President Adama Barrow on Thursday inspected a 60-metric-ton cold storage facility at Ndungu Kebbeh, Lower Niumi, designed to serve over 15,000 women vegetable farmers.
The facility is one of six being built nationwide under the Resilience of Organisations for Transformative Smallholder Agriculture Programme (ROOTS) to cut post-harvest losses.
It costs about US$261,482, financed via cost-sharing: ROOTS/IFAD 80%, CRI/IFAD 10%, and Solicita Marketing Federation 10%, to strengthen ownership.
Once completed, it will serve the Solicita Marketing Federation – 67 groups, more than 15,000 members.
Agriculture Minister Hon. Demba Sabally said six stores are underway in Pirang, Brikama, Gunjur, Ndungu Kebbeh and Brikama among others.
“This is supposed to settle the post-harvest loss of all the vegetables in this catchment area,” he said.
Project Director Famara Trawally said ROOTS focuses on highly perishable crops like onion and tomato, with stores located near LUMOs.
“When they sell their produce and they get some excess, they can store it here. The sale price would be increased and they will be able to resell it at the next LUMO,” Trawally said.
Solicita President Fatoumatta Jagne said the visit was delightful and critical.
“Because we have suffered a lot during post-harvest of our perishable goods like tomatoes and onions. So the government and the ROOTS Project building this cold storage for us is very good,” she said.
Jagne said lack of markets and late buyers forces spoilage.
“When our crops are ripe and it is time to harvest, we are always worried about how to handle them. Some of our goods ended up being spoiled which always makes us sad.”
She disclosed women contributed D1.35 million.
“We have contributed D1.35 million to build this cold storage. That shows that we are hard-working women who are willing to help ourselves,” she said.
Jagne said gardening is the only income for many members and the facility will encourage more women to return, especially as climate change causes crops to ripen simultaneously.
