Gambia and Sierra Leone
What moves each way, the scams to watch for, and what to check before you trade.
Trade safely with Sierra Leone
The scams, documents and rules that matter on this corridor. Written and reviewed by our team, and dated.
Corridor-specific scam patterns and rules are still being reviewed by our team and will appear here once published.
- Confirm the company exists in an official register and that its name matches the one on the invoice.
- Before paying into a new or changed bank account, phone the company on a number you already hold, not one from the invoice or email.
- Test the container number, ship number, ports and dates on the bill of lading with the Document checker.
- Be wary of paying in advance for goods you have not seen, or of fees demanded to release a shipment.
- Ask the carrier directly to confirm the shipment exists and where it is.
In 2024, Gambia sold Sierra Leone about $18 thousand of goods. The biggest products were electric generating sets and rotary converters, plastic articles for the conveyance or packing… and refrigerators, freezers, which together make up 100% of the total. More than half of this trade is one product (electric generating sets and rotary converters), so it leans heavily on that one line. The total has grown by about 59% a year since 2023.
In 2024, Gambia bought about $175 thousand of goods from Sierra Leone. The biggest products were bulldozers, graders, levellers, scrapers, motor cars and other motor vehicles and industrial monocarboxylic fatty acids, which together make up 83% of the total. The total has fallen by about 35% a year since 2022.
Trade by year
Total trade each year, as reported in the tables below. A missing bar means no report for that year, not zero trade.
View as a table
| Year | Gambia sells to Sierra Leone | Gambia buys from Sierra Leone |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | not reported | $416k |
| 2023 | $12k | $475k |
| 2024 | $18k | $175k |
What Gambia sells to Sierra Leone
Ranked by value in 2024, by 4-digit product code. Growth is the yearly rate since 2023.
| Product | Value | Share | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electric generating sets and rotary converters Product code 8502 · Electrical equipment | $10k | 53.4% | n/a |
| Plastic articles for the conveyance or packing of goods (stoppers, lids, caps and other closures of plastics) Product code 3923 · Plastics | $5k | 27.7% | n/a |
| Refrigerators, freezers and other refrigerating or freezing equipment, electric or other (heat pumps other tha… Product code 8418 · Machinery | $3k | 18.9% | n/a |
Biggest product groups: Electrical equipment (53%), Plastics (28%), Machinery (19%) .
What Gambia buys from Sierra Leone
Ranked by value in 2024, by 4-digit product code. Growth is the yearly rate since 2022.
| Product | Value | Share | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bulldozers, graders, levellers, scrapers, angledozers, mechanical shovels, excavators, shovel loaders, tamping… Product code 8429 · Machinery | $83k | 47.5% | n/a |
| Motor cars and other motor vehicles (principally designed for the transport of persons (other than those of he… Product code 8703 · Vehicles | $42k | 23.9% | n/a |
| Industrial monocarboxylic fatty acids (acid oils from refining, industrial fatty alcohols) Product code 3823 · Miscellaneous chemicals | $20k | 11.5% | -51.7% a year |
Biggest product groups: Machinery (48%), Vehicles (24%), Miscellaneous chemicals (12%), Fruit and nuts (6%), Meat and fish preparations (5%) .
A free account shows the complete product lists, every fast-growing and new product, and the markets where this corridor supplies little. Accounts are checked by hand, so use your business email.
Create a free account Sign inHow to read these figures
Value is what was traded in the year, in US dollars. A big number means a big market, not necessarily an easy one to enter.
Share is that product's part of the total in the table above. A product with a large share is what this corridor already trades most of.
Growth is the average yearly change since the first year shown. A green figure means trade in that product is rising.
Product code is the international customs code (HS) for the product group. Your customs agent and the guide below will ask for it, and it decides the duty you pay.
These are totals reported by customs authorities, not prices or orders. Use them to see where demand exists, then check the rules and the company you plan to deal with.
Next steps
Trade figures are what each country reported to the UN (Comtrade), in US dollars. Imports are usually reported including freight and insurance, exports without, so the two sides of a corridor will not match exactly. Company counts are companies listed on ExporterIQ.