Some outcomes of the NDP are to attain the following by 2027: sustainable environmental and natural resources management, disaster risk reduction and minimizing the adverse impacts of climate change.

Persons affected by disasters per 100,000 increased from 1,569.2 to 4,115.8 from 2016 to 2019. The direct economic losses and damages of the two-day July 2022 flood event were estimated at $82.8 million, including $81.5 million in buildings and contents and $1.3 million in agricultural land.  The total damages were estimated to exceed 6.5% of the Gambia's national GDP in 2020. 

To respond to the increasing frequency and severity of disasters, the Government developed strategic documents. These include contingency plans, hazard profiles and disaster risk reduction strategies. The Government also implemented response and resilience building measures,  such as the identification of disaster hotspots and addressing some fundamental challenges of the most vulnerable communities. In addition, the Government used drones for early warning in pre- and post-flood disaster management. The hope is to reverse these trends and to minimize and avert the number of people affected by disasters. 

The Government and its partners will therefore foster land conservation processes, ensure sustainable waste management, green the energy and transport sectors and enhance integrated water resources management. They will strengthen the resilience of local economies as a basis for reducing the economic losses and the number of people affected by natural disasters. This will also build the capacities of local economies to create jobs and for the local authorities to provide the transformative services needed where people live.

The national unemployment rate for the working age population is 31.6 percent, but is highest among women, youth and the rural population. Youth unemployment stands at 38.1%. Considering that the Gambia has a very young population, with about 70 percent under the age of 30, and 44 percent under the age of 15 (Integrated Household Survey 2015/16), there is a huge bulge of unemployed youth. Lack of economic opportunities for youth results in domestic (rural-urban) and international migration. 

Therefore, addressing unemployment is a critical challenge for achieving the SDGs. The micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSME) sector is a significant contributor to reducing unemployment and is said to account for 62 percent of employment in urban Gambia contributing about 20 percent of GDP (Gambia Chamber of Commerce and Industry 2019). Several efforts are being made by the Government and its partners to support the growth of the MSME sector. Also, the country has developed an employment strategy with the target of creating 150,000 jobs by 2026. 

However, no data exists on earnings across categories of jobs, nor mechanisms to track their creation on a regular basis. The Government and its partners may consider exploring efforts to track job creation, analyse performance and make the necessary adjustments. Based on the synergies in the chart on the right, jobs will come from all sectors – including from industry, investment in eco-tourism, health, transport, housing, waste management and others – but achieving 8.5 will also help attain targets across multiple goals. One government commitment is to work with the local authorities, partners and other stakeholders to revitalize local economies and to build resilience. 

SDG target 16.6 underscores the kind of public services needed for the required transformation to take place in the Gambia. For instance, Gambia’s overall goal by 2027 (NDP 2023-2027) is to consolidate gains in democratic governance, accelerate green economic and social transformation and build resilience to shocks and crises. 

The critical question is what public services must be availed and what investments are needed for the above goal to be met? The chart on synergies suggests that these services could emerge from anywhere from – health, education, industry, transport, housing, internet, water and electricity, among others. 

In the Gambia, 45.3 percent of the population are satisfied with the last public service received. In addition to expanding the transformative services, the Government is setting a target of a 70 percent population satisfaction rate. These services need to be delivered with broad-based objectives to drive meaningful progress.

To do this, the Government and its partners, as articulated in the 2023-2027 NDP, will aim for full coverage and affordable access to electricity by 2030, addressing the quality and relevance of education services; promoting research and innovation in tertiary education by establishing research boards, a council and a national research fund; improving maternal health, neonatal, infant and child health care; and consolidating efforts and implement strategic infrastructure projects in the areas of energy, transport and ICT in order to catalyze growth.