Gambian President Wins 3rd Term

A supporter of President Yahya Jammeh sings as he carries a Gambian flag in celebration of Jammeh's reelection in Banjul, Gambia, Saturday, Sept. 23, 2006. Thousands of people turned out to celebrate Jammeh's election to a third five-year term. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) (Rebecca Blackwell - AP)

BANJUL, Gambia -- Gambian President Yahya Jammeh easily won a third term Saturday and called for a concerted effort to develop the country socially and economically.

The president, who has a broad support base, had promised his re-election would bring more prosperity to Gambia and that he would work to attract high-tech businesses to the country.

"My vision is to make the Gambia one of the best countries on earth and not only in Africa," Jammeh told supporters after the win was confirmed.

Jammeh received 67 percent of the vote on Friday, compared with 27 percent for main opposition candidate Ousainou Darboe and 6 percent for Halifa Sallah, said Joseph Colley, head of communications for the electoral commission.

The results were also read out on state radio and television, and welcomed at a gigantic beach victory party attended by thousands of Jammeh supporters wearing his green campaign colors and dancing.

Gambia, which gained independence from Britain in 1965, is one of the world's poorest nations, dependent largely on peanut farming, fishing and tourism along its 50-mile coastline. The country has few natural resources and struggles to keep pace with Senegal, which surrounds it on three sides.

Much of Gambia's population are subsistence farmers, and the country's gross domestic product is about $1,900 per person.

International critics had warned that restrictions on political expression and free speech leading up to the vote might delegitimize the election.

The U.S. cited political suppression when it pulled some funding to Gambia in June. Paris-based media watchdog Reporters Without Borders, citing numerous arrests of journalists along with threats and surveillance, charged press freedom has been so curtailed in Gambia that lack of information alone makes fair elections impossible.

Still, many Gambians are avid supporters of Jammeh, who has sought out international funding and has built roads, hospitals and schools throughout the country.

Jammeh said he would not treat his opponents as enemies.

"I have won and I have no problem with them," Jammeh said. "We should all work toward the socio-economic development of the Gambia."