By Kemo Kanyi
During the annual Meet-the-People-Tour in Lower Niumi, President Adama Barrow has responded to key concerns raised by farmers ahead of the groundnut trade season, assuring them his government’s unwavering commitment to solving their issues.
Farmers raised concerns about the difficulties they face in receiving payments through money wallets due to its limited access, raising preference of cash payments on spot after weighing their grounds in various seccos. In response to this concern, the president explains that such steps were necessary as his government is trying to address the problem of mismanagement of funds when cash is handed to secco managers.
“Millions have been wasted. So, such a move by my government was a necessity. We took that step to curb the misappropriation of funds during groundnut trade season. Your concerns are noted. We will expand the payment system and make it easily accessible to every farmer in the country,” the president affirms.
Omar Joof, who spoke on behalf of the youth of Niumi, pleaded with the government to increase the groundnut price this season, the problem of weighing at seccos, road networks, healthcare issues among others.
In a rally at Maka Balla Manneh in Lower Niumi on Monday, Omar Drammeh, a farmer from Fass Omar Saho village, enjoined the government to either increase the number of seccos across the country, or maintain its number.
Earlier, the Gambia National Food Security, Processing, and Marketing Corporation (NFSPMC), formerly of GGC, announced that only 50 seccos will be allowed to operate during the upcoming groundnut trade season. The farmers find this announcement troubling to reconcile.
“The announcement made by GGC that only 50 seccos will be servicing in the groundnut trade season. This will be very difficult for farmers. We are pleading with the government to allow all the seccos to continue purchasing our products,” Drammeh stated.
Reacting to Drammeh’s claim, Hon. Demba Sabally, Minister for Agriculture, says farmers’ welfare is prioritised by the government, that’s why it has increased the budget from D1.5 bn to D1.7 bn to address farmers’ concerns.
The Minister confirms that as far as the government is concerned, all 107 seccos will all be operational. He urged farmers to liaise with GGC to get their arrears settled as soon as possible.
On the issues of vegetable gardeners, the Minister outlined that cold stores are under construction at Maka Farafenni and Ndungu Kebbeh that seek to prevent perishable produce from spoilage.
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By Kemo Kanyi During the annual Meet-the-People-Tour in Lower Niumi, President Adama Barrow has responded to key concerns raised by…
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