The award ceremony that brought all the beneficiaries together was held at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Conference Centre. The GIRAV is a World Bank funded project at a cost of US$40 million.
Speaking at the awarding ceremony, Dr. Demba Sabally, the minister of Agriculture, described the occasion as a milestone registered by the Gambia Inclusive and Resilient Agricultural Value Chain project (GIRAV).
“This unprecedented award ceremony is a clear demonstration of The Gambia government’s dedication and commitment as enshrined in the NDP and other policy and strategic documents such as GNAIP – FNS 2019-2026, and GATP 2020-2030,” he said.
According to Agric minister, the GIRAV project development objective seeks to promote the inclusive, resilient and competitive agricultural value chains focusing on smallholder farmers and agribusinesses in the project target areas such as; rice, maize, horticulture, cashew and poultry in all the agricultural regions.
He also said that the project is multifaceted and logical in its approach to prevent a fragmented response and ensures an optimal use of the available funds provided by the Barrow government and the World Bank.
“The focus of this gathering here today is under component 3 of the GIRAV project – the matching grant package which is designed to provide funding to identify agricultural value chain operators under Window Two.”
He added that Window One has two types of beneficiaries: Individuals and Groups with grant amounts of two US$10,000 and USD$20,000 respectively with GIRAV project covering 80% and the beneficiary contributing 20% of the needed funds.
“Window Two targets up 10 beneficiaries with funding of up to US$500, 0000 where the project will cover 60% and the beneficiaries contribute 40% of total project cost.”
The minister explains that matching grant scheme intervention where the bulk of the financial is covered by the project as a grant, will not only boost private sector production but enables them incorporate agricultural machinery in the entire agriculture value chain. He added that this will boost productivity and also enable horizontal or vertical diversification.
Minister applauded the World Bank for their tireless support to the sector, CPCU and GIRAV project staff for their commitment to the attainment of the project outcomes and development objectives.
“I wish to congratulate the beneficiaries of the grant and encourage them to use the funds strictly for the specific objectives of the project.”
He also noted that the GIRAV Project is not only supporting SMEs or private sector but also supporting a host of implementing partners such as the Department of Agriculture.
“In this regard, an assortment of safeguard such as Personal Protective Equipment materials are being procured to deliver to Department of Agriculture for onward distribution to their frontline extension workers,” he disclosed.
For his part, the permanent secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, Modou Secka, said the project has multiple interventions that seeks to boost production and productivity in the agricultural sector by addressing supply side constraints with regard to infrastructural while also responding to financing needs and gaps for operators in the agricultural sector.
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