The Gambia reached a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on reviews of its Extended Credit Facility and Resilience and Sustainability Facility programs that would release SDR 20.73mn, or about $28mn, the IMF said on October 30. Total disbursements under the two programs would rise to about $142mn, and the Fund projected economic growth of 5.1% in both 2026 and 2027, according to the statement.
Analysis: The IMF raised its 2026 growth forecast to 5.1% from 4.7% in July, closer to the central bank's 5.8% projection and the finance ministry's 5.6%. All eight end-June performance criteria were met, but tax revenue fell modestly short of an indicative target, underscoring collection challenges. The additional financing is not yet assured: disbursement requires Executive Board approval of the reviews and completion of agreed prior actions. No board meeting date has been announced. Finance Minister Seedy Keita expects the program's final review in spring 2027.
Source: International Monetary Fund, IMF press release 26/343, October 30, 2026 (statement text as republished by Mirage News), On completion of reviews (staff-level agreement October 30, 2026) and Cumulative, after 6th ECF / 3rd RSF reviews and 2026 and End-June 2026; International Monetary Fund, IMF Country Report No. 26/175, Press Release (July 6, 2026), 2026; Gambia Bureau of Statistics (GBoS), GBoS data portal key-indicator ticker, September 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), CBG Monetary Policy Committee press release, August 20, 2026, 2026
The Gambia will auction 2bn GMD (€23.7mn) of new three-year bonds on November 13, with the coupon set by the bids it accepts, to fund debt re-profiling and domestic financing, according to a Central Bank of The Gambia prospectus. The sale opened on October 29. The previous three-year issue, in July, raised 1.5bn GMD at a coupon of 18.03%, the central bank said.
Analysis: The offering is a third larger than July's three-year issue, despite a weaker market for longer debt. An October 14 auction sold only 61.7% of its 1.5bn GMD (€17.8mn) five-year target, at a 19.82% coupon. Extending maturities remains important: 76.3% of domestic debt was due within one year at the end of June, according to the central bank. Investors will compare the new three-year coupon with July's 18.03% and one-year bills yielding 9.63%. The November 13 outcome will indicate whether demand can absorb the larger sale, and at what cost.
Source: Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), Central Bank of The Gambia, Prospectus for the issue of a new 3-year Gambia Government Bond (auction November 13, 2026), Auction of November 13, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), Banking & Payment Systems Department, Central Bank of The Gambia, Auction Result for the 18.03% GG July 2026 FXD 3/2026/3-Year Bonds (dated July 29, 2026), Auction for issue of July 30, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), Banking & Payment Systems Department, CBG, Auction Result for the 19.82% GG October 14, 2026, FXD 6/2026/5-Year Bonds, Auction of October 14, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), Central Bank of The Gambia, Auction Results page (Table view, auction of October 28, 2026), Auction of October 28, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), Central Bank of The Gambia, Monetary Policy Report, August 2026 (posted September 25, 2026), End-June 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), Central Bank of The Gambia, Official exchange rates for valuation purposes, November 2, 2026, November 2, 2026
The Gambia signed a $46mn integrated waste management project with Ghana's Jospong Group on October 28 to introduce waste collection, sorting, recycling and disposal in Banjul, Kanifing and Brikama, Gambiana and The Gambia Journal reported. The environment and finance ministries signed for the government, while the three municipal councils signed as witnesses, The Gambia Journal said.
Analysis: The waste project accounts for about one-fifth of the $215mn in agreements signed at State House that day, by our calculation. But neither the government nor Jospong has disclosed its financing, contract terms or whether households will pay collection charges. A March 2025 memorandum envisaged a waste treatment plant within six months under a public-private partnership, Ghanaian newspaper The Custodian reported. That timetable was not met in the information provided. The councils responsible for collection in the three municipalities signed the new agreement only as witnesses, leaving their future financial obligations unclear. No implementation date has been published.
Source: Gambiana (gambiana.com), Gambiana, 'Barrow presides over US$215m solar and waste management project signings', October 28, 2026, Signed October 28, 2026
The IMF called on The Gambia to cut operational losses at state utility NAWEC, improve its revenue collection and move toward cost-recovery electricity tariffs while protecting vulnerable households, after the government gave the utility emergency support that included clearing arrears to regional electricity suppliers, the Fund said on October 30. The government has budgeted 1bn GMD (€11.8mn) for electricity subsidies in 2027, after spending 2.4bn GMD (€28.4mn) on the sector in 2025, the finance minister said on October 23.
Analysis: Moving toward tariffs that cover NAWEC's costs could increase electricity bills, unless the utility cuts losses or secures other support. The 2027 budget allocates 1bn GMD to electricity subsidies, less than half the 2.4bn GMD spent on the sector in 2025. The IMF has not quantified the utility's losses or the gap between tariffs and costs. Its recommendation also contrasts with President Adama Barrow's October 28 pledge to reduce electricity costs once supply improves. Tariff regulator PURA has not announced a review, leaving the timing and distribution of any adjustment unresolved.
Source: Foroyaa Newspaper (Serrekunda), Minister of Finance's 2027 Budget Speech to the National Assembly, October 23, 2026, as reported by Foroyaa (October 23, 2026), FY2027 and 2025 and 2026 and 2026 (disbursed by October 23, 2026)
The Gambia's finance ministry and revenue authority GRA signed a 10-year agreement with Senegalese fintech InTouch on October 30 to run a digital platform that monitors transactions and processes government payments, after an international tender with three bidders, The Gambia Journal reported. The system will initially target online gaming, a sector the government wants under closer tax supervision, the outlet said.
Analysis: The contract comes as the IMF reported that The Gambia narrowly missed its end-June tax revenue target. Collections totaled 17.87bn GMD (€212mn) in the first eight months of 2026, 1% below the government's target, according to the finance minister. Real-time transaction monitoring could give the revenue authority more information than taxpayer declarations alone, particularly in online gaming. Yet neither the government nor InTouch disclosed the contract value or payment formula. Without those details, it is impossible to assess how much additional revenue the state would retain. InTouch already works with public bodies in five other African countries, including Côte d'Ivoire and Cameroon.
Source: The Gambia Journal, The Gambia Journal, 'Senegalese Fintech InTouch Signs 10-Year Partnership With Gambia To Strengthen Tax Revenue Collection', October 30, 2026, Signed October 30, 2026 and Tender before October 30, 2026; Foroyaa Newspaper (Serrekunda), Minister of Finance's 2027 Budget Speech to the National Assembly, October 23, 2026, as reported by Foroyaa (October 23, 2026), January to August 2026
Chart of the week
One-year Treasury bill yield at auction, % a year, January–October 2026
18.8
14.5
14.9
11.7
12.0
9.6
9.6
Auction of January 7, 2026Auction of February 11, 2026Auction of July 8, 2026Auction of August 5, 2026Auction of September 2, 2026Auction of October 28, 2026Auction of October 21, 2026
Weighted average yield on conventional 364-day bills at the first auction of each month that offered them, plus the October 21 and 28 auctions, from central bank CBG auction results; March to June are not recorded, so the intervals are uneven. The week's lead, the IMF disbursement, is a single figure with no series; this series ties in with the deep dive.. Source: Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), CBG, Auction results for January 7, 2026, Auction of January 7, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), CBG, Auction results for February 11, 2026, Auction of February 11, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), CBG, Auction results for July 8, 2026, Auction of July 8, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), CBG, Auction results for August 5, 2026, Auction of August 5, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), CBG, Auction results for September 2, 2026, Auction of September 2, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), CBG, Auction results for October 21, 2026, Auction of October 21, 2026; Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG), Central Bank of The Gambia, Auction Results page (Table view, auction of October 28, 2026), Auction of October 28, 2026.
In Alama Pro this week
Deep dive: Why Gambia's government borrowing costs are falling
12 stories with workings, from the IMF program, bond and bill auctions and the 2027 budget to solar power, waste, tax monitoring, student loans, reparations and rice prices
Five trackers, from inflation and the dalasi to Treasury bill yields and reserves, and every open tender we follow, with deadlines
