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The Gambia SDGs Survey 2025 - Experience of Discrimination (SDG 10.3.1)

The share of Gambians reporting discrimination or harassment declined to 15.7% in 2025, down from 23.6% in 2021, a positive trend.

However, rural respondents remain nearly twice as likely to experience discrimination compared to those in urban areas. The most frequently cited grounds were age and socio-economic status.

Key recommendations:

Further reduce exclusion and unfair treatment by enforcing legal and institutional protection, with special focus on rural areas.

Mainstream the Leaving No One Behind (LNOB) principle across SDG implementation, ensuring accessibility for persons with disabilities in line with existing legal provisions.

The Gambia SDGs Survey 2025 - Access to Dispute Resolution (SDG 16.3.3)

Access to dispute resolution has improved significantly, rising by 20 points from 46.4% in 2021 to 66% in 2025. Rural and women’s access both showed notable gains, helping to narrow gaps.

Findings also highlight the critical role of informal pathways (community and religious leaders) and the limited reach of formal judicial systems in everyday disputes.

Key recommendations:

Support informal mechanisms while strengthening links to formal dispute resolution systems, including enforcement of outcomes.

Increase women’s access and build trust in formal institutions to sustain progress.

Raise public awareness of available dispute resolution options — both formal and informal.

The Gambia SDGs Survey 2025 - Inclusive Decision-Making (SDG 16.7.2)

Only 31.1% of Gambians believe decision-making is inclusive and responsive.

Men: 34.0%

Women: 28.6%

⚠️ Low perceived responsiveness highlights the need for more inclusive and participatory governance.

Key recommendations:

Institutionalize inclusive participation mechanisms to boost accountability and political efficacy.

Target rural populations and women for civic engagement programmes to narrow the perception gap.

The Gambia SDGs Survey 2025 - Experience of Harassment (SDG 11.7.2)

In the past 12 months, reported harassment rates stood at:

10.7% for non-sexual harassment

11.8% for sexual harassment

Overall harassment rose from 14.3% in 2021 to 17.8% in 2025, driven by a more than twofold increase in non-sexual harassment.
Women are more affected by sexual harassment (13.2%) compared to men (10.2%).
Rural areas report higher harassment levels than urban areas.

Key recommendations:

Raise awareness and strengthen protection through campaigns on harassment and legal rights.

Enhance safety in public spaces with better street lighting, transport security, and targeted support for women and vulnerable groups.

The Gambia SDGs Survey 2025 - Perception of Safety (SDG 16.1.4)

Just over half of Gambians (53.2%) feel safe walking alone in their neighbourhood after dark, a slight decline from 58.6% in 2021.

Men: 65.9% feel safe

Women: 42.2% feel safe
👉 Women remain significantly less likely to feel safe than men.

Main concerns:
⚠️ High crime rate (66%)
⚠️ Poor street lighting (34%)

Key recommendations:
Monitor safety perceptions over time, disaggregated by gender, age, region, and other factors to identify vulnerable groups.
Introduce targeted and preventive community-based interventions in high-crime areas, focusing on women and others reporting lower feelings of safety.
Improve public spaces through better lighting, transport security, and localized policing to build trust and enhance protection.

The Gambia SDGs Survey 2025 - Prevalence of Bribery (SDG 16.5.1)

Findings show that 14.6% of people who interacted with public officials reported being asked for or having paid a bribe.

Men (22%) were almost 3 times more likely than women (8.2%) to experience bribery.

Bribery was most common when dealing with:
Police Officers - 24.8%
Immigration Officers - 10.6%
Public Utilities Officers - 8.2%

Key recommendations:
• Reduce bribery risks or incentives.

• Operationalize the anti-corruption commission and strengthen both internal and external oversight mechanisms.
• Implement and scale integrity training for public officials, focusing on police and immigration officers.

The Gambia SDGs Survey 2025 - Satisfaction with Public Services (SDG 16.6.2)

Public service ratings show strong approval for:

Primary Education: 90.3%

Secondary Education: 88.9%

Health Services: 77.9%

At the same time, challenges remain in affordability and accessibility, with overall satisfaction with government services (i.e. services to obtain government-issued identification documents and services for the civil registration of life events such as
births, marriages and deaths) at 55.3%.

Investing in education affordability, improving fairness and timeliness in service delivery, and promoting digital solutions can further strengthen public confidence.

The Gambia SDGs Survey 2025 - Reporting of Violence (SDG 16.3.1)

Many victims of violence still do not report incidents to official authorities. Among those who did:

25% reported physical violence

22% reported sexual violence

6% reported psychological violence

Strengthening access to reporting channels and building public trust in justice systems remain key steps toward protecting victims and ensuring accountability.

The Gambia SDGs Survey 2025 - Experience of Violence (SDG 16.1.3)

The latest data shows that in the past year:

15.5% experienced psychological violence

12.9% experienced physical violence (up 9 points since 2021)

2.4% experienced sexual violence

Women are twice as likely as men to experience psychological violence.

These findings highlight the importance of strengthening prevention programmes, raising awareness, and integrating protection measures across communities.

Key recommendations:
• Strengthen violence prevention programmes.

• Conduct nationwide public awareness campaigns to increase knowledge about rights and legal protection and enhance sector collaboration.

• Integrate training into existing school curricula and clubs and implement gender-norm interventions.

The 2025 Gambia Labour Force Survey

Some Key Recommendations

• Expanding formal job opportunities through private-sector incentives and infrastructure projects.
• Enhancing skills development to align workforce capabilities with market demands.
• Promoting gender-inclusive policies to increase women’s participation and leadership.
• Promoting formal employment by simplifying registration processes and strengthening social protection coverage.
• Expanding youth employment initiatives through apprenticeships, technical and vocational training, and digital skills development.
• Expanding inclusive employment opportunities for persons with disabilities through workplace accessibility, targeted training, and supportive employment policies.

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The 2025 Gambia Labour Force Survey

Changes in Key Labour Market Indicators, GLFS 2022-23 VS. GLFS 2025

Changes in Key Labour Market Outcomes
• Increased labour force participation
More Gambians are engaging in the labour market (participation increased from 43.6% in 2022-23 to 47.1% in 2025), reflecting growing economic activity and opportunities for employment. Sustained efforts to expand job creation will help absorb new entrants.
Employment-to-population ratio shows positive trend
The increase in the employment-to-population ratio from 40.3 per cent in 2022-23 to 43.2 per cent in 2025 demonstrates progress in job creation. Continued investment in sectors with high labour demand can further strengthen this trend.
• Unemployment increased slightly
As more people join the labour force, the slight rise in unemployment (from 7.6% in 2022-23 to 8.3% in 2025) highlights the importance of accelerating job growth, particularly in the formal sector, to match workforce expansion.
• Labour underutilisation improving, but still high
The LU3 rate, which counts both the unemployed and those who want work but aren’t actively looking or available for work, dropped from 31.6 per cent in 2022-23 to 26.7 per cent in 2025. This is a good sign, but over one-quarter of the potential workforce is still not fully utilised.
• Informality continues to dominate the labour market
Informal work continues to dominate (increased from 79.4% in 2022-23 to 81.0% in 2025), underscoring the need for policies that encourage formalization, enhance worker protections, and expand access to social security.
• Youth outcomes improved, but the NEET rate remains a policy concern
The share of youth aged 15-35 who are not in education, employment, or training (NEET) declined from 45.3 per cent in 2022-23 to 41.3 per cent in 2025. The decline in youth NEET rates is encouraging, but more can be done to connect young people with jobs and training. Strengthening vocational education and private-sector partnerships will be key to sustaining this progress.

The 2025 Gambia Labour Force Survey:

Employment by Broad Industry Groups

The significant concentration of women in services (70.7%) and agriculture (24.3%), compared to their lower representation in industry (5.0%), underscores the need for targeted, sector-specific strategies that enhance job quality, promote women’s economic empowerment, and address gender disparities across the labour market.