THE GAMBIA (30 May)
Seasonably dry conditions prevail. Farmers are currently preparing their fields. Planting is expected to start in the weeks ahead with the onset of the rains.
Cereal production in 2002 is officially estimated at about 139 000 tonnes, 30 percent lower than last year and 7 percent below the average of the last five years. Millet prices which increased steeply last year remain at high levels, reflecting the 2002/03 poor harvest not only in the Gambia but also in the whole of the western Sahel. The high millet prices make household access to this basic staple, particularly in rural areas, exceedingly difficult.
The Gambia is a beneficiary of WFP’s Regional EMOP launched in December 2002 for 5 drought-affected countries in the west of the Sahel, with an allocation of 2 340 tonnes of cereals.