Return to Investigation or Investigation/Children or Investigation/Homes or Clues

Families and Working in The Gambia

Families are very important in The Gambia.

They are often very large as some men have more than one wife
and each wife may have several children.
They can have up to four wives as a Muslim.
Babies are carried on their mother's back.
They have large families so that the children can help the family,
perhaps to farm the land, as they grow older.

Families are seen as much bigger than just parents and their children.
Often the children will not live with their parents all the time.
They are sent to live with other members of the family,
sometimes many miles away.

If a husband dies and the wife has children, often the husband's brother will marry her so her children are cared for.
Don't forget that a husband can marry up to four wives.

Old people are always looked after by their families in their own homes.
The older people, or elders, are very respected.

It is the responsibility of the person who earns the most to take care of everyone in the extended family.

Families live together in a compound.
This will be a group of buildings surrounded by a fence or wall.
There might be several groups of families living there.

Working in The Gambia

Most people in The Gambia are self- employed.
They might have a small shop, or sell at a market stall.
In the market at Janjanbureh there were several tailors.
You might see people outside their compounds selling some food they have made. It might be a simple sauce or in a town, water they have frozen in a plastic bag because they have a fridge.

A shop selling all sorts of items in Janjanbureh	A road side stall	They could be a tailor. Tailors are always men and they sew using machines. As there is no electricity in Janjnabureh, this tailor is using a treadle machine.

Note! Electricity was provided in Janjanbureh in 2007 but it is mainly used to provide street lighting. Some compounds can afford to have electricity put in and they will use it for lighting and perhaps a fridge to store food more safely.
Electrical goods cost a lot of money as they are imported. It will be a long time before most families have electricity and electrical items.

If you had to save to buy electrical goods decide which order you would buy them.

Builders, painters, carpenters, bakers etc are all needed and will mostly work for themselves. They might employ someone to help them.
They are usually skilled in that one trade only.

Many people earn money by farming or sea and river fishing.

The Government pay people as teachers, nurses, policemen and civil servants. There is one college in The Gambia with departments for
Education, Nursing, Agriculture and Public health

A teacher might earn about £28 a month

The average wage for most Gambians is 55p a day.

What do you think money from wages is spent on in The Gambia?

Is it the same in this country or are expenses different?

Most of the money in The Gambia is spent on food which is much cheaper
and on general living.
Think how the houses are built.

Look at Watty's Websites