The
National coordinator for Network of Farmer Organization in The Gambia
(NACOFAG), Alieu Sowe, has disclosed various strategic plans that NACOFAG would
be implementing in 2018.
He
said that 2017 was a successful year for farmers’ organization in The Gambia as
they were able to make tremendous achievements during the year ended with the
support of development partners such as ROPPA, Forest and Farm Facility under
the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
In
briefing the media, Mr. Sowe said NACOFAG was established to facilitate the
coordination, mobilisation of resources, training and building capacity as well
as mobilizing the community base as farmer apex organization into a single body
for national and international purposes.
He
said the development of the association during the past has mainly centered on
mobilising and organising farmers into viable and productivity farmer based
organization.
He
disclosed that currently NACFOG constitutes of 16 farmer forest based
organizations at apex level in The Gambia, ranging from agriculture, livestock,
horticulture, fisheries, forestry and environment.
According
to him, in 2017 NACOFAG was able to constitute more than three hundred family
farmers as a result of a project that they received from ROPPA through IFAD.
He
cited that now farmers are into family farm and grouping that would help the
network to have entry point through its apex members to the grassroot farmers.
He
noted that the idea of family farm has been with them in the past but
mobilisation was a big gap and was a regional concern in West Africa as seven
countries are involved in this project trying to promote the ideal of family
farm as way forward in increasing household food security, nutrition and income
generation.
He
said the third achievement was a project that they received from FAO, which was
the FFF that has supported farmers in improving their livelihoods, adding that
it also helped NACOFAG to train its
members.