The Chief of Jarra West Alhagi Yahya Jarjusey asserted that the issue of fertilizer needs to be looked into by the Government with regards to pricing.

He noted that as the agent responsible for the selling of the fertilizer, not a single bag was bought from his stock this year due to the high cost of the fertilizer.

Chief Jarjusey made these assertions during the stakeholders meeting held at Jenoi from the 20th to the 21st of October 2012 organized by the Agribusiness Services and Producers' Association (ASPA).

Chief Jarjusey told the stakeholders that his supply of fertilizer arrived at a time when the Senegalese who are our next door neighbours were selling a bag of fertilizer at D400 per bag while they were asked to sell a bag at D1020.

He noted that due to the price variance, farmers decided to go to Senegal to buy fertilizer since they could not afford the fertilizer in the Gambia. He called on the Government to review the price of fertilizer even if it means changing the places where they buy the fertilizer from.

During the meeting the Farmers complained that their poverty would continue to increase year in and year out due to the fact that the land they cultivate is becoming infertile and that the fertilizer which can make the land fertile is unaffordable.

The farmers argued that as long as the Government fails to subsidize fertilizer in the country, the poverty of the farmers would be difficult to arrest.

Foday Sowe, a member from Dalaba Cooperative Primary Marketing Society said the Gambia government should help subsidize fertilizer as the average Gambian farmer cannot buy a bag of fertilizer at D1020.