Statistician‑General Nyakassi Sanyang described the findings as evidence of a more active labour market, marking one of the most significant gains in recent years.
The Gambia Bureau of Statistics (GBOS) recently released the findings of the 2026 Labour Force Survey (GLFS Q1), revealing significant shifts in employment trends, income disparities, and child labour prevalence.
Nyakassi Sanyang described the survey as the most comprehensive assessment of the Gambian labour market to date. The report was produced in collaboration with the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment, with support from the World Bank, the International Labour Organization, and UNFPA.
Labour Force and Employment
The working‑age population now stands at 1.43 million, with a labour force of 781,868. Of these, 733,364 are employed and 48,504 unemployed. Participation has risen sharply from 43.6% in 2023 to 54.5% in 2026, while unemployment has declined from 7.6% to 6.2%.
Informality and Job Quality
Despite progress, the survey highlights that 85.8% of Gambian workers remain in informal employment, with construction (98.1%), agriculture (97.7%), and food services (93.6%) among the worst affected sectors. Women and rural workers are disproportionately impacted.
Income Inequality
For the first time, national income estimates were published. The mean monthly income is GMD 6,238, but the median is just GMD 3,000. Formal workers earn more than double their informal counterparts, while men earn twice as much as women. Public sector employees average GMD 15,095 per month, compared with GMD 7,942 in the private sector.
Child Labour
The survey estimates that 12.9% of children aged 5–17 years (108,087 children) are engaged in child labour, with rural areas recording far higher rates than urban centres. Kuntaur tops the list at 34.7%, while Kanifing and Banjul report the lowest prevalence at 3.5% and 3.8% respectively. Agriculture remains the dominant sector for child labour, accounting for over 63% of affected children.
Persons with Disabilities
Labour force participation among persons with disabilities increased from 20.1% in 2025 to 27.4% in 2026, with employment rising to 26.5%. However, participation remains far below the national average of 55%, with women with disabilities recording the lowest engagement at just 22.4% employment.
International migrants make up 6% of the working‑age population. They show higher participation (65%) and employment (63.8%) compared with native‑born Gambians, but face greater informality (90.1%). Most migrants originate from Senegal (37.2%), Guinea (30.2%), and Sierra Leone (9.7%), with family reasons driving migration in 62.4% of cases. More than half have lived in The Gambia for over a decade.
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