Editorial

The 2011 farming season was a failure. This led to a food crisis within the Sahel region, including The Gambia. Our focus now as a nation that wants to be self-sufficient in food is to work extra hard to maximally utilise the coming farming season. As part of the preparations, the government has so far released D37.7 million for seed procurement. 

This timely preparation on the part of government is an indication of its commitment to the food self-sufficiency drive and the ball is in the court of the citizenry particularly our farming community to take full advantage of the seeds and the farming equipment provided bythe government so that collectively we can put behind us this unpleasant food crisis.

Aside the seeds, it is an open secret that the government over the yearshas not stopped at merely making sure farmers have land to farm on, but is also teaming up with its partners to ensure that high quality and fast growing products are available for the development of our agriculture sector.

We therefore hope that people, especially the youth are fully prepared to go and work in the farms. An agrarian nation is a wealthy nation. The rainy season is the period to take control of our natural environment to achieve the much desired development aspirations of the country, which will be hard to come by in the midst of hunger.