Civil Society Groups Blast Gov’t Over Groundnut Price, Monopoly

By Haddy Touray

Three Gambian civil society groups have slammed the government’s 2025/2026 groundnut season policies, saying they threaten farmers’ livelihoods and national food security.

The Edward Francis Small Centre for Rights and Justice (EFSCRJ), Gambians Against Looted Assets (GALA), and Team Gom Sa Bopa (TGSB) voiced outrage over the farm-gate price being frozen at D38,000 per ton for the third year in a row. They also criticised the government’s decision to give the National Food Security Processing and Marketing Corporation (NFSPMC) exclusive purchase and export rights for the first three months.

“The stagnant price is only 43% of the international market value and far below what private and international buyers offer,” the groups said. Using World Bank benchmarks, they estimate a fair price should be D39,000–D44,000 per ton.

The organisations accused the government of breaking its 2023 promise to review the producer price, warning that it erodes farmers’ trust. They also labelled NFSPMC’s monopoly illegal and anti-competitive, saying it violates ECOWAS protocols and repeats exploitative practices fought against by Gambian farming pioneers.

The groups warned that the policies could deter new farmers, increase imports, and hurt the trade balance. They called on the government to negotiate fair prices with farmer associations, end NFSPMC’s monopoly and reopen the market, and uphold free trade and farmer autonomy

The post Civil Society Groups Blast Gov’t Over Groundnut Price, Monopoly appeared first on .

 By Haddy Touray Three Gambian civil society groups have slammed the government’s 2025/2026 groundnut season policies, saying they threaten farmers’…
The post Civil Society Groups Blast Gov’t Over Groundnut Price, Monopoly appeared first on .