This paper aims to evaluate critically the rival representations of the
role of the informal economy which is variously portrayed as a leftover from an
earlier mode of production, a direct by-product of late capitalism, an alternative
to the formal economy or a complement to formal work. Reporting evidence
from a survey of 500 participants in Gambia, the finding is that although each
and every representation of its role is valid in relation to particular populations
and/or specific types of informal work, no one representation fully captures the
diverse and multiple roles played by the informal economy in contemporary
Sub-Saharan Africa. The consequent argument is that only by using all of them
can a finer-grained and more comprehensive understanding of the multifarious
roles of the informal economy be achieved. The outcome is a more
multilayered and nuanced understanding of the role played by the informal
economy in contemporary Sub-Saharan Africa.