Foreign Trade in Figures
With a liberal economy, Gambia is open to foreign trade, which represents around 42% of its GDP (World Bank, latest data available). The country is a member of the World Trade Organisation and of the ECOWAS. It has set a favourable regulation for trade with low customs duties. Its re-exportation activities, which represent a significant part of its foreign trade, are supported by its ports’ efficiency and trade policy. There is, however, low transparency on its customs duties’ calculation. The Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA) collects excise duties on locally manufactured products (per unit). Gambia’s main exports are petroleum oils (45.7%), rye (14.1%), groundnuts (7.7%), coconuts, brazil nuts, and cashew nuts (5.6%), and machine tools (5.2%); whereas imports are led by petroleum oils (38.2%), motor cars (9.8%), rice (5.4%), fixed vegetable fats and oils (3.0%), and cement (2.7% - latest data by Comtrade).
According to Comtrade, Gambia exports its goods mainly to Mali (44.7% of total exports), China (29.1%), Senegal (10.9%), Guinea-Bissau (4.5%), and India (3.7%), importing chiefly from Togo (25.5%), Ivory Coast (12.4%), China (7.6%), Denmark (6.0%), and India (5.6%).
The Gambia’s trade balance is structurally negative. According to WTO data, in 2022 The Gambia imported USD 694 million worth of goods while it exported only USD 40 million worth of goods. The World Bank estimated the country’s trade balance in goods and services to be negative by 26.2% of GDP in 2022 (compared to 29.1% one year earlier).
| Foreign Trade Indicators |
2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
| Imports of Goods (million USD) |
621 | 582 | 607 | 694 | 784 |
| Exports of Goods (million USD) |
133 | 61 | 33 | 40 | 40 |
| Imports of Services (million USD) |
108 | 109 | 119 | 136 | 0 |
| Exports of Services (million USD) |
206 | 106 | 110 | 216 | 0 |
| Imports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) |
-0 | 6 | 13 | 11 | n/a |
| Exports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) |
-6 | -20 | 6 | -0 | n/a |
| Trade Balance (million USD) |
-378 | -512 | -576 | n/a | n/a |
| Foreign Trade (in % of GDP) |
53 | 48 | 42 | 35 | n/a |
| Imports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) |
34 | 38 | 36 | 31 | n/a |
| Exports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) |
19 | 10 | 6 | 5 | n/a |
Source:
WTO – World Trade Organisation
; World Bank
- Latest available data.
Main Partner Countries
Main Customers
(% of Exports) |
2023 |
| Guinea-Bissau |
71.0% |
| Mali |
10.6% |
| China |
6.9% |
| India |
2.8% |
| Senegal |
1.6% |
| United Kingdom |
1.4% |
| Vietnam |
1.0% |
| Spain |
0.9% |
| Türkiye |
0.7% |
| South Korea |
0.7% |
| Italy |
0.6% |
| Guinea |
0.3% |
| Belgium |
0.2% |
| Netherlands |
0.2% |
| Chile |
0.1% |
| Portugal |
0.1% |
| Ivory Coast |
0.1% |
| Greece |
0.1% |
| Ghana |
0.1% |
| United Arab Emirates |
0.1% |
| See More Countries |
7.1% |
Main Suppliers
(% of Imports) |
2023 |
| Denmark |
65.6% |
| Senegal |
5.7% |
| India |
3.6% |
| China |
3.5% |
| Belgium |
3.1% |
| Ivory Coast |
2.4% |
| Türkiye |
1.6% |
| United Arab Emirates |
1.6% |
| Togo |
1.3% |
| Brazil |
1.2% |
| United Kingdom |
1.0% |
| Spain |
0.9% |
| United States |
0.9% |
| Netherlands |
0.8% |
| France |
0.6% |
| Malaysia |
0.6% |
| Indonesia |
0.5% |
| Germany |
0.5% |
| Japan |
0.3% |
| See More Countries |
18.5% |
Source: Comtrade, Latest Available Data
Main Products
| 0.1 bn USD of products exported in 2023 |
| Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous...Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals (excl. crude); preparations containing >= 70% by weight of petroleum oils or of oils obtained from bituminous minerals, these oils being the basic constituents of the preparations, n.e.s.; waste oils containing mainly petroleum or bituminous minerals |
72.0% |
| Cane or beet sugar and chemically pure sucrose, in...Cane or beet sugar and chemically pure sucrose, in solid form |
5.5% |
| Groundnuts, whether or not shelled or broken (excl...Groundnuts, whether or not shelled or broken (excl. roasted or otherwise cooked) |
2.5% |
| Fish, fresh or chilled (excl. fish fillets and...Fish, fresh or chilled (excl. fish fillets and other fish meat of heading 0304) |
2.3% |
| Coconuts, brazil nuts and cashew nuts, fresh or...Coconuts, brazil nuts and cashew nuts, fresh or dried, whether or not shelled or peeled |
2.3% |
| Tomatoes, prepared or preserved otherwise than by...Tomatoes, prepared or preserved otherwise than by vinegar or acetic acid |
2.2% |
| Fixed vegetable fats and oils, incl. jojoba oil,...Fixed vegetable fats and oils, incl. jojoba oil, and their fractions, whether or not refined, but not chemically modified (excl. soya-bean, groundnut, olive, palm, sunflower-seed, safflower, cotton-seed, coconut, palm kernel, babassu, rape, colza and mustard oil) |
1.8% |
| Natural sands of all kinds, whether or not...Natural sands of all kinds, whether or not coloured (excl. gold- and platinum-bearing sands, zircon, rutile and ilmenite sands, monazite sands, and tar or asphalt sands) |
1.8% |
| Groundnut oil and its fractions, whether or not...Groundnut oil and its fractions, whether or not refined, but not chemically modified |
1.6% |
| Ferrous waste and scrap; remelting scrap ingots of...Ferrous waste and scrap; remelting scrap ingots of iron or steel (excl. slag, scale and other waste from the production of iron or steel; radioactive waste and scrap; fragments of pigs, blocks or other primary forms of pig iron or spiegeleisen) |
1.2% |
| Dates, figs, pineapples, avocados, guavas, mangoes...Dates, figs, pineapples, avocados, guavas, mangoes and mangosteens, fresh or dried |
1.1% |
| Other oil seeds and oleaginous fruits, whether or...Other oil seeds and oleaginous fruits, whether or not broken (excl. edible nuts, olives, soya beans, groundnuts, copra, linseed, rape or colza seeds and sunflower seeds) |
0.8% |
| Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally...Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons, incl. station wagons and racing cars (excl. motor vehicles of heading 8702) |
0.7% |
| Crustaceans, whether in shell or not, live, fresh,...Crustaceans, whether in shell or not, live, fresh, chilled, frozen, dried, salted or in brine, even smoked, incl. crustaceans in shell cooked by steaming or by boiling in water; flours, meals and pellets of crustaceans, fit for human consumption |
0.5% |
| Structures and parts of structures "e.g., bridges...Structures and parts of structures "e.g., bridges and bridge-sections, lock-gates, towers, lattice masts, roofs, roofing frameworks, doors and windows and their frames and thresholds for doors, shutters, balustrades, pillars and columns", of iron or steel; plates, rods, angles, shapes, sections, tubes and the like, prepared for use in structures, of iron or steel (excl. prefabricated buildings of heading 9406) |
0.3% |
| Flours, meals and pellets, of meat or meat offal,...Flours, meals and pellets, of meat or meat offal, of fish or of crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates, unfit for human consumption; greaves |
0.3% |
| Guts, bladders and stomachs of animals (other than...Guts, bladders and stomachs of animals (other than fish), whole and pieces thereof, fresh, chilled, frozen, salted, in brine, dried or smoked |
0.3% |
| Self-propelled bulldozers, angledozers, graders,...Self-propelled bulldozers, angledozers, graders, levellers, scrapers, mechanical shovels, excavators, shovel loaders, tamping machines and roadrollers |
0.3% |
| Other vegetables, fresh or chilled (excl. potatoes...Other vegetables, fresh or chilled (excl. potatoes, tomatoes, alliaceous vegetables, edible brassicas, lettuce "lactuca sativa" and chicory "cichorium spp.", carrots, turnips, salad beetroot, salsify, celeriac, radishes and similar edible roots, cucumbers and gherkins, and leguminous vegatables) |
0.3% |
| Sugar confectionery not containing cocoa, incl....Sugar confectionery not containing cocoa, incl. white chocolate |
0.2% |
| Garments, knitted or crocheted, rubberised or...Garments, knitted or crocheted, rubberised or impregnated, coated or covered with plastics or other materials (excl. babies' garments and clothing accessories) |
0.1% |
| Frozen fish (excl. fish fillets and other fish...Frozen fish (excl. fish fillets and other fish meat of heading 0304) |
0.1% |
| Parts and accessories for motorcycles and bicycles...Parts and accessories for motorcycles and bicycles and for carriages for disabled persons, n.e.s. |
0.1% |
| Waste and scrap, of aluminium (excl. slags, scale...Waste and scrap, of aluminium (excl. slags, scale and the like from iron and steel production, containing recoverable aluminium in the form of silicates, ingots or other similar unwrought shapes, of remelted waste and scrap, of aluminium, ashes and residues from aluminium production) |
0.1% |
| Fats and oils and their fractions of fish or...Fats and oils and their fractions of fish or marine mammals, whether or not refined (excl. chemically modified) |
0.1% |
| See More Products |
15.3% |
| 2.5 bn USD of products imported in 2023 |
| Motorcycles, incl. mopeds, and cycles fitted with...Motorcycles, incl. mopeds, and cycles fitted with an auxiliary motor, with or without side-cars; side-cars |
65.5% |
| Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous...Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals (excl. crude); preparations containing >= 70% by weight of petroleum oils or of oils obtained from bituminous minerals, these oils being the basic constituents of the preparations, n.e.s.; waste oils containing mainly petroleum or bituminous minerals |
10.5% |
| RiceRice |
2.2% |
| Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally...Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons, incl. station wagons and racing cars (excl. motor vehicles of heading 8702) |
2.0% |
| Mineral or chemical fertilisers containing two or...Mineral or chemical fertilisers containing two or three of the fertilising elements nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium; other fertilisers (excl. pure animal or vegetable fertilisers or mineral or chemical nitrogenous, phosphatic or potassic fertilisers); animal, vegetable, mineral or chemical fertilisers in tablets or similar forms or in packages of a gross weight of <= 10 kg |
1.7% |
| Fixed vegetable fats and oils, incl. jojoba oil,...Fixed vegetable fats and oils, incl. jojoba oil, and their fractions, whether or not refined, but not chemically modified (excl. soya-bean, groundnut, olive, palm, sunflower-seed, safflower, cotton-seed, coconut, palm kernel, babassu, rape, colza and mustard oil) |
1.0% |
| Cement, incl. cement clinkers, whether or not...Cement, incl. cement clinkers, whether or not coloured |
1.0% |
| Wheat and meslinWheat and meslin |
0.8% |
| Structures and parts of structures "e.g., bridges...Structures and parts of structures "e.g., bridges and bridge-sections, lock-gates, towers, lattice masts, roofs, roofing frameworks, doors and windows and their frames and thresholds for doors, shutters, balustrades, pillars and columns", of iron or steel; plates, rods, angles, shapes, sections, tubes and the like, prepared for use in structures, of iron or steel (excl. prefabricated buildings of heading 9406) |
0.7% |
| Meat and edible offal of fowls of the species...Meat and edible offal of fowls of the species gallus domesticus, ducks, geese, turkeys and guinea fowls, fresh, chilled or frozen |
0.6% |
| Cane or beet sugar and chemically pure sucrose, in...Cane or beet sugar and chemically pure sucrose, in solid form |
0.5% |
| Tableware, kitchenware, other household articles...Tableware, kitchenware, other household articles and toilet articles, of plastics (excl. baths, shower-baths, washbasins, bidets, lavatory pans, seats and covers, flushing cisterns and similar sanitary ware) |
0.4% |
| Bricks, blocks, tiles and other ceramic goods of...Bricks, blocks, tiles and other ceramic goods of siliceous fossil meals, e.g. kieselguhr, tripolite or diatomite, or of similar siliceous earths |
0.4% |
| Electrical transformers, static converters, e.g....Electrical transformers, static converters, e.g. rectifiers, and inductors; parts thereof |
0.4% |
| Insulated "incl. enamelled or anodised" wire,...Insulated "incl. enamelled or anodised" wire, cable "incl. coaxial cable" and other insulated electric conductors, whether or not fitted with connectors; optical fibre cables, made up of individually sheathed fibres, whether or not assembled with electric conductors or fitted with connectors |
0.4% |
| Furniture and parts thereof, n.e.s. (excl. seats...Furniture and parts thereof, n.e.s. (excl. seats and medical, surgical, dental or veterinary furniture) |
0.3% |
| Milk and cream, concentrated or containing added...Milk and cream, concentrated or containing added sugar or other sweetening matter |
0.3% |
| Mineral or chemical nitrogenous fertilisers (excl....Mineral or chemical nitrogenous fertilisers (excl. those in pellet or similar forms, or in packages with a gross weight of <= 10 kg) |
0.3% |
| Electrical insulators of any material (excl....Electrical insulators of any material (excl. insulating fittings) |
0.3% |
| Medicaments consisting of mixed or unmixed...Medicaments consisting of mixed or unmixed products for therapeutic or prophylactic uses, put up in measured doses "incl. those in the form of transdermal administration" or in forms or packings for retail sale (excl. goods of heading 3002, 3005 or 3006) |
0.3% |
| Gas, liquid or electricity supply or production...Gas, liquid or electricity supply or production meters, incl. calibrating meters therefor |
0.2% |
| Woven fabrics of artificial filament yarn, incl....Woven fabrics of artificial filament yarn, incl. monofilament of >= 67 decitex and a maximum diameter of <= 1 mm |
0.2% |
| Machinery for working rubber or plastics or for...Machinery for working rubber or plastics or for the manufacture of products from these materials, not specified or included elsewhere in this chapter, parts thereof |
0.2% |
| Laboratory, hygienic or pharmaceutical glassware,...Laboratory, hygienic or pharmaceutical glassware, whether or not graduated or calibrated (excl. containers for the conveyance or packing of goods, measuring, checking or medical instruments and apparatus of chapter 90) |
0.2% |
| Boards, panels, consoles, desks, cabinets and...Boards, panels, consoles, desks, cabinets and other bases, equipped with two or more apparatus of heading 8535 or 8536, for electric control or the distribution of electricity, incl. those incorporating instruments or apparatus of chapter 90, and numerical control apparatus (excl. switching apparatus for line telephony or line telegraphy) |
0.2% |
| Parts and accessories for tractors, motor vehicles...Parts and accessories for tractors, motor vehicles for the transport of ten or more persons, motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons, motor vehicles for the transport of goods and special purpose motor vehicles of heading 8701 to 8705, n.e.s. |
0.2% |
| Waters, incl. mineral waters and aerated waters,...Waters, incl. mineral waters and aerated waters, containing added sugar or other sweetening matter or flavoured, and other non-alcoholic beverages (excl. fruit or vegetable juices and milk) |
0.2% |
| Sauce and preparations therefor; mixed condiments...Sauce and preparations therefor; mixed condiments and mixed seasonings; mustard flour and meal, whether or not prepared, and mustard |
0.2% |
| Stoves, ranges, grates, cookers, incl. those with...Stoves, ranges, grates, cookers, incl. those with subsidiary boilers for central heating, barbecues, braziers, gas rings, plate warmers and similar non-electric domestic appliances, and parts thereof of iron or steel (excl. boilers and radiators for central heating, geysers and hot water cylinders) |
0.2% |
| Other bars and rods of stainless steel; angles,...Other bars and rods of stainless steel; angles, shapes and sections of stainless steel, n.e.s. |
0.1% |
| Bars and rods, of iron or non-alloy steel, not...Bars and rods, of iron or non-alloy steel, not further worked than forged, hot-rolled, hot-drawn or hot-extruded, but incl. those twisted after rolling (excl. in irregularly wound coils) |
0.1% |
| Gypsum; anhydrite; plasters consisting of calcined...Gypsum; anhydrite; plasters consisting of calcined gypsum or calcium sulphate, whether or not coloured, with or without small quantities of accelerators or retarders |
0.1% |
| Other bars and rods of alloy steel other than...Other bars and rods of alloy steel other than stainless, angles, shapes and sections of alloy steel other than stainless, n.e.s.; hollow drill bars and rods, of alloy or non-alloy steel |
0.1% |
| Bitumen and asphalt, natural; bituminous or...Bitumen and asphalt, natural; bituminous or oil-shale and tar sands; asphaltites and asphaltic rocks |
0.1% |
| Soap; organic surface-active products and...Soap; organic surface-active products and preparations for use as soap, in the form of bars, cakes, moulded pieces or shapes, whether or not containing soap; organic surface-active products and preparations for washing the skin, in the form of liquid or cream and put up for retail sale, whether or not containing soap; paper, wadding, felt and nonwovens, impregnated, coated or covered with soap or detergent |
0.1% |
| Malt extract; food preparations of flour, groats,...Malt extract; food preparations of flour, groats, meal, starch or malt extract, not containing cocoa or containing < 40% by weight of cocoa calculated on a totally defatted basis, n.e.s.; food preparations of milk, cream, butter milk, sour milk, sour cream, whey, yogurt, kephir, and similar goods of heading 0401 to 0404, not containing cocoa or containing < 5% by weight of cocoa calculated on a totally defatted basis, n.e.s. |
0.1% |
| Onions, shallots, garlic, leeks and other...Onions, shallots, garlic, leeks and other alliaceous vegetables, fresh or chilled |
0.1% |
| Paper or paperboard labels of all kinds, whether...Paper or paperboard labels of all kinds, whether or not printed |
0.1% |
| Granite, porphyry, basalt, sandstone and other...Granite, porphyry, basalt, sandstone and other monumental or building stone, whether or not roughly trimmed or merely cut, by sawing or otherwise, into blocks or slabs of a square or rectangular shape (excl. in the form of granules, chippings or powder, or already with the characteristics of setts, curbstones and flagstones, and monumental or building stone of an apparent specific gravity of >= 2,5) |
0.1% |
| Articles for the conveyance or packaging of goods,...Articles for the conveyance or packaging of goods, of plastics; stoppers, lids, caps and other closures, of plastics |
0.1% |
| Milk and cream, not concentrated nor containing...Milk and cream, not concentrated nor containing added sugar or other sweetening matter |
0.1% |
| Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel,...Flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel, of a width >= 600 mm, hot-rolled or cold-rolled "cold-reduced", clad, plated or coated |
0.1% |
| See More Products |
18.1% |
Source: Comtrade, Latest Available Data
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Source: United Nations Statistics Division, Latest Available Data
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Latest Update: May 2024
Gambia: Trade Profile
