The Bankers Association in The Gambia recently presented a cheque for D150, 000 as its contribution towards mitigating the effects of the 2011 crop failure in the country. The cheque was received by the vice president and minister of Women’s Affairs, Her Excellency Aja Dr Isatou Njie-Saidy at the NaNA Conference Hall, Mile 7, Bakau.

Two other people from the same Association; Sirajo Salisu, the managing director of the Arab Gambian Islamic Bank; and Mamour Malick Jagne, the chairman of the Association also made some personal donations for the same cause. Salisu presented a cheque for D40, 000, while Jagne pledged the sum of D2, 000.

Receiving the cheques on behalf of the government, VP Njie-Saidy applauded the Bankers Association for the gesture, noting that it came as a response to a clarion call by the president of the Republic. “People always respond to the president’s call including the non-Gambians and I want to thank you for the response because we really value these donations,” she said.

The vice president also dwelled on the importance of agriculture. Her words: “I think the encouragement is for the private sector to come and work along with the public sector so that we can expand agriculture.” She commended the Association for taking the bold step of banking in the remote areas of the country, adding that government wants to see more of that.

VP Njie-Saidy also said that as a government, they would do all they can at the international level by working with international actors such as the World Bank and IMF among others, for them to have a window for the country’s private sector. She noted that the private sector is not making good use of these opportunities, while assuring that the government is equally aware of their difficulty areas and would do all it takes to create an enabling policy environment for them.

She finally stated the need to strengthen the public-private sector arrangement partnership, as government wants to see a lot of financial institutions and private sector go in for agriculture.

For his part, Solomon Owens, the minister of Agriculture, thanked the Bankers Association for the timely intervention. He said the move by the bankers marks the beginning of a fruitful relationship and called for a long-term partnership. “Let us try to build a public-private partnership and on behalf of the government I wish to say a big thank you for the gesture,” he added.

Sirajo Salisu, the managing director of Arab Gambian Islamic Bank, said: “If we have any other way we can support government, we will and may God continue to guide us.”