By Dawda Baldeh
President Adama Barrow has announced that his government will keep last year’s groundnut price at D38,000 per ton.
This decision was made a day after he started his 2024 Meet the People’s Tour, during which farmers had hoped for a price increase, as had occurred in the previous year.
“We are buying the groundnuts at D38,000 per ton,” Barrow said, adding that this move is to help farmers despite the poor harvest reported so far from North Bank to CRR North.
“Every groundnut ton we purchase from you (farmers) for D38,000, we will resell it for D20,000.
“This means my government is giving you D18,000 per ton because I want to empower farmers,” he explained.
Regarding concerns of delayed payments of monies to farmers this year as widely reported in last year’s groundnut marketing season, Barrow stated that there won’t be any delays of payments this year.
“This year, there is nothing like crediting your groundnuts to us. If you come to the secco, once your groundnuts are weighed, you get your money instantly,” he said.
According to him, this move is intended to avoid any frustration for farmers as this year’s harvest is not good enough.
He reiterated his government’s commitment to conducting a thorough assessment of farmers across the country to give them the necessary support they need.
“We will do an assessment of the situation and come up with solutions… we are committed to empowering farmers,” he added.
Barrow further told citizens in the North Bank and CRR that his government was doing all it could to modernize agriculture in the country.
“We are bringing modern tractors to help farmers across the country.
“We will sell the tractors, and they can buy in instalments.
If the tractor [costs] D100, the government will pay 25%, you pay 25% and the remaining 50% you will pay that in four years. If one [person] cannot afford [to pay for a tractor], they can join hands,” he explained.
The Gambian president also emphasized the important role agriculture plays in the country’s food security drive, saying his government is partnering with private investors to venture into rice production to help the country attain food security,
“We know we cannot continue depending on imported rice because the importers or producers will determine the price but if we grow our rice we can sell it at our own prices,” he added.
He revealed that this may take a little longer but noted that in four years the country will witness significant changes.
“Among our partners in rice production is Hamidou Jah, Muhammed Jah, Ahmadia Jamaat Muslims, and others who are now into rice production,” he said.
