Monthly evaporation raw data from station Basse in The Gambia.

Numbers of households and population by Local Government Areas, Districts, and Settlements, 2013, The Gambia

Raw data from several climate stations in The Gambia. Monthly minimum and maximum temperature and rainfall from the stations: - Banjul - Basse - Fatoto - Janjanbureh - Jenoi - Kaur - Kerewan - Sapu - Sibanor - Yundum

The 2000 National Greenhouse Gas Inventory of The Gambia shows national emission total of about 20.02 Million Tons CO2 Equivalent (TCO2E) and per capita emissions of 13.5 TCO2E. This is insignificant compared to other country emissions. However, as a Party to the Climate Change Convention and its Kyoto Protocol, Gambia is willing to participate in mitigating global emissions and their concentrations in the atmosphere with the first step of conducting a mitigation assessment and developing this NAMA document. Trend analysis of climate data from 1951 to date shows a progressively warming and drier Gambia. Using General Circulation Model outputs, national temperatures are projected to increase by about 0.3OC in 2010 to about 3.9OC in 2100. Rainfall is also projected to decrease by about 1% in 2010 to about 54% in 2100. This confirms previous results of in the First National Communication that with increase in temperatures under a warming climate, rainfall in The Gambia would correspondingly decrease. The development challenges of The Gambia will be significant as the country faces complex economic, social and technological choices based on the climate change impacts already enumerated in the preceding paragraph. This is compounded by the inadequate capacities, inadequacies in the existing technologies and the non availability of domestic funding from both the public and private sectors for climate change.

The Government of The Gambia is committed to reducing poverty and improving the well-being of its population. This commitment is driven by the Government’s long-term strategy, Vision 2020, which is being executed through a series of medium-term development plans since 1994. The Programme for Accelerated Growth and Employment (PAGE) is The Gambia’s development strategy and investment programme for 2012 to 2015. PAGE 2012-2015 is based on Vision 2020 and various sector strategies, and is consistent with the Paris Declaration’s resolutions on aid effectiveness and the ownership of development. PAGE is the main interface between the Government and The Gambia’s development partners and is fully aligned with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and is a medium term strategic plan leading to a developed and prosperous Gambia. The focus of PAGE is to accelerate pro-poor growth and generate employment. The implementation of PAGE 2012-15 will be done through the Priority Action Plan (PAP) that will require private sector participation and heavy financial support from development partners. This support will help consolidate the gains of recent years, boost employment, and sustain development in The Gambia. The preparation of PAGE was highly participatory at all levels of society ensuring national ownership. It was coordinated by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs.

The Republic of The Gambia ratified the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1994 committing the country to the adoption and implementation of policies and measures mitigating the causes of climate change and adapting to its adverse effects. This Second National Communication (SNC), prepared and submitted in fulfilment of Articles 4 and 12 of the UNFCCC follows and builds on the Initial National Communication (INC) submitted in 2003. Similarly, its preparation follows the UNFCCC guidelines and includes information on The Gambia‟s greenhouse gas inventory for the year 2000, a discussion of measures to mitigate emissions in the energy sector, vulnerability and promising adaptation measures in key socioeconomic sectors as well as other activities contributing to building resilience to climate change.

A Renewables Readiness Assessment (RRA) is a holistic evaluation of a country’s conditions and identifies the actions needed to overcome barriers to renewable energy deployment. This is a country-led process, with IRENA primarily providing technical support and expertise to facilitate consultations among different national stakeholders. While the RRA helps to shape appropriate policy and regulatory choices, each country determines which renewable energy sources and technologies are relevant and consistent with national priorities. The RRA is a dynamic process that can be adapted to each country’s circumstances and needs. Experience in a growing range of countries and regions, meanwhile, has allowed IRENA to continue refining the basic RRA methodology. In June 2013, IRENA published a guide for countries seeking to conduct the process in order to accelerate their renewable energy deployment.