Iran to Spend US$1M in Agriculture Department as Ties with Gambia Grow

The Iranian ambassador to The Gambia, Saeid Zare, has said that  his country was committed to promoting peace and stability around the world. He said Iran would like to see peace and prosperity and progress for the two brotherly nations, as well as a political relationship with growing economic ties.

Ambassador Saeid Zare was speaking at a three-day Senior Management Training for the Ministry of Agriculture and the newly established Department of Agriculture on Tuesday in Banjul. The training was funded by the Islamic Republic of Iran Mission in The Gambia for Agriculture and Rural Development (IGARD) at the Paradise Suites Hotel in Kololi.

Mr. Saeid Zare said the relationship between The Gambia and Iran has been in good shape for many years and that it continues to expand in the interest of the two countries.

"The Gambia has good investment capacity which has motivated Iranian investors to invest their capital in The Gambia, particularly in the field of agriculture and technology,” he said.

He also said that Iran has recently launched some new investment projects in West Africa, and is hoping that Gambia will be one of those countries that are to benefit from the projects because Tehran will launch a similar project in The Gambia very soon.

On technical cooperation, he said Iran has always desired to cooperate with The Gambia in various fields, such as fishery, agriculture, investment and implementation of different projects.

However, he stressed that this cannot be achieved by the two nations without the collaboration on both sides.

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Modou S. Kah said the training is designed to strengthen the capacity of senior managers at his Ministry and that the training is also meant to better inform the newly established agricultural department.

DPM Kah explained that the training as envisaged, has the overall objective of strengthening the capacity of the senior management of agriculture, which will enhance the on-going restructuring programme of the sub-sector.

According to Kah, the training will better inform the participants about the restructuring of the ministry of agriculture; familiarize them with the procedures for access and use of public resources; expose participants to the general framework to strategic planning process; and to improve the communication skills of participants.

"Considering the number of personnel under the Department of Agriculture, the new establishments with policy objectives, strategies and targets, the need for capacity building and improvement cannot be overemphasized", Mr Kah said.

For his part, Mr. Abdoukarim Sonko, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the government of The Gambia was highly appreciative of the development support being rendered to this country and those in the pipeline by the government and people of Iran.

DPS Sonko disclosed that the approval of five agricultural projects valued at one million US dollars is considered as a humanitarian assistance from the government of Iran.

“With this humanitarian assistance received from Iran, implementation of these projects would.... commence in earnest, since... funds are already at the Iranian Embassy in Dakar....waiting to be released to IGARD on behalf of The government of The Gambia,” he said.

Mr. Sonko also said: "you will all agree with me that the establishment of the Iranian office in The Gambia for Agriculture and Rural Development (IGARD) by the Islamic Republic of Iran and The government of The Gambia, is a clear manifestation of the true friendship that exists between the two nations."

He also noted that this is the first activity of IGARD since its inception in 2009, saying that it is important to consider this occasion as an inauguration of IGARD Project in The Gambia.