Department of Fisheries in Gambia hand over fishing tools to 250 women

The Department of Fisheries (DoF) under the Ministry of Fisheries, Water Resources and National Assembly Matter (MoFWR-NAMs) in Gambia, through the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation’s Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) project recently handed over fish preservation coolers, gloves, knives, aprons and tarpaulins to 250 fish vendors, mostly women, across the country.

The distribution of these items is part of FAO’s Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) “Support the sustainable products and marketing of fish and vegetables products for Urban/Peri-urban women”, which is targeting mostly women fish traders who use coolers, refrigerators or insulated boxes to reduce fish spoilage.

Abdoulie B. Jallow, Fisheries Officer, who also doubles as the TCP focal point, said that the TCP project is designed to support women in the urban and peri-urban areas in handling fish and fisheries products.

Components

The TCP, he stressed, has three components which includes: the training of women on fish handling, provision of fish handling equipment, (250 cooler, 152 tarpaulins, 152 pair of gloves, 152 knives,152 aprons and 152 buckets) and the construction of the FAO Thiaroye Technology (FTT) in Banjul.

The objectives of the project, is to increase and improve provision of goods and services from fisheries in a sustainable manner and strengthen fisheries value chains for income generation and employment creation.

In addition, Mr. Jallow noted that the TCP is also aimed at strengthening the capacity of fish processors and traders especially women, through the production of high-quality fish products using the newly introduced FTT and cold chain equipment to improve food security and income opportunities for the women fish smokers. Babou Cham, president of Banjul Beach Landing Site Association, appealed to stakeholders to assist the landing site with sanitary facilities because the existing ones are not in good shape.