Citizens and Security Sector Reform in Gambia’s Democratic Transition: Fostering Dialogue and Informed Civic Discourse

Tucked perfectly inside Senegal and closely following the meandering curves of the River Gambia, The Gambia has the smallest landmass and population in continental Africa. Though a small state, the Republic of The Gambia enjoyed an enviable record of political stability and social harmony. Not only that, but The Gambia was also successful in projecting the values of peace, democracy, and liberal internationalism in its international engagements during the First Republic under the stewardship of Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara. However, The Gambia’s path to building a liberal constitutional order at home and promoting the values of peace, stability, and public order on the international stage was disrupted by the 1994 military coup led by then-Colonel Yahya Jammeh. While President Jammeh returned The Gambia to electoral democracy in 1996, the restriction of civic and political space turned elections into mere rituals, devoid of free and fair competition. Thus, considering numerous other non-democratic tendencies under Jammeh, The Gambia effectively became an ‘authoritarian democracy.

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