Africa : Council of Ministers of Africa Rice Ordinary Session Opens
The Daily Observer (Banjul)
Omar Wally
23 September 2011
The 28th Ordinary Session of the Council of Ministers of African Rice is currently underway at the Jama Hall of the Kairaba Beach Hotel in Kololi.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Ousman Jammeh, secretary general and head of Civil Service on behalf of President Jammeh, explained that for Gambians especially those living in the urban areas, rice is a lifeline, the nation’s dietary staple and a symbol the country’s cultural identity. According to him, the historical record suggests that cultivation of rice was established along the West African coast prior to the arrival of the Portuguese.
“The principal objective of my back-to-land-call is to ensure that Gambians are food self-sufficient. Without doubt, NERICA rice can play a very significant role in fulfilling this objective,” he explained.
He added: “My conviction is that development of Africa must be premised on a strong agricultural sector characterised by not only food self-sufficiency but food surplus and food exports. And a strong agricultural sector cannot happen without being accompanied by strong research. That is why The Gambia, as a founding member of AARDA, now Africa Rice, has given its full support to the centre and to the entire Gambian research establishment.”
Jammeh stated that the government of The Gambia has been indefatigable in its support to the country’s farmers, especially women farmers, who are the pillars of Agriculture. “We have been supporting them with inputs such as seeds, fertilizer and equipment to intensify their production .We have also provided tractors, power tillers and mechanical threshers to reduce drudgery and also invested heavily on our Agricultural extensions services,” he disclosed.
He said that the results of the national development strategy are now visible to the whole world. According to him, FAO estimates that rice production in The Gambia increased by 236 percent in 2008 compared to 2007, the highest among the rice-producing countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
“The benefit The Gambia has derived from Africa Rice is not only measured in terms of improved technologies that we have adopted, but also in terms of the joint research and development projects, as well as technical workshops and training programmes in which our national scientists, technicians and farmers have participated,” he added.
The SG informed the gathering that The Gambia has been one of the seven pilot countries of the 35 million dollar African development Bank-funded NERICA dissemination projects. He said that based on the success of the first phase, the second phase is being launched by AFDB with more than double the initial number of countries.
He stated that since 2007, the number of member countries has risen from 17 to24
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Category: Africa News
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