By Fatou B. Cham
Statically there are in-deficient figures on bushfires in The Gambia. It is however comprehensible that most of the country’s forests are burnt annually resulting in soil degradation and the misplacement of animals.
It is in this quest that the National Livestock Owners Association (NaLOA) in joint efforts with the Department of Livestock Services (DLS) through the Adopting Agriculture to Climate Change Project of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), embarked on a nationwide sensitisation campaign on bushfires and animal feed conservation, from the 13th to the 22nd of January, 2023.
This development followed the provision of ten boreholes across the country for animal drinking points by the Food and Agriculture of the United Nations (FAO).
The sensitisation campaign was designed to create awareness of the hazards of bushfires and encourage the utilisation of the forest as means of generating the animal feeds.
Ebrima O Jallow, the president of the National Livestock Owners Association said livestock play an important role in our society hence the need to recognise their welfare keenly.
Mr. Jallow emphasised the change in attitudes toward how our forest and animals are being mishandled.
He urged district chiefs, Alkalolu, VDCs, and farmers to be more attentive to bushfires and animal welfare, especially during the dry season.
Mr. Emanuel W. Mendy, the Deputy Director General for Animal Production, Department of Livestock Services opined that fire is significant in our daily affairs but not in the case of bushfire, which he said decreases the value of the soil, kills micro-organisms, displaces animals and depriving them of access to feed.
“Livestock contributes to the development of households, communities, and the country at large so the welfare of animals must be observed,” he added.
Speaking at the sensitisation, livestock expert at FAO, Mr. Philip Gomez, described the Adapting Agriculture to Climate Change Project as vital in building resilience against climate change.
To aid in the availability of animal feed, Mr Gomez said the project will plant edible grasses in forests across the country to help ease feed constraints for animals.
He informed that the AACCP, through FAO, will also aid in providing fire fighting gears across the country as means of minimising and controlling bushfires in ensuring the availability of feed for animals.
Collectively, chiefs and the Alkalolu of respective districts, acknowledged the role of NaLOA, FAO, and the Department of Livestock in improving livestock management in the country.
For the farmers present, they concurred that bushfires and mismanagement of animal welfare have become alarming issues throughout the country, and acknowledged that the campaign has served as an avenue for awareness creation on the hazards of bushfires and on proper management of the welfare of their animals.
