‘DEPENDENCE ON FOOD IMPORT DOES NOT GUARANTEE FOOD SELF-SUFFICIENCY’

Even though African governments and The Gambia in particular might have the resources to import food for its famine-hit populations, the foreign markets where the produce come from have become unreliable due to growing demands at home and the global food status that continues to remain dim, writes Amat JENG, who at the weekend interviewed Gambia’s agriculture director of Planning Service Unit. In a recent tete-a-tete with the Director of Planning Service Unit at the Ministry of Agriculture, MarketPlace got to know more about the current food crisis than meets the eye. Abba Sankareh says if the country is yearning for sustainable food self-sufficiency, farmers and stakeholders have to resort to extensive farming, by employing the modern modus operandi of “Mechanisation of agriculture”. “If you look at the world [from the agricultural circle], now those who are providing food for us are themselves having problems as far as provision of food is concerned,” he adds. The fact that countries that export food to The Gambia are grappling with food deficit amid soaring world food prices, their markets have become unreliable. “If you should depend on someone who has problems producing enough for his people is high time you started looking out for other avenues,” he notes, adding that dependent countries may as well be at risk. The burning issue of global food crisis has received more attention after erratic rainfalls and poor climate added up to the crisis, leaving millions of Africans to go to bed without adequate food.

Pic: Abba Sankareh The Gambia currently needs nothing less than 160,000 to 200,000 metric tonnes of rice to feed its people, half of whom continues to wallow in poverty and despair. Whilst the country was able to produce only a quarter of that, Director Sankareh says deficit in that area has to be realised through import. “But this is not sustainable,” he said, suggesting: “It is high time we started making avenues for food self-sufficiency.” To become food-secure is flexible and simple, he noted, saying it can be achieved through mechanised agriculture; consistent and large-scale farming; and ensure “we grow what we eat and eat what we grow”. Mechanisation of agriculture is one of the best strategies to becoming self-sufficient, he affirm, saying that with this state-of-the-art farming method, a farmer can be able to cultivate a huge farmland with the help of machines and technology. “If you are talking of food security, you cannot depend on smallholder farmers who cultivate 1 to 5 hectares of land,” he says, adding that “mechanisation has to come in play”. Mr Sankareh also adds that high dependent on rainfall does not secure food security; rather the solution is embarking on all-year-round cultivation. “Rain-fed faming is detrimental to the farming populace [and the nation] that entirely depend on agriculture as a source of living.” The upcoming 2011-2012 Census Every ten years the Government of The Gambia through the Ministry of Agriculture, with support from development partners, conducts what agriculturalists define as ‘Census’. This is a forum where consumers of data and statistics will converge to exchange ideas that will help influence policies towards agricultural development. “The agricultural Census basically looks at the restructuring of agriculture in the country, ranging from farm-size, to land-use, land-tenure, livestock, the use of farm machineries, irrigation, soil degradation, agricultural technology and of course market information.”

Since the Census requires thorough planning, the agriculture ministry last year started its planning in earnest with consultations, meetings and findings. The first Census was held in 2000-2001. This year’s Census has among other things the objectives to develop and implement a national programme for an agricultural census and an annual crop and livestock surveys as well as compile relevant indicators, collect annual agricultural statistics, establish an agricultural data bank; and improve skills and knowledge of field staff in agric data collection and compilation techniques.