Gambia Armed Forces defence and security in The Gambia was the responsibility of the Field Force. The Field Force was a paramilitary unit of the police, consisting of roughly 140 men at independence and rising to around 500 in 1980. It has been formed in 1958 following the disbandment of the Gambia Regiment, part of the British Army. There was little concern about security in The Gambia due to its small size and the safety provided by being totally surrounded by Senegal, with which it had signed a mutual defence pact in 1965. This lax attitude to defence changed following the 1981 coup
Geology of Gambia Geology of Gambia The geology of Gambia is defined by thick and comparatively recent sequences of sediments and sedimentary rocks, deposited in the last 66 million years. The country is underlain almost entirely by geologically recent Cenozoic sedimentary rocks. Much deeper basement rocks are likely present, although they are not well understood. Most research has focused on oil and groundwater exploration. The oldest rock units recognized in the west of the country, along the Gambia River are sandstones and kaolinitic claystones from the Oligocene, Miocene or Pliocene. Ironstone, including iron oxides, gravel, clay and sand dating to the Pleistocene are