By Victor Ofuonye
The Association of the Gambian Manufacturers (AGM) has received another prestigious award in recognition of its achievements in promotion of investment and industrial growth in The Gambia. This award was bestowed on the association at the recently concluded 2nd edition of The Gambia-Senegal Economic Trade and Investment Forum held at the Sir Dawda Jawara Kairaba International Conference Center, Bijilo, started on the 19th and ended on the 20th of December 2024.
The award was in recognition of the immense contributions of the AGM towards the successful hosting of the second edition of The Gambia – Senegal Economic Trade and Investment Forum. The award was presented to Mr. FarimangSaho, President of the association and also the Honorary Consul of the Republic of Hungary to The Gambia by The Gambia High Commission in Dakar, Senegal, and The Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA) jointly with the Agence Nationale Pour la Promotion d’Investissement et de Travails Du Senegal (APIX),
Speaking to this medium in an exclusive interview over the weekend, the AGM President Farimang Saho said the award is indeed a welcome one because it is a testament to the selfless sacrifice, hard work, and dedication of not only the AGM executive but to its entire members. He added that the AGM was founded over 3 decades ago with the efforts of Alhaji Sankung Sillah of blessed memory, founder of Sankung Sillah and Sons, and Muhtara of Muhtara Holdings, to create an enabling environment for the manufacturing industry in The Gambia to act as the voice of Gambian Manufacturers for manufacturing to thrive in the country.
“The association was moribund due to the global financial crisis and unfavorable government policies that led most members to focus more on their businesses than the association. However, with help from the UNDP, and the EU, members held annual general meetings in March 2024, leading to the election of a new executive committee and prepared its 5-year strategic plan and updated its by-laws and other instruments of governance structures,” Mr. Saho explained.
The new executive, Mr. Saho noted, went to work with vigor and the results are seen in members for the time getting;
· Duty Free on Imported Raw Materials
· Membership of the National Business Council
· Membership of the Employment and Technical Committee
· Membership of the Common External Tariffs
· Membership of the Pan African Manufacturers Association
· Seat at the AfTCA Committee
He went on to say the association signed important Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with their Senegalese counterpart UPICS of Senegal. Mr. Saho informed further that the AGM has been invited to the Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises in the Oriental parts of Morocco, the Union of Commerce and Industry of Senegal, and the TVET development program with Chinese Universities, which aimed at knowledge transfer and training for Gambian women and youths.
“These and many more are what led to our being recognized by The Gambia High Commission in Dakar, Senegal, and The Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA) as well as the Agency National Pour la Promotions des et des Grand Travaux (APIX) of Senegal for our invaluable contributions in helping propel trade relations as well as the economies of both The Gambia and Senegal. With the help of government and international partners we can move the country to economic growth and industrialization to create job opportunities for the youths,” Mr. Saho pointed out.
“We have been invited to the Kaolack Business Forum and Trade Fair that is slated for the 23rd of January 2025 by no other person than Sering Mboob, the Mayor of Kaolack, to dilate further on how to strengthen our collective aims and objectives,” he disclosed.
However, “All we want,” he stressed, “is the continued support of the government and considerations of international development partners, so that we can all move the country forward.”
It must be noted that individual members of the AGM are some of the highest taxpayers in this country and that the AGM itself has been instrumental in highlighting critical priorities of the manufacturing sector in the Green-Focused National Development Plan 2023-2027.
