Forestry launches 30M Gmelina seedlings campaign to recover lost vegetation

Forestry officials disclosed that every region will raise 5 million gmelina seedlings, making it a total of 30 million. Gmelina seedlings will be sown at the forestry nursery beds initially.

The campaign started from Kafuta Forest Station where the delegation embarked on the exercise of direct sowing of gmelina seeds in nursery beds located in two separate nursery houses.

This landmark initiative is the first of its kind in the annals of the Department of Forestry, thanks to the current leadership.

Sisawo Sabally, regional forestry officer of West Coast Region (WCR) hailed his director, describing him as someone who deserves commendation and emulation.

“As Department of Forestry, entrusted by the government with the responsibility for the preservation and protection of our forest cover, restoration of our lost forest cover should be our priority for the benefits of our future children,” he pointed out.

Based on this, the director deems it wise to come up with these initiatives with the view to encourage patriotic Gambians to participate more in tree planting.

The director of Forestry, Lt. Colonel Salifu Corr, said the purpose was to see how to restore the lost forest cover across the country through increasing the sowing of seedlings at the nursery beds. He stated that although the department is starting the exercise on a low scale, it will be widening at the regional level.

The director challenged both the staff of Forestry and the general public to take ownership of these laudable initiatives which he believed will have economic impacts on people’s livelihood.

He urged all Gambians to fully participate in the restoration of the forestry cover, raising gmelina seedlings which are the fastest growing timber trees. He added that growing this will help people from going to the neighboring countries searching for timber.

He also outlined the blueprint of the Department of Forestry, saying among them is to restore all the lost forest covers that are highly hit, thus urging all hands-on deck.