After more than 19 months of talks to unite opposition groups ahead of The Gambia’s presidential election on 5 December 2026, the APeX Initiative has ended its role as facilitator and said negotiations for a proposed “CHANGE” grand coalition have been suspended.
In a statement signed by Chairperson Dr. Jaye Krubally and Outreach Lead Demba Ali Jawo, APeX said Sunday 6 September was the last scheduled day of negotiations. The parties reached a provisional deal on a draft coalition agreement and a consensus candidate to lead the alliance. The process then stalled over whether that already-agreed flagbearer would contest as an independent, a position APeX said had been provisionally accepted.
With no breakthrough in the following 72 hours, the parties agreed to suspend the CHANGE talks from Wednesday 9 September, leaving each stakeholder free to pursue another path. APeX said the remaining dispute is narrow: if the two sides at odds over the independent ticket resolve it, the coalition could still be launched.
That potential alliance, APeX said, would include Gambia For All (GFA), the Tabax Rewmi movement, the United Democratic Party (UDP) and UDP alliance partners ADD, GANU, GPAP and PPP, plus the CCC and GEP movements.
The facilitator thanked groups that took part over the 19 months: APP Sobeyaa, GFA, NUP, PPA, Tabax Rewmi, UDP and UMC (now UNITE). Some left before talks ended. APeX said it recognized all seven for dialogue and what it called a patriotic commitment to the national interest.
It also rejected APP Sobeyaa’s account of its exit. In a letter dated 5 September and circulated online, APP Sobeyaa said it withdrew after bilateral talks failed to produce the desired outcome on a power-sharing agreement already made by stakeholders. APeX said that claim was “entirely inaccurate.”
Calling the project a public-interest effort, APeX published the draft coalition agreement and the proposed flagbearer selection process at gamapex.org. A fuller post-project report will appear after the presidential election and will examine coalition-building challenges and recommendations for multiparty democracy.
APeX stressed it is not a political party and did not exist solely to broker coalitions. It said it remains willing to help if asked. The organization thanked the media and the public for patience and interest.
The collapse comes as opposition groups have split among competing arrangements ahead of a vote in which President Adama Barrow is seeking another term. UDP officials earlier said the party would not stay in two coalitions after signing an MOU with the Gambia First Coalition. Other parties, including NUP and UNITE, had already left the APeX process.
IEC nomination for the presidency is scheduled for late October to early November, with campaigning in November and polling on 5 December. Whether any last-minute deal revives CHANGE now depends on the two parties still divided over how their agreed candidate should appear on the ballot.
