The Gambia
Context
As one of the original core countries, the Gambia has been part of the FFF programme since 2012, later becoming a network country in 2018.
Despite its limited land area, the Gambia has a rich forest heritage. FFF backing has strengthened community forest tenure and support for traditional medicine practitioners – in the Gambia, forests are not only ecological assets but also living pharmacies.
In the beekeeping sector, dozens of new enterprises have been established, and cooperatives have been equipped with the tools needed to improve value addition. A business incubation centre has also been set up, offering peer-to-peer services for youth and women to stimulate green entrepreneurship and forest-based enterprises.
In 2025, the FFF supported seven FFPOs and one government ministry – Ministry of Environment Climate Change and Natural Resources (MECCNAR). The seven FFPOs operated in five administrative regions and representing over 1.1 million members.
Contacts
Coach:
[email protected]
Facilitator:
[email protected]
Products
Honey, cashews, medicinal plants and vegetables are among the key products underpinning livelihoods in the Gambia.
Highlights
- Securing land access
Through targeted policy advocacy and capacity building, the FFF has been instrumental in unlocking stalled tenure reforms, supporting MECCNAR in the formal transfer of 116 community forests from state ownership to local communities. This grants them legal ownership and management rights of the land. Of the 200 000 hectares target, 38 331 hectares of land have already been successfully handed over.
- Production and markets
For the women of Allantenu Women Vegetable Garden, FFF-backed training in how to produce organic rapid compost has increased their vegetable yield by 50%, reducing the need for costly chemical fertilizer and improving soil fertility. Their incomes have skyrocketed and the quality of their produce has improved, opening up new export opportunities.
- Influencing policy
In 2025, the first Traditional Medicine Act and Policy was implemented, supported by the FFF through the Traditional Healers Assembly (TRAHASS). This mainstreams traditional medicine into the national health system, benefiting 2 025 practitioners. TRAHASS also secured 1.5 hectares of land as a gene bank to safeguard native plants used for medicinal and healing purposes.