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Gambia, The

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The Gambia is the smallest nation in mainland Africa in size with a population of over 2.7 million people (World Bank, 2022).

COL’s work in The Gambia is in the areas of higher education, open schooling, teacher education, lifelong learning for farmers and skills for work. It is part of the Virtual University for Small States of the Commonwealth (VUSSC) network and benefits from programmes offered by COL’s regional centre, the Regional Training and Research Institute for Distance and Open Learning (RETRIDOL). Learners from The Gambia are also benefitting from COL’s free online courses and other openly available resources.

Highlights

  • COL is supporting the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education in establishing an open school.
  • A national ODL policy for Higher Education in The Gambia was developed in June 2023 and approved in 2024.
  • The Ministry developed an ODL policy for Basic and Secondary Education in November 2023.
  • COL met with the President of The Gambia, HE Adama Barrow, to apprise him of the advantages of lifelong learning for farmers.
  • Two national food security strategies were developed related to sheep and poultry production.
  • The Open, Distance and Technology-Enhanced Learning Policy for In-Service Education and Training of Basic and Secondary Teachers was validated in September 2024.
  • The National Quality Assurance Standard for ODL Institutions in The Gambia and Quality Assurance Standard for ODL Programmes in The Gambia were developed in November 2024.
  • The Ministry of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology developed and adopted a new Gender Inclusion Policy for Tertiary & Higher Education (2025 –29).

Partners

Partnerships are fundamental to COL’s work. Strategic partnerships allow COL to broaden its reach and engage at global, regional and national levels, while implementation partners support COL’s work in communities and institutions across Commonwealth Member States. Partners include multilateral organisations, regional bodies, national governments, government agencies, foundations, civil society organisations, public and private (not-for-profit) institutions and the private sector. COL partnerships assist in improving and extending teaching and learning services to people in the developing Commonwealth.

COL’s partners in The Gambia include:

  • Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education
  • Ministry of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology
  • Gambia College
  • Gambia Technical Training Institute
  • Global Youth Innovation Network, Gambia Chapter
  • National Accreditation and Quality Assurance Authority
  • University of The Gambia
  • West Africa Livestock Innovation Centre

Key Contacts

Focal Point

Mr Anthony G. Mendy
Director of Tertiary and Higher Education
Ministry of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology

More Information

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Reports

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Country Data Sources