The aim of the visit was to discuss and evaluate the number of farms cultivated by the association within the region. The visit also created an opportunity for the executive members to get first hand information on some of the major constraints faced by the local Nerica rice growers in URR . Speaking to this paper shortly after the visit, Peter Baldeh, the NRFA focal person in URR, commended the association for such a bold commitment to national development. He expressed optimism that the association will this year experience unprecedented bumper harvest vital to attaining food self-sufficiency in the region.

He noted that the Nerica rice farmers in URR this year have committed themselves to making an extraordinary harvest. "Our aim in this region is to eat what we grow and grow what we eat," he said. Baldeh commended the Gambian leader for his personal support to ensuring that Nerica cultivation becomes unprecedented in URR. He called on Nerica rice growers in the region to keep working hard and be patient.

He hailed the farmers for their efforts towards the attainment of food self-sufficiency in the region by depending entirely on agriculture."Their aim is not only to be food self-sufficient, but also to completely eradicate hunger within the region," Baldeh concluded.