Having to ban imported food in Gambia and not getting any substitute is a drive on road to starvation.
News monitored from Gambia media outlets has it that while on tour to meet people in what is called a dialogue, president of this poor African nation announced he is banning importation of food. Starting with frozen chicken legs and rice the president chose September 2013 as the month the big ban comes into effect. It is the president’s desire that people of Gambia produce what they eat. Not just that but the president wants Gambia to export surplus food and other products as source of foreign currency.
Income levels and scale of poverty
Truth of the matter is that Gambia is already a starving nation. Income levels are not matching high cost of living. Only few people have access to gainful employment with so many mouths to feed from small take home pay after deduction of outstanding liabilities.
Remittance from abroad amidst weak purchasing power of Gambian Dalasi
While some households rely on remittance from family members abroad, ever declining purchasing power of Gambian local currency the Dalasi is severely threatening sustainability
Rising cost of living is cutting deeper and wider. This is already bearing critical impact on those family members abroad who need to part with more money from income needed to pay bills and cost of lifestyle.
Population feeding on low yield farming
With very little annual yields bulk of Gambian population rely on farming. Farmers expect income once a year. Due to lack of proper farming tools, overall productivity stays at minimal scale. Gambian farmers are unable to produce enough to feed their immediate families.
It is all subsistence farming at its crudest form. Rain patterns have not been encouraging enough but nature cannot house the blame for manmade failure of an entire population.
Unpaid produce of farmers
After three months tedious labour farmers surrender their produce to buyers on credit. Obviously people cannot feed on papers and mere promissory notes from traders.
Three months of hard work on top of 9 months empty hands is what bulk of Gambian population experience annually.
Before they get paid even at that cut throat low income, Gambian farmers borrow money, foodstuff, and daily wherewithal just to keep alive. Even with imported food as it is not all households have the required cash in hand to buy what they need at such prohibitive price levels.
President as farmer and trader
Just because the president holds unlimited landed stock using that for large scale commercial farming does not translate to national wealth creation. Only the president has means to produce more than enough. By creating surplus he exports food and vegetables abroad.
Revenue generated by the president in his personal capacity as commercial farmer does not belong to Gambia’s mass of toiling population.
Another way out of this quagmire is for proceeds of the president’s commercial farming, export of fruits and vegetables abroad to get ploughed back as part of national rather than personal wealth creation.
Gambia cannot stop importing food
Poverty biting so deep and lot of families with no source of regular income is not only sad but hard experience of livelihood.
Mere promise to transform peanut reliant economy to world class superpower nation is not feasible for a state without food. National development is not dictated from ivory towers as seen in the ways of Gambian president.
If the president is serious about transforming Gambia he has to surrender all his private possessions generated through grossly exploiting the highest seat of political position.
Before coming to seize power, Gambia’s president had no experience as “banabana” (hawker.) He was a security officer paid same income as others like him. He did not have a garden or commercial farm.
To do justice and having gone past the mark in his most imposing rule as president it is already overdue for the president to surrender all that belongs to people. Not just that. For him to be seen sensible and fair let him leave the position of president. Other more deserving and better responsible persons are available for Gambians to make right choice.
To ban importation of food without substitute is certainly imposing starvation. This is not an appeal for the president to rescind that decision. It is a warning to Gambians that they have a president who wants to drive everyone to death by hunger.