Citizenship in The Gambia is governed by the relevant sections of the 1997 Constitution, which provides for citizenship to be granted on the basis of descent (arts 9 and 10). A provision to establish a presumption of citizenship in case of an abandoned child found in The Gambia was removed by a 2001 constitutional amendment. Citizenship is transmitted for only one generation if born outside The Gambia.
The constitution provides that a person married to a Gambian citizen (whether husband or wife) may apply for citizenship after seven years residence; as may a person ordinarily resident for not less than fifteen years if they satisfy the conditions set out in art.12(2). Only a person who has naturalised or registered as a citizen may be deprived of citizenship, and the Secretary of State (responsable government minister) must apply to the High Court for a deprivation order (art.13).
The Gambia Nationality and Citizenship Act of 1965 provides further detail on acquisition by registration or naturalisation, and on deprivation of citizenship. It remains in force in so far as its provisions are not contradicted by the constitution.
The independence constitution of 1965 and the 1970 constitution which replaced it both provided for citizenship to be granted based on birth in The Gambia; and for transmission to those born outside the country to be only from the father. The 1997 constitution removed gender discrimination in transmission to children or spouses, but also removed rights based on birth in The Gambia. However, existing citizens retained their status.
In 2015, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child welcomed some progress in birth registration, but expressed concern at the “huge number of children who are not immediately registered at birth”. In 2014, The Gambia acceded to the two international statelessness conventions, and in 2015, adopted an action plan against statelessness, including promises to improve birth registration and identification systems, and adopt a procedure to facilitate naturalisation of stateless persons.
Implementation of the Global Action Plan to End Statelessness Extracts relevant to Africa Action 1: Resolve existing major situations of statelessness In December, in Mali, with UNHCR’s support, a workshop organized by the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, focused […]
By: Binta Jaiteh Omar T. Camara, the Acting Commissioner & Government Focal Point at the Gambia Commission for Refugees, has revealed that a total of two hundred and forty-seven (247) Ghanaians living at Brufut/ Ghana Town hold valid or expired […]
By: Jankey Touray The Gambia Refugees Commission under the Gambia Immigration Department (GID) yesterday informed the National Assembly Select Committee on Health, Disaster, Humanitarian Relief and Refugees that Ghana Town residents faced significant risks of barrier to obtaining citizenship due […]
Residents of a coastal fishing village in The Gambia say they are struggling to get basic government services over an unresolved nationality issue. According to the government, they are not entitled to citizenship, but the residents want a compromise. Watch: […]
By Bekai NJIE As Paul Techy queued with dozens of others in his coastal Gambian fishing village, he hoped to move one step closer towards finally belonging in the only country he had ever called home. Gambian citizenship has long […]
By: Sanna Camara Amie Sanneh, 56, is the sister of the current Alkalo of Brufut. She was a member of the girl children present at the inauguration of the new fishing village of Ghana Town, which his father, the then […]
The Gambia Commission for Refugees (GCR), in partnership with The Gambia Immigration Department, and GAFNA on Friday, November 1st ended a week-long assessment of statelessness in Ghana Town, in Brufut, West Coast Region. The initiative is supported by the United […]
By Kemo Kanyi The stakeholders on refugees and statelessness have commenced a two-day review discussion on pledges made by The Gambia at the 2023 Geneva Convergence that aimed to give every individual an identified state or nation. The meeting, spearheaded […]
By: Kemo Kanyi The chairman of the National Human Rights Commission has called on the Government of The Gambia to provide adequate protection for refugees and stateless persons within its borders. Emmanuel Joof issued this call during the stakeholders’ meeting […]
By Ali Jaw The Nation Human Rights Commission has called on government of The Gambia to make costs of the national identity cards and passports more affordable for average Gambians. This call by the rights commission came years after an […]
Including information on Benin, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Senegal, Sierra Leone & Togo. Extracts: Gambia Local integration remains the most viable option for Senegalese refugees. During the last verification exercise, the intention survey indicated that103 refugee households are willing to […]
By Yankuba Jallow One Haddy Jallow of Banjul has asked the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) to investigate the allegation surrounding the National Assembly member for Banjul South, Fatoumata Njai, regarding her having dual-nationality. Fatoumata Njai is also known as Touma […]