Claim: Nenneh Cheyassin Secka, a philanthropist and politician, claimed that the diaspora contributes between $750 million and $1 billion into Gambia’s economy annually.
Verdict: Misleading. The claim that the diaspora contributes between $750 million and $1 billion annually to Gambia’s economy is misleading. Official figures indicate that remittances have reached approximately $775.6 million, but have yet to surpass $1 billion.
Full Text
On Friday, November 7, 2025, Nenneh Cheyassin Secka, a politician and philanthropist who served as the Vice President of the newly formed Golden Era Party (GEP), appeared on The Grand Bantaba, a weekly current affairs show on Kerr Fatou, an online media platform in The Gambia.
During the discussion, Secka spoke on various topics, including her party’s policies and the significance of the Gambian diaspora.
She emphasised the economic importance of remittances and advocated for diaspora voting rights, which have been restricted under recent electoral laws.
Ms. Secka stated: “The diaspora contributes between $750 million to $1 billion every year into the Gambian economy.”
She further claimed that if diaspora remittances were to stop, “the Gambian economy would collapse.”
The complete statement can be viewed on the Kerr Fatou YouTube channel (starting at 26:34 minutes into the video).
However, during the 3-hour, 4-minute, and 34-second livestream, Secka did not provide any official data or evidence to support her claim.
DUBAWA decided to investigate the claim due to its potential to mislead.
Verification
To verify Secka’s statement, DUBAWA reviewed official data and credible sources, including statistics from the Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG) and the Family Remittances Database.
DUBAWA further analysed data on diaspora remittances from 2010 to the present based on officially available figures.
Below is a chart showing remittance flows from 2010 to 2019, based on the Central Bank database. Source. Central Bank of The Gambia.
As of December 2020, the diaspora contributed $578.8 million to the GDP. In 2021, The Gambia received $774.6 million in remittances, accounting for 62.9% of its GDP.
In 2022, diaspora remittances stood at $712,450,00 million, which amounts to 60% of GDP.
The remittance inflows in 2023 decreased to $627.5 million, accounting for 26.3% of GDP, representing an increase of $28.8 million compared to the previous year.
According to CBG data, in 2024, The Gambia received $775.6 million in remittances, representing 31.5% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
No official figures indicate that remittances have ever reached $1 billion. The highest recorded figure so far is $775.6 million (2024). The 2025 Annual Remittances Report is expected to be released in December.
Conclusion
The claim by Nenneh Cheyassin Secka that diaspora remittances to The Gambia amount to between $750 million and $1 billion annually is misleading.
While official data confirms that remittances have surpassed $750 million, there is no evidence that they have reached or exceeded $1 billion.