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Connect with the Peace Corps
If you're ready for something bigger, we have a place where you belong.
Apply to the Peace Corps
The application process begins by selecting a service model and finding an open position.
Let us help you find the right position.
If you are flexible in where you serve for the two-year Peace Corps Volunteer program, our experts can match you with a position and country based on your experience and preferences.
Serve where you’re needed mostCommunity Health Facilitator
Health
Job highlights
- Gain valuable, hands-on experience supporting global health issues
- Become a valued part of a host family and community
- Experience the rich culture of The Gambia firsthand
Applications are now closed. View current openings.
Apply by
March 15, 2026Know by
May 29, 2026Depart on
September 26, 2026Duration
15 monthsAbout the project
The Gambia seeks individuals with a passion for public health to encourage the adoption of healthy behaviors and practices—is that you?
To improve the health and quality of life of citizens, The Gambia’s Ministry of Health is focused on promoting positive health-related practices using behavior change principles. The government wishes to focus particularly on the youth, women, and children in rural areas where access to health services is limited.
Through family home visits and larger workshops, you will enhance the community’s understanding of essential practices for a healthy pregnancy and newborn. You will promote malaria prevention methods, sanitation approaches, and gender-equitable norms in a culturally appropriate way. Your daily work and community engagement will also enhance intercultural understanding between Gambians and Americans.
Learn more about what Volunteers do in country by visiting our The Gambia project page.
Required skills
Qualified candidates will have one or more of the following criteria:
Qualified candidates will have an expressed interest in working in the health sector and one or more of the following criteria:
Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science degree in any field
OR
5 years' professional work experience
Language: There are no pre-requisite language requirements for this position.
Required behavioral competencies
These competencies are essential for all service assignments and are assessed in the application and interview process:
Motivation for and commitment to service
Adaptability and open-mindedness
Problem solving and resourcefulness
Behavioral maturity and professionalism
Photos from The Gambia
How you and the community will make an impact together:
How you and the community will make an impact together:
Train community members on practices that promote maternal, neonatal, and children’s health
Raise awareness on malaria prevention methods
Promote water and sanitation hygiene with the improvement or construction of community water and sanitation systems
Teach ways to prevent non-communicable diseases.
Strengthen youth life skills and awareness of youth-friendly services
You may also work on additional projects that meet the community’s interests and priorities, such as gender-empowerment clubs.
Volunteers live in remote, rural communities with access to public transportation within 3 miles.
Learn more about the living conditions, including detailed information on culture, communications, housing, and health/crime statistics on our The Gambia country page. You can also delve into stories about local communities by reading our blog or Volunteer stories.
Meet a Volunteer in The Gambia
Trinity C.
Teacher Trainer
"Asking for help is not a weakness; reaching out to others, connecting—these things build relationships that can help you become a better version of yourself."
See full Volunteer profile
As a Community Health Facilitator, you will be trained to support The Gambia’s goals of ending preventable child and maternal deaths and supporting youths’ healthy transition to adulthood. Peace Corps/The Gambia will teach you Pularr, Mandinka, Wollof, Jola, and Serrahulleh to help you comfortably live in and connect with the community.
After 11 weeks of training, you will move to a rural community where you will collaborate with caregivers, families, healthcare workers, and teachers. You will work together to assess the local needs and develop solutions based on behavioral change principles.
Heterosexual and same-sex couples are accepted for this program. Each person must apply separately and must qualify for a position in either the same or a different sector than their partner. Couples will live together during training but may separate occasionally for field-based activities. Couples who are selected for the same sector will live together but work with different local partners which may be in the same community or in neighboring communities (not more than 30 minutes apart). Cohabitating couples are highly encouraged to present themselves as married throughout service due to cultural expectations.
To learn more about serving as a couple in The Gambia, visit the country page.
Application process
From application to departure takes around nine months. Learn about the application process for Volunteer opportunities.
Medical/legal clearance
You will need to be cleared medically and legally in order to serve in The Gambia. Review information on medical clearance and legal clearance to learn about the process.
