Lamin
K M Fatty, Igbana Ajir and Benjamin Gowon Ahule
Department of
Sociology
Centre for Food
Technology and Research, Benue State University, Makurdi
Email: lkmfattya@utg.edu.gm, igbanaajir@gmail.com,
bahule@bsum.edu.ng
ABSTRACT
The
study analysis is based on the assessment of production system employed by the
farming community in reducing food insecurity in the Gambia. The strategy used
the literatures that discussed various methods in providing policies and
programmes to enhance agricultural production and productivity in the country
such as concentration on rural smallholder farmers constituting the majority of
the poor and strategies emphasis on: expanding irrigation and land development
through appropriate land use and soil management and increasing
commercialization through intensification and enhanced productivity and
competitiveness of cereals – particularly rice among others. It was observed
that Gambian primary sector has been characterized by subsistence production of
food crops comprising cereals (early millet, late millet, maize, sorghum and
rice); semi-intensive cash crop production (groundnuts, cotton, sesame and
horticulture) and traditional livestock rising. Farmers generally practice
mixed farming, although crops account for a greater portion of the production.
On average, some 200,000 ha are annually cultivated of which less only 2% of
them are irrigated. Among the crops, groundnuts are the most important occupying
40-50% of the cultivated area followed by early millet (25%), rice (8%),
sorghum and maize (7% each) with the least of the area allocated to sesame and
the root and tubers (cassava and sweet potatoes). The majority of farmers are
smallholders (less than 3 ha per farm family) and are generally resource poor.
There is heavy reliance on household labour and traditional farming techniques.
Food security has been described using four key dimensions to the definition:
availability, stability, safety and access. Although his view is based on urban
context, the first dimension, food availability relates to the readily
sufficient amounts of food. This is mainly a function of food production and
supply. Food stability requires that food can be accessed at all times. Food
safety is linked to the quality of food. It is not enough that sufficient
amount of food are available, if it cannot be consumed without risking major
health problems. It has been stated that access to food is associated with the
resources that an individual or household possesses to obtain food required for
a healthy diet. Also agriculture sector is confronted with constraints that
result in low productivity, limited marketing and commercialization, and low
net incomes, erratic and low rainfall patterns; a highly seasonal and mostly
rain-fed subsistence-based production; unreliable access to inputs; insufficient
supplies and use of improved seeds; limited landholdings under irrigation,
diminishing access to good arable land due to population pressures among others
Thus we recommended the following : need for increase productivity through the
implementation of sustainable land and water management with emphasis on cereal
crops, others crops in upland areas, horticulture and livestock production,
production and resource management constraints; focus on vitalizing
agricultural commodity value chains, and measures and programs to support
competitiveness and higher investments in value chains; recognize high
potential for positive impacts on women and youth employment; address capacity
weaknesses of producer organizations, address forest and fisheries resources
and parks and wildlife the problem of resource depletion, sustainable
technologies and the need for strengthening and improving agency coordination and
capacity to produce timely, accurate and relevant data and analysis concerning
food and nutrition security.
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