A role mode

These days we often hear about a few Gambians here and there venturing into areas formally left on explored.

For instance, the 'back-to-the-land' call made by President Jammeh is increasingly gaining momentum, especially among people in the government circles. However, what has not been commonly heard of is the participation of the youth in the area of agriculture. But one such person that is out to change that outlook is Abubacarr Demba.
 
A youth in his mid twenties, Mr Demba hails from Mandina, a village in Kiang West (LRR). Currently totally engrossed with his work as a farmer, this young man matched into the offices of the Daily Observer the other day, to raise concern about the menace of bush fire.

'Every year,' he said, 'people set fire deliberately and it is becoming a concern to me as I an environmentalist.' His aim, he said, is to set up a green belt rather than to destroy nature.

Demba wants government to look in to the issue of bushfire, arguing that nature needed to be protected. He further argued that there was a ‘sycronized cordination between nature and the patterns of climate change,’ noting that if government could pass a law restricting the activities of people who deliberately commit this act of burning the natural forest, it would build on the income generating capacity of the low income earners, as well as partly solving the debate surrounding Global warming.

'Apart from women getting in to the forest and collecting natural foodstuffs  for sale in the local market, a great chunk of the rural folks derive their food from the forest directly. Setting fire on our bushes will greatly affect domestic animals who, in fact, suffered most. Besides, all this affect the health of the people and contribute to global warming as well,' Demba argues.

For him when trees are burnt down, the aftermath is excess heat, which has extensive implications. Government, he said, can look in to these issues; 'our legislatures need to work a lot in the parliament to ensuring the prevention of these happenings.'

Mr Demba also finds it puzzling as to why people burn down the bush, and in his continued quest to know, the responses he often come by leave him even more perplexed. While some would point at traditional belief trend, either because their parents or some relation had done so, some time ago; for others it appears as total ignorance.

Here he told youth matters why he decided to take to the land. ‘In 2002, I decided to go back to the land as a youth, to set an example.’ What is so significant about that land mark decision of this young man is that he decided to retire home despite the fact that he is a professional in so many skills; artswork, painting and drafting designs, as well as carpentry, yet non of these profession would demand as much wealth in that part of the country as they would here in the urban set up.

As a victim of babylon syndrome, which had taken him away for four (4) solid years, the impact of his experience would not allow him to keep a low profile.

On his return home, his only task was to join effort in answering to the president's call of going back to the land, as a way of dissuading his comtemporaries. 'My father is from the village in Kiang; despite not been born or brought up there, I still feel proud to be working there as a farmer. And I feel even more proud that I am cultivating what I can use to feedmyself', he lamented.

Demba is quite aware of the fact that youths of his age nowadays would not like any one to tell them about staying put in the country but, he argues, they contribute less in their homes, 'as they live from hand to month and, in most cases, entirely dependent on other people.'
And he went on,'The land is in abundance; when you dig the soil, you work hard, you will gain something.' 

He hailed President Jammeh for his worthwhile demonstration of ‘leadeship by example. My advice for those that are burning the bush is that they stop it now in one way or the other,' he acknowledge that some of them might be ignorant of it, but that if we start telling about it now, sensitising the people about the dangers, it might make the difference. 'In fact, if you burn the bush it affect your yield, as the vegetation influence rainfall,' he concludes.