Coordinator
of the Central Projects Coordination Unit (CPCU) under the ministry of
agriculture has disclosed that Islamic Development Bank (IDB), through the
small ruminant production and enhancement project will allocate and deposit
three million dollars to the microfinance department of the central bank of The
Gambia as loan to Gambia livestock farmers.
Abdoulie
Touray said the loan, with a minimal Shari’ah interest will enable the
livestock owners in the rearing of their small ruminants.
He
said plans are under way to hire a Shari’ah expert as consultant to identify
how the loan will be given to the livestock farmers with minimal interest. He
said once that is done, everything will start, saying the small ruminant which
project will be house at Yorro Beli Kunda in the Central River Region, where
the majority of the farmers are based.
Mr
Touray said the project will embark on various activities such as construction
of laboratory, training centre, construction of meat stalls and storages
countrywide, establishment of pharmacies and capacity building for livestock
farmers.
According
to him, the project is expected to last for four years and will cover
thirty-nine districts. He said the objectives of the project is to improve the
rearing of small ruminants and discourage the importation of small ruminants
from neighbouring countries like Senegal and Mali.
He
added that the aim to boost Gambia’s agriculture production and productivity is
to change the livelihood of farmers, saying CPCU has no doubt that with the
composition of the project management and with support from the farmers, the
project will be the leading success in the country.
He
said the project will be providing capacity building training for farmers to
empower them with the requisite knowledge in the management of their businesses
through the value added chain.
