# Gambia and Senegal compared Gambia and Senegal side by side: 43 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, and the 5 events their chronicles record of each other. Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/gmb-vs-sen Updated: 2026-08-10 (latest of the two dossiers' refreshes and the two chronicles' verification dates) Two sourced records set beside each other — nothing on this page was written for the pair. Every figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two national dossiers; every event is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle. Figures are compared, never graded. A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero; each value shows its own observation year — vintages differ by indicator and nation. ## Formation - Gambia: 18 February 1965 — The Gambia becomes independent of Britain - Senegal: 20 August 1960 — Senegal withdraws from the Federation of Mali and declares independence ## Economy | Metric | Gambia | Observed | Senegal | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | GDP | $2.4 B | 2024 | $33 B | 2024 | | GDP per capita | $871 | 2024 | $1,773 | 2024 | | GDP growth | 5.6% | 2024 | 6.1% | 2024 | | Inflation | 11.6% | 2024 | 0.8% | 2024 | | Trade openness | 42.2% | 2024 | 68.1% | 2024 | ## Society | Metric | Gambia | Observed | Senegal | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population | 2.8 m | 2024 | 19 m | 2024 | | Life expectancy | 66.1 yrs | 2024 | 68.9 yrs | 2024 | | Urban population | 64.3% | 2024 | 55.2% | 2024 | | Fertility rate | 3.9 | 2024 | 3.8 | 2024 | ## Governance | Metric | Gambia | Observed | Senegal | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Voice & accountability | 53.7 | 2024 | 57.1 | 2024 | | Political stability | 65.6 | 2024 | 62.0 | 2024 | | Government effectiveness | 40.9 | 2024 | 55.9 | 2024 | | Regulatory quality | 44.4 | 2024 | 51.1 | 2024 | | Rule of law | 50.2 | 2024 | 53.4 | 2024 | | Control of corruption | 41.1 | 2024 | 50.1 | 2024 | ## Health | Metric | Gambia | Observed | Senegal | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Health spending | 2.9% | 2023 | 4.3% | 2023 | | Physicians | 0.09 | 2023 | 0.11 | 2023 | | Under-5 mortality | 42.4 | 2024 | 36.5 | 2024 | | Measles immunisation | 83.0% | 2024 | 87.0% | 2024 | | Safe drinking water | 48.2% | 2024 | 27.2% | 2024 | ## Education | Metric | Gambia | Observed | Senegal | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Adult literacy | 51.6% | 2021 | 50.4% | 2023 | | Education spending | 2.8% | 2023 | 6.2% | 2023 | | Primary enrolment | 100.4% | 2025 | 85.3% | 2024 | | Secondary enrolment | 107.0% | 2021 | 44.1% | 2023 | | Tertiary enrolment | 13.5% | 2024 | 15.3% | 2024 | ## Technology | Metric | Gambia | Observed | Senegal | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | R&D spending | 0.1% | 2018 | 0.6% | 2015 | | Researchers (per million) | 51 | 2018 | 572 | 2015 | | Internet users | 49.5% | 2024 | 60.1% | 2024 | | Mobile subscriptions | 126 | 2024 | 124 | 2024 | | High-tech exports | 3.3% | 2024 | 3.0% | 2024 | ## Geography | Metric | Gambia | Observed | Senegal | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Land area | 10,120 km² | 2023 | 192,530 km² | 2023 | | Forest area | 22.3% | 2023 | 41.3% | 2023 | | Agricultural land | 62.6% | 2023 | 49.4% | 2023 | | CO₂ per capita (t) | 0.2 | 2024 | 0.8 | 2024 | | Renewable energy | 47.7% | 2022 | 35.4% | 2021 | ## Resources | Metric | Gambia | Observed | Senegal | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Resource rents | 2.9% | 2021 | 4.4% | 2021 | | Oil rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 | | Mineral rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 2.9% | 2021 | | Forest rents | 2.9% | 2021 | 1.5% | 2021 | | Electricity access | 66.9% | 2023 | 74.2% | 2023 | | Phosphate rock | — | — | 2.8 Mt | 2025 | ## Military | Metric | Gambia | Observed | Senegal | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Military burden | 0.6% | 2024 | 1.6% | 2024 | | Defense spending | $14 M | 2024 | $515 M | 2024 | | Armed forces | 4,000 | 2020 | 19,000 | 2020 | Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/GMB.md and https://terralore.co/country/SEN.md. ## Entangled histories (5 events) Events in which either nation's sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the record exactly as its own chronicle carries it, with that chronicle's sources. - mid-14th c.: **Rise of the Jolof Empire** — A Wolof confederation unites provinces between the Senegal and Gambia rivers, drawing tribute and trade across the western savanna. (from the Senegal chronicle; sources: Wolof Empire; Jolof kingdom) - 1444: **Portuguese reach the Senegambian coast** — Portuguese ships arrive off Senegal and the Gambia, opening Atlantic maritime trade — and the first European slave raids — along the coast. (from the Senegal chronicle; sources: The Roots of African Trade (World History Vol. 2); French conquest of Senegal) - 1889–1890s: **Anglo-French agreements draw the enclave** — Boundary agreements between Britain and France fixed The Gambia's frontiers as a narrow band following the river, leaving the territory almost entirely surrounded by French Senegal. (from the Gambia chronicle; sources: History of the Gambia; The Gambia (country overview and history)) - 1 February 1982: **The Senegambia Confederation formed** — The Gambia and Senegal established the Senegambia Confederation to integrate their militaries, security and economies while retaining sovereignty, with Senegal's Abdou Diouf as president and Jawara as vice-president. (from the Gambia chronicle; sources: Senegambia Confederation; The Gambia (country overview and history)) - 30 September 1989: **The confederation dissolves** — Lacking popular support and strained by disputes over economic and customs integration, the Senegambia Confederation was formally dissolved after Senegal withdrew its troops, and the two states resumed separate paths. (from the Gambia chronicle; sources: Senegambia Confederation; The Gambia (country overview and history)) ## Sources - World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://data.worldbank.org - Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators - Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.who.int/data/gho - Child mortality & immunisation estimates (UN IGME and WHO/UNICEF, via World Bank WDI) — UNICEF and WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://childmortality.org - R&D statistics (UNESCO UIS, via World Bank WDI) — UNESCO Institute for Statistics / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://uis.unesco.org - ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics - Military Expenditure Database (via World Development Indicators) — SIPRI / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://www.sipri.org/databases/milex - Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 — U.S. Geological Survey · Public domain (U.S. Government work) · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.usgs.gov/centers/national-minerals-information-center Chronicle references are cited inline above and resolve in full at https://terralore.co/country/GMB/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/SEN/chronicle.md. Citation template: Terralore, "Gambia and Senegal compared", terralore.co/compare/gmb-vs-sen, retrieved .