The Central Bank of The Gambia has ordered commercial banks operating in the country to phase out non-Gambian employees outside approved expatriate quotas by the end of December 2026, in a directive that could affect staff at Nigerian-owned lenders including FirstBank, Zenith Bank, Access Bank and Guaranty Trust Bank.

The directive was contained in a letter dated September 19 and signed by Central Bank of The Gambia Second Deputy Governor Ousman Mendy.

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The letter was addressed to managing directors of banks operating in the country.

The regulator instructed affected banks to replace non-citizen employees with qualified Gambians and develop succession plans to support the transfer of skills to local workers.

The Central Bank said the measure followed discussions with bank managing directors in August over the number of non-Gambian employees working across the banking sector.

A subsequent industry study by the regulator reportedly found a relatively high number of foreign employees in banks beyond those formally recognised under expatriate staffing arrangements.

The Central Bank said some of the employment practices were inconsistent with provisions of The Gambia’s Labour Act 2023 and Guideline 9 governing expatriate employees.

“A recent industry study conducted by the Bank revealed that a relatively high number of non-Gambians are employed by banks, in addition to recognised expatriate staff,” the regulator said.

The Central Bank added that the situation was “in violation of the provisions of the Labour Act 2023” and was not consistent with its expatriate staffing guidelines.

The December deadline means affected banks have only a limited period to review their staffing structures, identify positions outside approved expatriate quotas and put replacement arrangements in place.

The regulator also urged banks to manage the transition carefully so that changes in personnel do not disrupt banking operations or customer services.

The directive does not apply to all foreign employees automatically. The Central Bank’s instruction specifically concerns non-Gambian workers who are not covered by approved expatriate quotas.

The Central Bank of The Gambia has a statutory role in regulating and supervising the country’s banking sector, with its banking supervision department responsible for licensing, regulation and oversight of financial institutions.

Nigerian banking groups have a significant presence in the Gambian financial sector.

The Central Bank’s current list of payment-system participants includes First Bank Nigeria (Gambia), Access Bank (Gambia), Guaranty Trust Bank and Zenith Bank Gambia, alongside other domestic and international institutions.

The move comes as The Gambia seeks to strengthen local participation in its financial sector while maintaining the expertise needed to support banking operations.

For banks affected by the directive, the challenge will be to meet the December deadline while ensuring that experienced staff are replaced with suitably qualified Gambian employees and that knowledge is transferred during the process.

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The Central Bank has instructed the institutions to ensure “full compliance with the law and strict compliance with CBG’s guidelines”, making the end-of-year deadline a significant test of their staffing and succession arrangements.