The manager
of Chamen Agricultural Training and Seed Multiplication Centre, Kebba Lang
Camara, has appealed for electricity connection from NAWEC, as the centre
embarks on a lot of agricultural training programmes.
According
to Mr Camara, currently electricity from the centre’s generator is not
reliable, and sustainable as the fuel cost is expensive and affordability
remains a concern.
Considering the significance attached to this
centre by the Gambia leader, there is need for urgent government intervention
to ensure that electricity supplied from NAWEC is available at the centre for
better service delivery.
Mr Camara
who spoke to this reporter in an interview, said there is a lot of improvement
in the centre, but the lack of electricity from NAWEC is hampering some
training programmes as people are now in using the latest technologies, which
requires a reliable electricity supply.
He said the
centre was created to focus on training, and is presently embarking on many
projects such as small ruminant development, poultry development, horticulture,
crop production, and tree-planting among others.
He further
stated that the mission of the centre is to increase food self-sufficiency or
food security, improve farmers’ livelihood and contribute to the overall
national economic goals.
Chamen
centre covers 256 hectares, and has cultivated 12 hectares of maize, 2 hectares
of groundnuts, one hectare of early millet, two hectares of cowpea and 1.25
hectare of sesame. The total hectares cultivated at the centre is around 18-19
hectares.
“We did all
this in order to promote or to have good quality seed and we want others to
emulate because each of the crops grown is a school of its own and we want
farmers to come and learn the new technology,” Camara said.
They are
collaborating with FAO, and the centre is supported by WAAPP and FAO and these
are two partners assisting them with quality seeds and fertilizer for the
farming operations.
Mr. Camara
also talked about the importance of application of fertilizer by farmers, but
said it is expensive, with Urea costing D1,200 and compound fertilizer costs
D1,100 per bag.
There is a
need to enlighten farmers on the various types of fertilizer, and that
neglecting to use fertilizer by farmers would drastically reduce the yield.
About the
centre, Camara said it is a training centre with a family-type dormitory, with
12 up to 15 to a room.
Regarding
the constraints, Mr Camara said the centre has only 15 employees, which is not
enough.
They is also a need for a tractor for
mechanisation of operations, which would increase production and productivity,
he said.
Camara
called for proper attention to be given to the centre in improving service
delivery systems in the agricultural sector.