Long road ahead: The Gambia’s re-elected president faces pressure to deliver on democracy

Promised reforms on issues including term limits will be closely scrutinised as the country plots a new path after decades under dictatorship, Portia Crowe reports from Banjul

The Gambian president, Adama Barrow, speaking to supporters after winning this month’s presidential election (AP)

Two days after being declared winner in this month’s election in the Gambia, the newly re-elected president, Adama Barrow, told the country that he would serve “for all Gambians”.

“I don’t think there is a loser – we are all winners because it is the Gambia that is important,” Mr Barrow, a former property developer and one-time Argos security guard in London who was thrust into Gambian politics just five years ago, said at a press conference last week.

However, the 56-year-old has a task on his hands as he seeks to deliver on promised constitutional and electoral reforms and bring justice for abuses under the former despotic ruler Yahya Jammeh, all against a backdrop of political tensions and suspicion about his commitment to democracy.