By: Nyima Sillah
The President of Tresor Women Warriors (TWW) also a member of Master Farmers Association Cooperative, Kumba Daffeh Kah, has said in The Gambia that Irregular migration has posed huge challenges in the agriculture sector.
“We need Human Resources and right now, as a result of irregular migration, we are facing a huge catastrophe in the agriculture sector because the human resources we are relying on are not there,” she told the Voice during farmers’ consultation forum in Jenoi.
She however, raised concern over the inadequate man power in the agriculture sector due to irregular migration- saying that some farmers in Upper River Region (URR) are currently facing huge challenges in harvesting their crops as the majority of their youthshave embarked on the ‘back way’ , a dangerous journey from Africa to Europe.
“We should look at this issue. I call it a state of emergency particularly in the farming field because if you look at most of the farmers, they are old and are getting into retirement stage. You have the young that are supposed to grow the food of this country,” Mrs. Kah perceived.
She stated that Irregular migration requires a dialogue involving young people , community stakeholders and government because it creates negative impact on the villages, adding that all the vigilant young men that are supposed to be in the farm ploughing and harvesting are embarking on the back-way.
“The more groundnuts we have on the ground, the more crop losses. We have only the children, women and old age and a lot of these farms have been abandoned,” Mrs. Kah expressed dismay.
TWW President further suggested that the farming community should look into the issue in a bid to woo many young people in the agriculture sector, have access to land and funding for them to embark on mechanize farming.
“Mechanization is among the reasons why young people are not engaged in agriculture. This is key, and is going to be important in dealing with human resource issues that we are facing regarding irregular migration,” she echoed.