Speaking to reporters Saturday evening after inspecting the work carried out by the women, the president  expressed his gratitude to them for their continuous support for him, most notably the decision to weed his farms in Kanilai and environs.  The Gambian leader, who was accompanied by the First Lady of the Republic, Her Excellency Madam Zineb Yahya Jammeh, said the women have done a "great job", and have gone beyond his expectations.

"What they have done is really a great job. Most of the time weeding is always a problem in Kanilai. I never thought that some of the farms would be completely cleared of the weeds, but to my pleasant surprise, the women have done a great job," he stated, while commending some men who joined them for the work. He thanked the women and prayed that the Almighty Allah rewards them, saying he cannot really pay them for what they have done.

While acknowledging that it was not the first time the women were coming to Kanilai to help him, President Jammeh stated that it was the first time the entire Gambian women were organising such a solidarity work on his farms.  He added: "And I am very happy that the vice president said the women have pledged that they would come and help in the harvesting. Harvesting has always been a challenge also in Kanilai. Unfortunately the coming of the women coincides with the month of Ramadan, but they did a great job and I am expecting the men of the country to also come one day."

President Jammeh reiterated his call for Gambians to continue responding to farming for the country to be food self-sufficient. He equally reiterated his recent call for the citizens to be steadfast and increase agricultural production during this planting season to serve as contingency measures in case of any eventualities like food shortage next year. He predicted that next year might be a difficult year in terms of food availability in view of the fact that major rice exporting countries such as China, Pakistan, amongst others have their farmlands ravaged by severe floods.

"Well Allah decides what happens, but the way things are going, I expect that next year is going to be a difficult year especially a country like The Gambia where we are a net consumer of rice.When you talk about Pakistan, you think of China which is a major exporter of rice, and millions of people have been left homeless because of floods. Villages have submerged and inundated, farmlands destroyed to the extent that Russia said it would not export wheat. So that is going to be a problem because before you export something to somebody, you have to feed yourself first," the president pointed out.

He underscored the need for people to increase whatever they have done in agriculture especially those in areas where there is still a lot of fresh water to grow more Nerica and other early maturing crops like sesame and watermelon, amongst others."Next year might be a difficult year for food. People would say oh! why is he thinking that way, but remember that in 2007 there were similar floods less severe than we have this year. And then year 2008 became a difficult year. That year was the food crisis, then 2009 the financial crisis came on top of the food crisis. This year's floods are more severe than 2007, so one would expect that God forbid, 2011 may be a difficult year," he stated.

Inspection by the vice president

Meanwhile, prior to the post-work interview, the vice president and minister of Women's Affairs, Dr Njie-Saidy, who was in Kanilai from the onset of the three-day solidarity work by the women, Saturday inspected scores of farms within Kanilai and environs where the women were working. Among the farms inspected by the vice president included the Western Region Groundnut Farm in Kanilai, where she took a hoe to join in weeding the farm, thus providing inspiration to the others.

Other farms inspected by the vice president included the Reservoir Rice field; the Noni Farm; Check Point Groundnut Farm; the Bridge Rice Farm, all in Kanilai; as well as the Kampanti, Burrock, Bunyika and Dobong Rice farms. The vice president commended the women for their hard work in all the farms she visited. During the course of the inspection, the Daily Observer caught up with three ministers who actively participated in the weeding exercise, notably at the Noni maize farm in Kanilai.

The minister of Information and Communication Infrastructure, Alhaji Cham, said his purpose of coming to Kanilai was to support the women in their work on the farms. He lauded the president's farming crusade, noting that he [the president] has been advocating for the people to go back to the land since he came to power in 1994. Minister Cham observed that the president has been practicing what he advocates for through having many farms of his own. "The president has always been supporting everybody especially the women, and this [solidarity] is a way of paying back to say thank you," he stated.

Also speaking to reporters, the minister of Basic and Secondary Education, Fatou Lamin Faye also indicated her impression of the solidarity work, commending her fellow women for answering to the call of Her Excellency, the vice president and minister of Women's Affairs, Aja Dr Isatou Njie-Saidy to come out to help the president. The minister of Tourism and Culture, Fatou Mass Jobe-Njie expressed similar sentiments, while underscoring the importance of going back to the land. She lauded the call made by the president for increased agricultural production with a view to ensuring that The Gambia is not caught wanting should in case there is a [global] shortage of food.