The Gambia Songhai Initiative (GSI) Project is designed (2014) to tackle the growing youth unemployment and increasing poverty among rural populations of The Gambia. It is also developed against the growing need of transforming the agricultural sector into a productive, efficient, sustainable and remunerative enterprise; especially among youth.
Partnership:
Ministry of Youth and Sports (as main Implementing Partner)
Songhai Regional Center in Benin
UNDP
Project Site:
Chamen, North Bank Region
The overarching goal of this project is to sustainably reduce poverty, unemployment and food insecurity by tackling their root causes and deploying proven strategies for achieving large scale and lasting impact.
The primary objective is to promote inclusive agriculture sector growth and employment.
Main Hub Green Rural City In Chamen - Develop sustainable Small and Medium scale Farming Systems and infrastructures as Extension Spaces and platforms to incubate and leverage Agro related entrepreneurship
Develop a critical mass of young agro-entrepreneurs- "FARM MANAGERS" - with the appropriate, technical, organizational capacity to improve and scale-up production in the country
Improve effective advocacy and knowledge sharing on small and medium scale agribusinesses and related SMIs/SMEs in the country
Develop a network of Agro-businesses in the country
Market Garden
A total land area of 5 Ha was cultivated (different varieties of vegetables)
Cash Crop
Two cash crops covered a total land area of 18 Hectares
1.5 Ha of Rice and 16.5 Ha of maize.
Agro-Forestry
The section comprised of 1050 pawpaw units (600 units initially planted and later another 550 units planted) and 3000 units of moringa.
Livestock
45 Cattle: 10 growing males, 14 female (under reproduction), 10 growing female, 10 Small Calves (5 females and 5 males), 1 Big Bull.
Small Ruminants
12 sheep (5 males under Intensive Fattening Programme; 2 males and 5 females under Extensive Fattening)
Goat ( 1 male and 3 females)
2 Horses ( 1male and 1 female)
Full batch of 16 Graduates from the first Batch sent to Port-Norvo are now fully employed by FAO in their MDG 1 Garden.
UNDP supporting two Graduates (Fatou Njie and Seckan)
GSI absorbed 8 Graduates as Instructors to support the areas of Feed Mill, Training Department, Soil improvement / EM, Agro-Forestry, Nursery and Garden .
5 other Graduates employed by the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education .
Collaboration with NEMA
38 students recently graduated in the academic year 2019/20.
