One of the smallest countries in Africa, The Gambia is known for its white, sandy beaches, rich culture and youthful population.
In fact, around 42% of the country is under the age of 15. The Gambia relies heavily on tourism dollars from coastal resorts to keep its economy afloat, and many children and families face deep financial challenges – especially in the West Coast region.
ChildFund has worked in The Gambia since 1984. Our programs center around helping children grow up …
Healthy
ChildFund The Gambia works to keep children healthy across every stage of their lives. For children ages 0 to 5, we focus on improving caregivers' knowledge and practices through our Responsive and Protective Parenting Program. We support school-aged children and youth to protect their mental health through violence prevention programs and safe spaces for creative expression. We also work with families to connect them to essential healthcare and nutrition services, mosquito nets, clean water and more.
Educated
Every child has the right to a quality education. ChildFund The Gambia promotes access to early childhood education for young children, establishing early childhood development (ECD) centers stocked with child-friendly play equipment, toys and age-appropriate learning materials. For school-aged children, we provide tutoring programs and establish community libraries. We also distribute valuable educational supplies like bikes, books and solar lamps through our gifts in kind (GIK) program.
Skilled
ChildFund The Gambia helps youth gain essential life skills by providing social and financial education, as well as sexual and reproductive health education. We organize leadership skills training sessions and encourage young people to celebrate and participate in international days, offering opportunities for peer interaction and cultural exchange that can help young people gain self-confidence.
Safe
ChildFund The Gambia helps keep children safe by implementing comprehensive child protection measures throughout communities. We train parents and caregivers in healthy relationship dynamics, engage community leaders and members in violence prevention, and establish community child protection committees to monitor and address common safety issues, like child abuse. We also advocate for children’s most urgent safety needs, leading policy advocacy through the Child Rights Advocacy Group (CRAG) and all-girls’ advocacy groups like The Girls’ Platform.
Children at a ChildFund-supported ECD (early childhood development) center celebrate receiving new learning materials.
Children celebrate a new well built by ChildFund – their first clean water source in 130 years.
Children’s play equipment built by ChildFund The Gambia in the Central River Region.
Fatou, 12, with a bike she received from ChildFund The Gambia.
Girls train at a shoemaking facility supported by ChildFund The Gambia to help youth learn employable skills.
