Gambia River Gambia River The Gambia River (formerly known as the River Gambra) is a major river in West Africa, running from the Fouta Djallon plateau in north Guinea westward through Senegal and the Gambia to the Atlantic Ocean at the city of Banjul. It is navigable for about half that length. The river is strongly associated with The Gambia, the smallest country in mainland Africa, which consists of little more than the downstream half of the river and its two banks. From the Fouta Djallon, the river runs northwest into the Tambacounda Region of Senegal, where it flows through the Parc
The Gambia shares historical roots with many other West African nations in the slave trade, which was the key factor in the placing and keeping of a colony on the Gambia River, first by the Portuguese, during which era it was known as "A Gâmbia". Later, on 25 May 1765, The Gambia was made a part of the British Empire when the government formally assumed control, establishing the Province of Senegambia. In 1965, the Gambia gained independence under the leadership of Dawda Jawara, who ruled until Yahya Jammeh seized power in a bloodless 1994 coup. Adama Barrow became the Gambia's third president