Catholic Relief Services (Gambia)

CRS IN THE GAMBIA
Almost completely geographically surrounded by Senegal, The Gambia is Africa’s smallest mainland country and home to over 1.9 million people. Although the country has experienced political stability since independence in 1965, stability has not translated into prosperity. About one-third of the population lives below the international poverty line of $1.25 a day. Only one-sixth of land is arable and poor soil quality has lead to the predominance of peanuts as one of the few cash crops. Many Gambians face difficulties related to poverty, such as food insecurity, high prevalence of communicable diseases, high maternal and infant mortality rates, high rates of unemployment, and illiteracy.

CRS has had a long presence in The Gambia, with current programming focused on health, including HIV and AIDS, malaria, emergency response and recovery and agriculture