By Mariama Njie
The Ministry of Trade Regional Industry, Regional Integration and Employment in collaboration with International Trade Centre (ITC) has organised a organising two- day training for horticultural companies on quality and packaging of their products to enhance market access, recently at GCCI.
The She Trade Project aims to increase Gambian women entrepreneurs’ participation in trade by facilitating the development of a supportive business ecosystem, improving their competitiveness and strengthening their market linkages in strategic and potential productive sectors.
However, the aim of the two-day training is to provide horticultural companies with coaching on packaging and quality of their products to enhance market access both national and international Markets.
Speaking at the Seminar, Abdourahman M. Jeng, National Packaging consultant ITC/She Trades, explained that the training will help entrepreneurs to have the basis of what is required to package their products well.
He added that it will help them access the existing market, because many a times we need our products in our supermarket but hardly have you found them there due to the result of poor packaging.
According to him, poor packaging has contributed to the failure of our local manufactured product and if quality is attached to well package product, it will help and boost the standard of products that has been process in the Gambia.
He pointed that this two-day training we will be teaching them the fundamental of packaging which will involve the importance of packaging, the types of packaging and the importance of labelling, the requirements in labelling.
Ndey Awa Ceesay a Participant said that: “Am here today to learn about quality and proper packaging, to be able to compete within the Gambia and international Market as well”
Modou Dumbuya Treasurer for the Gambia Quality Association, said if Gambia want to move ahead they should believe in quality.
According to him, Gambia lack quality conscious and the best way for entrepreneurs to promote their product is quality.