Try Women Oyster Association (TWOA) on the

The boats were presented by Anna Mbenga Cham, a gender specialist at the Fisheries department, together with Fatou Janha, founder and coordinator of TWOA.

Speaking at the presentation ceremony, Mrs Mbenga Cham stated the importance of the mangroves in the river bank and the ecology of oyster.

Her department, she noted, plans to help the oyster collectors by organising workshops through which they would be trained on how to remove oyester from the mangroves rather than chopping the mangroves, as they have been doing.

For her part, Mrs Fatou Janha Mboob, founder and coordinator of TWOA, urged all oyster collectors in the country, especially the women, to come together as one and organise themselves into associations for more improvement and better returns in their trade.

“Dont wait for the government to do all for you; don’t beg people to do all for you,” she urged the women, adding that members of TWOA have been well trained and are better organised “as they now wear uniforms, put on gloves and have a special packaging method”.

Soffie Jatta, president of the association, told the gathering that they appreciated what Mrs Mboob had done for them by organising fundraising activities from which they derived substantial sums of money they had used to buy the three canoes, open an account for the association and individual accounts for each member.

Dawda Saine of the Fisheries department commended also Mrs Mboob for bringing the women togther and for helping them to reach the stage they have reached.

He said Mrs Mboob, who was a customer of the oyster trading women, saw the constraints of the women and decided to come to their rescue by making their plight known to the Fisheries department.

Mr Saine also called on other women to emulate Mrs Mboob.