The Minister of Agriculture, Omar A. Jallow alias OJ has said that his Ministry has rehabilitated nine (9) Mixed Farming Centres fully equipped with working facilities including electricity and water supply in the country.
The Agriculture Minister made these statements on Wednesday at the second ordinary session of the National Assembly in the 2017 legislative year in Banjul.
“Honourable Speaker, the Ministry has rehabilitated 9 mixed farming centres within this year. We are expecting to rehabilitate 2 more. It is our intention to rehabilitate all mixed farming centres throughout the country,” OJ said.
Minister Jallow said the mixed farming centres are the referral hospitals of Agriculture, if they died Agriculture will die in the country. He revealed that plans are underway to reinstate 45 Agricultural employees that were either sacked or dismissed by the former government. He said this will help to facilitate the growth of Agriculture in the country.
“The Ministry has already distributed farming inputs including fertilizers for sale. The price of fertilizer was reduced to D700 Dalasi but I preferred it to be reduced more,” he said.
Responding to questions, Minister Jallow told deputies about the need to go back to the Cooperatives system, saying the Ministry has already formed a committee to look into revitalizing the cooperatives which he said a feedback would be given to the government. He said it will be difficult for the Ministry to deal with individual farmers but instead the farmers need to organize themselves in the form of cooperative system. He said the groundnut seeds were given to farmers in loans but promised that prices would reduce within 2 years, as the government is subsidizing.
Besides, Minister Jallow said he has visited the Jahally/Pacharr rice fields and had discussions with farmers.
“I told them to go back to their lands and informed us how the former President got those lands. As a responsible government, we have to take legal means to get those lands back to their rightful owners,” he pointed out.
Meanwhile, he told deputies that the Ministry is taking all steps to provide seeds to the farmers which he said were distributed all over the country.
