By: Dawda Baldeh
Gambian business tycoon Hamidou Jah, the owner of Jah Oil Company Limited, has stated that investing in agriculture is the only solution to ongoing food shortages and unemployment in the country.
He unveiled plans for investing massively in modernizing agriculture across the country.
“The world is facing global challenges due to climate change, and the only way we can address food shortages is through going back to the farm,” he told journalists at his office in Brikama.
He said the population is growing rapidly while farming is declining.
Jah stressed that many places where rice cultivation used to take place are now occupied by people.
“India is the largest rice producer, but today, if you want to have enough rice, the government must intervene.
The rice cultivated in India is for business purposes, not for domestic consumption.
Each year, they cultivate eight million tons of rice, and all that rice is exported to different countries,” he narrated.
He told journalists that his vision is to have a farm in every part of the country to cultivate rice and other crops.
According to him, investing in farming will help the country feed itself and export to generate income.
“Even the unemployment we are all talking about can only be addressed through modern farming where young people will be employed.
The government cannot employ everyone, and if we take agriculture seriously, every Gambian will be employed, and we will not need to seek employees from outside,” he added.
The seasoned business tycoon revealed that he had previously toured many countries trying to explore means to import more basic food commodities to help fellow citizens acquire them at a more sustainable price, but the world is facing a similar problem.
He stressed that the lands in India are similar to those in The Gambia, and if we invest in farming, we can achieve what India is doing.
“If people work hard, I’m not saying rice won’t be imported into the country, but it will be reduced drastically, and the price will also reduce,” he reiterated.
He noted that rice is the main consumable food in The Gambia.
