Meeting demand for meat

Despite the high level of poverty among Gambians many people in the country love eating meat, especially during the holy month of Ramadan and also on festive occasions.

However, the high cost of meat would, no doubt, stop many from eating meat these days. That is why we welcome the move taken by the ministries of Trade and Agriculture to ensure that meat is available in the Gambia.

According to the Mauritanian daily 'Le quotidien De Nouakchott' Gambian and Mauritanian authorities have reached an agreement to address the meat needs of the country.

This is absolutely timely, especially now that we approach the feast of Lailatul Kadr and Koriteh when the demand for meat is always high.

With this new memorandum of understanding in place, we hope that the scarcity of meat will soon be a thing of the past in this country.

Our worry here is whether the authorities can sustain the initiative, and also how could other local dealers survive in the market.

However, the effectively and successful implementation of this agreement lies entirely in the hands of the national company of import -export in Mauritania (SONIMEX) and their Gambian counter-part the new Gambia Livestock Marketing Agency.

We hope and pray that this new development will mark a starting point and put an end to the meat scarcity that the country faced over the past few months.

We must emphasized that the quality of the meat coming from the sister republic should not at any time be compromised for the health of the consumers.

It is also a necessity for authorities to start using the weighing scales to determine the prize of cattle in the country. Doing so is in the best interest of both the sellers and buyers.

For the past months, meat scarcity has been seriously affecting people, and things got worst especially at the beginning of this holy month of Ramadan when people are badly in need of it.

Despite the prices fixed by the authorities, some butchers are still reluctant to sell meat, claiming that the price of cattle acquired from dealers is expensive, and when they sell meat at the regulated price they operate at a loss.

The Gambia Livestock Marketing Agency should put in place mechanisms to make sure that meat is not only available, but also ensure that its stipulated price is adhered to by all butchers. This will help consumers to access meat, especially during this period.

"A man loves the meat in his youth that he cannot endure in his age"

William Shakespear