By Mustapha Jallow
The Executive of the Gambia Farmers Union recently paid a courtesy call on the Management of the National Food Security Processing Marketing Corporation (NFSPMC), formerly called GGC, to express gratitude to the government for providing them the necessary support during the 2023-2024 groundnut season.
In 2023, a bag of fertilizer was sold for one thousand one hundred and fifty Dalasi (D1,150) representing a significant reduction compared to the 2022 price of D2000.
The bumper harvest of groundnut this year is associated with the affordable price and availability of quality fertiliser. The government initially earmarked D500 million but ended up spending D1.4 billion to purchase groundnuts at D38,000 per tonne, which the NFSPMC says surpasses the global price by D18,000.
The union commended the government for providing quality and affordable fertiliser for them and for increasing the price of groundnut every year. Notwithstanding, the union also expressed concern over the timely availability of fertiliser and GGC officials promised to make it available on time.
Union President, Alieu Bah, said the country’s farmers are very proud of the corporation’s continued support for them over the past years.
“As farmers, we are aware of the huge sum of money (D1.4 billion) spent on purchasing nuts alone this season, which is historic. Therefore, we want to thank the government for spending that much on us,” he said.
He reminded the gathering that the president had actually fulfilled his promise of empowering Gambian farmers.
Mr Bah said his team visited the President sometime last year to discuss the plight of farmers, and during the meeting, the President promised to reduce the price of fertiliser, which was fulfilled.
Mr Modou Njie, the union’s Secretary General, highlighted the importance of teamwork.
“We should all continue the collaboration and hard work to build a country fit for purpose. I also want to highlight the key role played by the president in making sure that the price of fertiliser was affordable and accessible, which played a vital role in the bumper harvest this season,” he said.
Mr Lamin Sanyang, the Deputy Managing Director of the Corporation, said NFSPMC can never progress without the farmers.
“We want to assure you that we will continue to give you the best of services. So, I would like to encourage you to keep the collaboration going because we can only build a strong unit through collaboration. As a management team, we are dedicated to supporting the agenda of the President in making life better for all the farmers,” he said.
The Managing Director of the NFSPMC, Muhammad Njie, thanked Gambian farmers for their continuous support and patriotism.
“I can assure you 100% that the President is fully committed to making the farmers happy. I also want to remind you that last year alone, the President gave the farming community the smart-farming Initiative, which is historic. In the same year, he broke his own record by paying the farmers the best ever price in the history of our nation,” he added.
He assured farmers that the corporation is dedicated to meeting their demands and will continue to do its best to make sure that the vision of the president is realised.
