Location:
Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania
Geographic coordinates:
14 00 N, 14 00 W
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 196,190 sq km
land: 192,000 sq km
water: 4,190 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than South Dakota
Land boundaries:
total: 2,640 km
border countries: The Gambia 740 km, Guinea 330 km, Guinea-Bissau
338 km, Mali 419 km, Mauritania 813 km
Coastline:
531 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Climate:
tropical; hot, humid; rainy season (May to November) has strong
southeast winds; dry season (December to April) dominated by hot,
dry, harmattan wind
Terrain:
generally low, rolling, plains rising to foothills in southeast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed feature near Nepen Diakha 581 m
Natural resources:
fish, phosphates, iron ore
Land use:
arable land: 11.58%
permanent crops: 0.19%
other: 88.23% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
710 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
lowlands seasonally flooded; periodic droughts
Environment - current issues:
wildlife populations threatened by poaching; deforestation;
overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; overfishing
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law
of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping
Geography - note:
westernmost country on the African continent; The Gambia is almost
an enclave of Senegal