Gambia became independent from Britain in 1965. The country is a democracy and there is religious tolerance despite a large Muslim majority. The land consists of over 25 ethnic groups and the capital is Banjul. Total population is 1.3 million. The official language is English. The economy is dependent on peanuts and the people are primarily poor, with 80% working the land. Tourism brings 91,000 visitors a year.
89% of Gambia is Muslim and 4% Christian. Few Christians have contacts with the Muslims. Average income is $320 per person annually.
There are 20 languages in Gambia. The whole Bible is available in 3 languages and the NT in 3 languages. The Scriptures are being translated into 9 languages and 5 languages have no access to the Bible. There are 134 missionaries to Gambia.
Challenges and Prayer Concerns:
- Though Islam is dominant the land is open to the gospel
- Islam is gaining ground
- Evangelical believers are few
- Ministries concentrating on non-Christian majority peoples are few.
- Prison evangelism has been fruitful; the Jesus film has been shown all over the country.
- Most missions efforts are among the nominal Christians.
