Speaking at the event, President Barrow described the projects as a turning point in The Gambia’s quest for agricultural transformation, highlighting their direct support to over 80,000 households, with a focus on women and youth.
He explained that the projects aim to modernise rice production, enhance climate-smart agriculture, and improve access to finance for smallholder farmers across the country. The President further reaffirmed his government’s full commitment to ensuring successful implementation, stressing that no part of the projects should remain on paper and calling for robust oversight, accountability, and national ownership.
Deputy director of Africa Rice, Mr. Bindraban Premchand, underscored the importance of agriculture as the foundation for national development, stressing that no country can achieve industrial or service-sector growth without first transforming its agricultural base.
He praised The Gambia’s strong prioritisation of agriculture and emphasised the need for local institutions such as research centers, universities, and civil societies to build the capacity needed to effectively absorb and utilise investments.
He reaffirmed Africa Rice’s commitment to support rice sector development through knowledge sharing, pilot projects, and technical assistance, while noting that sustainable progress must be driven by Gambians themselves.
Representative of the African Development Bank, Mr. Hatem Fellah, highlighted the importance and monetary value of the REWARD-Gambia, P2-P2RS, and GAMIRSAL projects, which is estimated to be over $68.4 million. “This marks a major step in The Gambia’s drive toward agricultural transformation in food security, and climate resilience,” he affirmed.
Fellah reiterated that the project, backed by the African Development Bank and other partners, aims to empower over 200,000 direct and indirect beneficiaries, especially women and youth, by improving rice production, building irrigation and resilience infrastructure, and expanding access to finance for farmers and agribusinesses.
He stated the importance of agriculture being the backbone of every economy, emphasising the importance of strong government leadership, institutional capacity, and inclusive implementation to ensure sustainable growth and national ownership of the transformation agenda.
