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| Farmers' hands up for Co-operative organisations |
LDHP is targeting horticulture and rural poultry
beneficiaries that are supported by the project and the purpose of these
cooperatives is to improve small holder farmers’ access to markets and to
create a fair price for goods.
Speaking at Various regions-WCR, LRR, NBR, CRR North
and South and URR respectively, Mr. Abdoulie Touray Monitoring and Evaluation
(M&E) officer LHDP said that a Co-operative is a member-owned and
controlled business that operates for the mutual benefit of its members adding
that Co-operatives promote the fullest possible participation in the economic
and social development of all people been it rural or urban.
According
to Touray, LHDP project aims to help small-scale rural producers (mainly women)
to increase their incomes by improving the yield and quality of their
horticultural and livestock products.
He explained that Co-operatives are autonomous
associations or groups formed and democratically directed by people who come
together to meet common economic, social, and cultural needs.
Mr. Baba Gibba Principal Agricultural officer
Agribusiness spoke at length on the importance of Co-operatives noting that
Co-operatives are founded on the principle of participatory governance.
According to him, LHDP in collaboration with
Agribusiness is helping to form farmers’ into Co-operatives saying that LHPD is
the first project to help farmers to establish Co-operatives in their regions.
Mr. Gibba
noted that Co-operative organisations are guided by principles; Voluntary and
open membership, Education, Training and Concern for communities.
He explained to rural farmers that a General
Assembly is the highest policy-making body of the co-operative and is the final
authority in the management and administration of the affairs of the co-operative.
It is composed of members who are entitled to vote, duly assembled and
constituting quorum.
By forming a co-operative, “you will be able to
obtain products or services you need and you will be able to define the
characteristics of the products or services with the other members and no other
person will take your products at low cost especially you the gardeners and
poultry producers in the rural areas.”
Small holder farmers can find it difficult to market
their produce and earn money. As a result, they're forced to sell off their
produce at a give-away price, leaving them in perpetual poverty.
“Agribusiness with support from LHDP, we’ll help
your groups to register; help your groups to develop a standard constitution,
the registration fees is D500.00 and you don’t need to pay tax yearly.”
He adds: National Association of Cooperative Credit
Unions of The Gambia (NACCUG), Gambia Teachers' Union Credit Union (GTUCCU),
GTTI Cooperative & Credit Union, etc are all formed to serve the interest
of its members and you (the farmers) can also do the same or even better than
them if you come together.
For Mr. Sheriff T. Sanyang Assistant M&E officer
LHDP urged the farmers to co-operate and form themselves into co-operative
societies which will in turn help in marketing their products in order to
improve their living conditions.
He added that with a co-operative bank the farmers
would be able to market their produce and also have access to bank loans which
they could use to start their own business.
Madam Darboeding Darboe from LHDP Sankandi Poultry
Farm Association commended LHDP project for its efforts in ensuring that
Gambian farmers are form into co-operatives.
She assured LHDP trekking team that their
association will be the first to register as a farmers’ co-operative saying
that been an co-operative it will not only increase the income of farmers but
also will also create employment and increase the socio-economic development of
the country at large.
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