The Gambia is bracing up to the effects of impending development aid cuts by Britain affecting several African countries, APA learnt on Friday.
Estimates suggest the country is poised to lose just over 31 percent of UK development aid after the European nation announced sweeping changes to its spending abroad.
Britain is one of several donor countries reviewing its development priorities and spending commitments globally with a view to husbanding resources for its own internal spending programme.
It is expected that the aid cut will leave The Gambia struggling to maintain programmes and projects relying on British development assistance.
UK interventions in The Gambia cover education, health, governance, institutional development.
Observers say the situation ”underlines the importance of strengthening domestic revenue mobilisation and reducing reliance on external financing”.
The UK said its global spending will be focusing on crisis-response as it prioritizes domestic fiscal needs and defense spending and that the cuts do not signify weakening bilateral relations with The Gambia and other African countries affected by the new policy.
Projections suggest that interventions in the health and education sectors of lower income countries would drop dramatically 40% in 2027.
WN/as/APA