A 3.5 million dalasi loan had been officially disbursed to nine farmers engaged in small ruminant production, at a ceremony officiated by the Gambia’s Minister of Agriculture Mrs. Amie Fabureh,held at the Department of Livestock Services hall in Abuko.
The disbursement of the microfinance loan Scheme is being carried out by the Gambia Teachers Union Cooperative Credit Union (GTUCCU) and Supersonicz-The Micro-Finance Limited on behalf of the Small Ruminants Production Enhancement Project (SRPEP) under the Ministry of Agriculture.
The Abuko ceremony saw Supersonicz disbursing D1.4M to five (5) farmers and GTUCCU giving out D2.1M to four (4) small ruminant farmers.
The country’s first female Agriculture minister in her remarks, hailed the move, stressing that’s all what they need as a country to support their farmers, so that they could be empowered and benefit from agriculture.
Madam Fabureh noted that’s the first disbursement of the microfinance loan Scheme, under her ministry, by GTUCCU and Supersonicz The Micro-Finance.
She recalled the Small Ruminant Production Enhancement Project was launched in October 2019, financed in two-step and consisting four major components, namely Improvement of small ruminant production, processing and marketing; access to Islamic Financing and support to capacity building; master plan development for livestock value chains; and project management and development. The objective of the project, she reminded, is to contribute to the improvement of the livelihood of pastoral communities in The Gambia by Strengthening the productivity and resilience of rural communities and stimulating business entrepreneurship in the livestock sector.
Stating small ruminant is very important, Fabureh challenged that as a country, we need to do things by ourselves rather than depending on other countries. The Minister pointed out the fact that millions are spent during Tobaski (Muslim feast) to purchase rams outside the country, adding they, as a ministry, said no to that, thus this small ruminant project is here to address such issue.
Director of SRPEP, Mr. Mamud Njie, said supporting small ruminant (production) is one of the major components of the project, because small ruminant is something that the farmers had been crying for. He said based on procurement, the GTUCCU and Supersonicz-The Micro-Finance were selected to lead the micro-finance for the small ruminant farmers, and he expressed hope that with the knowledge and experience the two institutions have, they could help the ministry live up to expectations.
Director Njie indicated that was the first disbursement since the agreement had been reached, but more are in the pipeline, for the farmers.
GTUCCU’s Deputy General Manager Mr. Dawda Kujabi, speaking at the event, thanked Ministry of Agriculture for the trust they bestowed on them, disclosing when they were contacted to take the responsibility, they (GTUCCU) immediately put their house together to take up the challenge to ensure that “what is needed is done to ensure the Gambia we want”.
Acknowledging the partnership had been a long journey, Kujabi returned gratitude to God that they they were there to do the first disbursement. He stated GTUCCU has 8 branches in the country, and therefore the funds could be accessible to anyone; that accessibility is one of the major interventions of credit unions. He used the moment to urged farmers to come out and apply for the loan in order to help the country get access to affordable rams during Tobaski. The GTUCCU official also reassured that his institution would live up to expectations, to ensure the success of that project.
Mr. Momodou Lamin Jobe, Head of Operations at Supersonicz-The Micro-Finance in his statement reassured that Supersonicz would make sure that the project is successful for Gambians. He explained the selection of beneficiaries was done based on application and Supersonicz disburses D1.4M for the first time, and more disbursements are coming.
Jobe vowed they would ensure that the right beneficiaries are given the opportunity, and that all regions would be considered-both males and females, and youths- as well as reducing the back-way journey.
Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, Mr. Ebrima Jallow of DJallows Farm commended the Ministry of Agriculture for considering the farmers, noting this loan would go a long way in helping them as the small ruminant farmers to address some of their challenges.
