Thousands of volunteers, mainly civil servants from the Office of the President, Personnel Management Office (PMO), Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, over 900 recruits from The Gambia Armed Forces (GAF) Training School, and others from associations such as the Soldiers' Wives Association, and the National Patriotic Students' Association (NAPSA) on Saturday converged at Kanilai to work on President Jammeh's farms.

The move taken by these volunteers is to support President Jammeh in weeding his Kanilai farms, and to respond to his back to the land call, as well as his quest for food self-sufficiency . Saturday's turnout was a remarkable one and will remain a milestone in the history of farming in The Gambia, as volunteers did an excellent job on the Kanilai farms and were able to finish weeding on many farms in the area.

The proceeds of the Kanilai farms are ploughed back to the education and health sectors and are used by the Gambian leader, His Excellency Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh to not only sponsor Gambian students in and outside the country, but to also facilitate the humanitarian works of the Jammeh Foundation for Peace (JFP) and the President's Empowerment of Girls Education Project (PEGEP) in the education and health sectors. An overwhelmed President Jammeh took the volunteers by surprise when he decided to join them at the farms later in the afternoon. President Jammeh first visited the beans farm where he met the staff of the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education.  He was impressed with the work done by the volunteers and thanked them for supporting him.

President Jammeh then gave D50,000 and 3 bulls to the staff of the Basic and Secondary Education ministry and assured them that the proceeds of the Kanilai farms would be ploughed back to the education and health sectors. Professor Jammeh later proceeded to the Njeffi rice fields, where he met members of the Soldiers' Wives Association. He thanked the soldiers' wives for their efforts and donated an undisclosed amount of money to them.  He also promised to continue supporting the association.

From the Njeffi rice fields, President Jammeh went to the millet and corn farms, where he met the recruits from the GAF training school.  At this farm, President Jammeh donated 3 bulls to the recruits and commended them for their hard work.  President Jammeh, impressed with the excellent job carried out on the farms by the recruits, decided to accompany them in a slow procession, characterised by singing and dancing, to their base.

The last farm that President Jammeh visited on Saturday was the coos farm at the Bonubore Forest Park. Some of the heads of the volunteers spoke to journalists about their impression of the president's back-to-the-land initiative. Abdoulie Sallah, secretary general and head of the Civil Service, describes their turnout as a form of a solidarity and belief in the president's back-to-the-land initiative to bring about food self-sufficiency. According to Secretary General Sallah, President Jammeh is practising what he preaches by calling on people to go back to the land.

Sallah said, 2 years ago, President Jammeh launched a programme outlining his plans for The Gambia to become food self-sufficiency in 3 years.  He expressed optimism that this dream will be achieved, adding that millions of dalasis have been invested into agriculture. Sallah called on Gambians to emulate President Jammeh and disclosed that all the ministers have cultivated their own farms this year.

Dr Njogu Bah, secretary to Cabinet, expressed the belief that the back to the land initiative is a strong signal that food self-sufficiency can be achieved. This initiative, he said, requires the massive turnout and support of the people, for it to become a reality.. Omar G. Sallah, permanent secretary at the Personnel Management Office (PMO), said agriculture is the backbone of the Gambian economy. He added that it is a good move for civil servants to engage in gainful farming.

Lt Col. Baboucarr Sanyang, chief instructor at The Gambia Armed Forces Training School, said half of the military intake (recruits) are participating in the farming activities at the Kanilai farms. Lt. Col Sanyang described this move as a show of commitment to President Jammeh's development efforts. He disclosed that some of the recruits are volunteering at the President's farm in Sifoe.