15th July 2025
Honourable Cabinet Ministers, Members of the Diplomatic and Consular Corps, Representatives of the African Development Bank, Africa Rice, ECOWAS, and other Development Partners,
Honourable Members of the National Assembly, Venerable Religious Leaders, Governors, and all Regional and Local Government Representatives here present Farmer Organisations, Women, and Youth Groups, Distinguished Guests, The Media, Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is with great pride that I join you to officially launch three transformative agricultural projects, namely: the REWARD-Gambia Programme, the P2-P2RS Sahel Resilience Initiative, and The Gambia Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending Establishment Project, GAMIRSAL.
These projects, collectively valued at over sixty-eight million, four hundred thousand US Dollars (USD 68.4 million), mark a turning point in our national quest for agricultural transformation, food sovereignty, and climate resilience. I am confident that their impact will be felt across all corners of The Gambia, particularly in our rural communities. Ladies and gentlemen, my government recognises agriculture as the backbone of our economy and the key to ending poverty and hunger.
Through our National Development Plan (2023 - 2027) and the Second Generation National Agricultural Investment Plan-Food and Nutrition Security (2019-2026), we are pursuing a future where Gambian farmers are empowered, our youth engage in agribusiness, and the women participate fully in productive activities.
Let me comment briefly on the projects to say that REWARD-Gambia targets eight thousand (8,000) households and over one hundred and twenty thousand (120,000) indirect beneficiaries, across the seven agricultural regions of the country.
It will provide modern irrigation infrastructure, improved seed systems, mechanisation services, and market access within sustainable, private sector-led integrated rice production clusters.
P2-P2RS, covering the Lower River Region, Central River Region, and West Coast Region, targets sixty-seven thousand, two hundred (67,200) direct and indirect vulnerable Gambian households.
This project will support resilience infrastructure, such as rehabilitation of gardens, rice fields, provision of machines, improvement of climate smart seeds and fertilizer, as well as provision of small ruminant and poultry. It will intervene in nineteen (19) districts to strengthen their resilience against climate change and food insecurity. The third, GAMIRSAL, sets to transform agricultural finance by enabling five thousand (5,000) direct beneficiaries and twenty thousand (20,000) indirect beneficiaries to access credit through a national risk-sharing system.
These three projects prioritise youth and women and target that, at least, fifty percent (50%) of the beneficiaries fall within these two groups. This is not only a matter of equity but also a strategic imperative for sustainable growth.
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, We are immensely grateful to the African Development Bank for its trust, vision, and commitment to effecting positive change in Africa through crucial development partnerships of these kinds.
Similarly, we recognise the critical role of Africa Rice, ECOWAS, CILSS, and all other technical partners. The projects reflect real development cooperation of planning together and ensuring national ownership and shared success. Let me emphasise that no aspect of these projects should be reduced to mere paper work. My government will ensure their full implementation through robust oversight and community participation.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Security, through the CPCU, will be held accountable for delivering tangible, life-changing results for each component. Let us seize this opportunity as a rallying point to recommit ourselves to food and nutrition security, job creation, and resilience. The future of Gambian agriculture begins with us today, and not later.
With these reflections, I declare the REWARD-Gambia Programme, the P2-P2RS Project, and the GAMIRSAL Establishment Project officially launched. I wish you all successful implementation of each project. God bless us all.
