By Alhagie Babou Jallow
& Jainaba Kargbo
Rural Development Organization with support from its partners, Sabah Lou Foundation and Holistic Agribusiness Solutions ( HAS) established an Agricultural Training Centre in 2019 for a dual Agricultural Training Program on a 2 years curriculum. The program targeted unemployed Gambian youths and migration returnees.
The centre recently graduated the 2nd batch of 36 youths ( 19 male and 17 females) on integrated agriculture at a ceremony held at Balingho in North Bank Region.
The two years program centered on 4 areas of agriculture such as Horticulture, Soil enhancement, Animal Husbandry and Entrepreneurship.
Training areas include entrepreneurial modules that cover basic business management skills like accounting, sales and market, business proposal writing, and profits and loss calculation.
Momodou Y Bah, the Chief Executive Officer of Rural Development Organisation and Coordinator of Holistic Agribusiness Solutions described the two-day training on agriculture and basic entrepreneurship as key in strengthening effective skill transfer on the adoption of best farming practices. He used the opportunity to thank Dr. Friedrich Keller Baucer, the founder of Sabah Lou Foundation and trainers from Lufthansa Australia Airline for their foresight in complementing government efforts in youth empowerment.
Commenting on sustainability, CEO Bah mentioned that the centre is working hard to sustain its operation, citing sales from farm produce.
The CEO said challenges are mostly high operational costs, mobility, bad road from Farafenni to Balingho and poor mobile and Internet connectivity as the biggest challenge in terms of transportation of farm produce and services.
He thanked the team of Lufthansa and Australia Airline trainers for their support and the community of Balingho for their hold up to the centre and expansion, noting that it has strengthened the donor’s confidence to support the development objectives of the center.
Dr. Friedrich Keller Baucer, the Founder of Sabah Lou Foundation spoke on the significance of building the capacities of youths on agriculture and entrepreneurship to enhance skill development and employment creation.
Governor Lamin Saidykhan of NBR described the establishment of the center by Sabah Lou Foundation as a worthy investment in complementing government efforts in strengthening human resource development on agriculture among young people
He noted the center’s effort in transforming the mindset of youths in core areas of agriculture to accelerate national food security and sustain livelihoods.
Governor Saidykhan reiterated the need for youths to be creative, share taught and experiences and above all to be law-abiding to consolidate peace and security.
He said the visit by President Adama Barrow demonstrated the political will to support and congratulated Sabah Lou Foundation and partners in building the capacity of youths on agribusiness. Governor Saidykhan reiterated the need for youths to make the best use of the opportunities available in the country to expand and develop businesses.
Deputy Permanent Secretary Ministry of Agriculture, Madam Bintou Gassama said the establishment of the training centre forms part of the government’s policy and strategies to enable youths realize their potential in agriculture and promote the adoption of best farm practices.
She noted that agriculture and entrepreneurship are smart moves to address post-harvest loss and create more employment opportunities at the community level. DPS Gassama said rural-urban and irregular migration among youths remains a challenge to youths’ development and empowerment. She thanked the centre for the training of more girls on agribusiness, noting that women are the major producers of food.
