By Amadou Bah
Abubacarr Jawara, chief executive officer (CEO) GACH has complained the high of electricity challenges facing his Tomato Paste factory to National Assembly trade committee.
Speaking to visiting members of the trade committee of the National Assembly meeting at the factory recently, he urged government to provide special traffic electricity for company operating factory in the country.
He pointed out this will help the company’s to grow and stand in a strong position to continue operating in the country.
He told lawmakers that GACH started operation with $10 million dollar asset investment in the country in 2008 and specialized in Tomato Paste and water productions, as well as mining and construction.
He disclosed that the company current employment stands at 185.
“We contribute to national development and today everybody knows what we are doing” he said adding the factory aims to expand its operations in Tomato Paste production, and provide job opportunities, as well as provide market for its production.
Sait Drammeh, managing director GACH stated that first phase of their operation entails the importation of Tomato Jam and processing it into paste and second phase would entail production of Tomato paste in the country through engaging the farming communities to aid the production of their needed variety in line with horticulture value chain addition in the industrialization crusade.
He further said his company operation is in line with national development plan (NDP) saying that industrialisation is the only answer to the Gambia problem.
We are taken a big risk but at the end we want go to come and minimise our risk, he said.
He said the factory has a daily capacity of consuming 140 tonnes of fresh tomato, saying this huge and that talks are at an advanced level with FAO and the NEMA project and the farming communities, to meet the production varieties,
He added that the varieties available now are for consumption yields between 20 to 30 tons per hectare.
“We are also thinking of sustainability aspect of the factory so we are going for production diversification and produce different varieties of food products.
In terms of quality, the feedback we are getting from women using our products is excellent, so far we have the best quality and we are comfortable with the quality of our products,” he said
He added: “The demand for our Tomato product is very high and is taken over all supply and is assessable very affordable in all our major market”
