In a recent exclusive with this reporter, the women who remain optimistic about the future of their agricultural undertakings hinted that with the requisite training and support they can significantly increase and boost crop production level in their communities.
Fatou Darboe, president of women vegetable growers in the village said despite the availability of a borehole in the garden, women still face acute water shortage when it comes to watering their nursery beds.
“Most women lack basic garden training and that being the case, we urge the government of The Gambia through the Ministry of Agriculture to come to our aid.”
She also lamented that lack of a proper market in the village to showcase their products is another obstacle hindering their productions.
"Jarra Soma market is the main the market in LRR where all surrounding villages take their garden produce to sell”, he added.
She complained about some of the challenges they faced at the region’s main market in Soma when it comes to the collection of duties from vendors, saying duty collectors always give them a tough time whenever they are at the market to sell their garden products by asking them to move from one place.
Duty collectors, she added, would normally tell them that the reason for that is because duties they pay is not yearly and places they use to sell their products belong to Guinean Fulas.
Village alkalo Kebba Njie thanked the women gardeners in the village for their commitment, hard work and dedication towards self-reliance.
He expressed optimism that with the level of commitment among the women coupled with the much-needed support from government, they can significantly contribute to ending hunger in the country.
