 est.) |
|
GDP - real growth rate:
|
6% (2004 est.) |
|
GDP - per capita:
|
purchasing power
parity - $1,800 (2004 est.) |
|
GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture:
26.8%
industry: 14.5%
services: 58.7% (2004 est.) |
|
Investment (gross fixed):
|
25.3% of GDP (2004
est.) |
|
Population below poverty line:
|
NA |
|
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
|
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|
7% (2004 est.) |
|
Labor force:
|
400,000 (1996) |
|
Labor force - by occupation:
|
agriculture 75%,
industry, commerce, and services 19%, government 6% |
|
Unemployment rate:
|
NA (2002 est.) |
|
Budget:
|
revenues:
$44.85 million
expenditures: $59.94 million, including capital expenditures
of $4.1 million (2004 est.) |
|
Agriculture - products:
|
rice, millet,
sorghum, peanuts, corn, sesame, cassava (tapioca), palm kernels;
cattle, sheep, goats |
|
Industries:
|
processing peanuts,
fish, and hides; tourism; beverages; agricultural machinery
assembly, woodworking, metalworking; clothing |
|
Industrial production growth rate:
|
NA |
|
Electricity - production:
|
90.31 million kWh
(2002) |
|
Electricity - production by source:
|
fossil fuel:
100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
|
|
Electricity - consumption:
|
83.99 million kWh
(2002) |
|
Electricity - exports:
|
0 kWh (2002) |
|
Electricity - imports:
|
0 kWh (2002) |
|
Oil - production:
|
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
|
|
Oil - consumption:
|
1,900 bbl/day (2001
est.) |
|
Oil - exports:
|
NA |
|
Oil - imports:
|
NA |
|
Current account balance:
|
$-16.4 million (2004
est.) |
|
Exports:
|
$114.4 million f.o.b.
(2004 est.)
|
|
Exports - commodities:
|
peanut products,
fish, cotton lint, palm kernels, re-exports |
|
Exports - partners:
|
Thailand 16.6%, UK
15.5%, France 14.2%, India 12.3%, Germany 9.2%, Italy 8.3%, Malaysia
4.1% (2004) |
|
Imports:
|
$180.9 million f.o.b.
(2004 est.)
|
|
Imports - commodities:
|
foodstuffs,
manufactures, fuel, machinery and transport equipment |
|
Imports - partners:
|
China 25.1%, Senegal
9.2%, UK 6.3%, Brazil 6%, Netherlands 4.9%, US 4.8% (2004) |
|
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
|
$113.1 million (2004
est.) |
|
Debt - external:
|
$476 million (2001
est.) |
|
Economic aid - recipient:
|
$45.4 million (1995)
|
|
Currency:
|
dalasi (GMD) |
|
Currency code:
|
GMD |
|
Exchange rates:
|
dalasi per US dollar
- 27.306 (2003), 27.306 (2003), 19.918 (2002), 15.687 (2001), 12.788
(2000) |
|
Fiscal year:
|
calendar year |