Mr Farmer Taking Inspiration from the Gambian leader

Until recently, that is, before the intervention of the Gambian leader, President Yahya Jammeh, transfiguring the general perception towards farming in the Gambia, it was mind-boggling to see Gambians take to the land voluntarily. Even more stupefying is for those we in the Gambia prefer calling "semester" to forfeit the largely materialistic western life they live in the west to take up farming as their preoccupation. Well, this is exactly what one Yahya Touray has vowed to do.

In his early 50s, Yahya sees in himself a Pan-African, even though he makes his leaving in a Western country and has absolutely no inclination for the time wasting theories we get from academic forums about Pan-Africanism. But make no mistake; this Badibunka’s own humble philosophy is succinct and clear-cut. He emphasized, in his rather fascinatingly broken English (as he had never ever sat in a classroom of any sort) that the Whiteman came to Africa and got all his riches, "we are also entitled to go and get what we can from their land."   

Actually, earlier on, the Daily Observer had called and fixed appointment with this Italy based Gambian Rasta man to take a stroll to his orchard, situated in Lamin Daranka. Over the high volume Burning Spare music reverberating from the cassette player of his old fashion Jeep, Mr Touray freely spoke his mind about his feelings for Gambians and "our lazy attitudes."

His sense of understanding on Agriculture and contemporary issues made him a fascinating character, especially given the fact that he wasn’t schooled as such.  
   
On arrival at his orchard, we were greeted by a group of euphoric children, calling him Baba, Baba. He new straight away what they wanted. The cashew nut fruit, already ripe, kind of attract the children in the nearby areas and beyond to his garden.

Originally from Badibu Banni, Yahya Touray’s family now makes a living in Kanifing South. He, unlike other members of his family, has a special passion for farming. His inspiration, according to him, is his namesake, the Gambian leader, President Jammeh. And like the president, he has the firm belief that it is only through collective effort that we can achieve our goals.

He stressed the need for communal approach. This, he vowed, he is ready to do in the Gambia. Already, Yahya is sponsoring a project in Badibu, in a village near his. He disclosed that he deliberately refused to set it in his own village as a show of anger. "I want to make them awaken from their slumber. I want to show them that I can only work with people that want to work.

Having been engaged in farming before venturing abroad, Yahya had been part of a jointly owned communal garden in his village in Banni. He felt devastated when, on arrival in the Gambia at one point, he realized that the garden had vanished. He would hardly forgive his tribesmen for that "careless attitude."

Today, he grows a host of plant that serve a host of purposes. Oranges, mangoes, cashew nut, cocoa are among the food crops he grows. He showed us plants that cure a host of diseases, like stomach ache, constipation, diabetes and infertility, etc.    

"If he can leave behind the luxury of New York for this part of the Gambia", Yahya said, pointing at the house of his next door neighbor, an American, "I wonder what we Gambians are up to. All we think about is erecting big houses in areas like Fajara, Kanifing or Bijilor, living lives that only perpetuate poverty among the poor."

Mr Touray’s American neighbor maintains a massive compound where he grows vegetables, produce of which he (Touray) believes eventually find their way to Western supermarkets.
 
He strongly believes that we can only attain the food self-sufficiency dream we cry about if we change our attitude.

On tourism, Mr Touray is blatantly dismissive of concentrating tourist activities within the Greater Banjul Area. He believes that we can maximize our gains and get the locals to benefit more if we extend the industry up country.

This he is already working on at his own individual level. In his land in Lamin, he is already erecting houses that would serve as guest rooms for prospective tourists. He also has plans to add onto his stock of plants some breeds of farm animals, the likes of sheep, goats, cows and even rabbits.

Pointing at some struggling seedlings of Mahogany dotted around his plot, he argued that it was possible for the Gambia to grow plants like the wooded tree which, he said, would satisfy our timber requirement. "Our problem is we do not work as we talk."

Yahya’s biggest self-imposed mission, if he can get the support of the Gambian leader, is to set communal gardens of this kind in the whole of the country. "I can do it", he argued. "I can establish and hand them over to the communities. If they take care of it well, they stand to reap the benefit. They can take care of problems like their children’s school fees without having to expose their privacies." He stressed that he does not need any financial gain for himself.

Indeed, Yahya Touray is already doing this, he only want to see the involvement of the Gambian leader, so that people will take it serious, and that the land will be available.