Editor,

Please allow me space in your widely read newspaper to express my views on the move towards food self-sufficiency in The Gambia.

I think you will all bear witness that since the Gambian leader initiated the ‘back to the land call’, a good number of Gambians have taken it up as a move in the right direction.

During my visit to the interior parts of the country this year, I have seen many changes and improvement in the farming sector leading me to believe that in a few years to come, rice importation will be a thing of the past.

Mr Editor, you can bear witness that President Jammeh’s ‘back to the land call’ has yielded benefits and has continued to contribute to the development of agriculture in The Gambia. This has spurred so many Gambians to venture into farming.

In Kerewan, North Bank Region and other regions in the country, I saw people travelling back to their homes to work on the farms. This is a signal that the attainment of food self-sufficiency is a realistic dream and Gambians can also do it.

I met a group of people in Janjangbureh working on a five hectare land said to have been allocated to President Jammeh. This is also another boost to the president’s efforts towards the achievement of food self-sufficiency come 2015.

Karamo Ceesay

Farafenni