Malanding,
Thank you for raising this important issues and the contributuions are quite
challenging and interesting.
I guess this discussion could not come from a better time than this time
when we are struggling to get rid of Jammeh and his government. I agree with
Malanding points but I guess I belong to the other of school of thought that
believes the only way we can solve our problems in Gambia is to address the
leadership defect and corruption which I guess Joe, jabou et al had
emphasised on-
We can discuss about all kinds of solutions to the Gambian agricultural
system but one thing we should be very clear of is that development will not
just happen if we don’t get the politics right. Politics is an important
factor, since it functions as the co-ordinator of all other factors.
Credible governance structures will be prudent in managing the other factors
towards development. It is only credible governance that would commence
rewriting the Gambian experience, bearing the past in mind, with the aim of
making the future better for Gambians. I am of the belief that if the
structures of governance are not fixed, irresponsible governance will
continue to scuttle Gambia’s dreams and prospects.
Today the Gambia hosts poverty and it is in various stages of decay and
certain implosion
How do we arrest this unrestrained slide into poverty and underdevelopment?
How do we reposition Gambia on the path to sustainable development? We
believe that the above questions can begin to be answered by the emplacement
of good governance and structures that sustains and nourishes accountability
in governance, in Gambia.
For me, government is a combination of “political leadership, government
institutions and capacity, and strong engaged civil society. Good governance
requires all of these three facets. It means developing a representative and
participatory democracy with an accountable government, as well as an active
and informed civil society. It means developing effective public machinery
and institutions and their capacity. It means strengthening the rule of law,
respect for human rights, a fair and transparent judiciary, universal access
to justice, forums for complaints, appeal and redress and enforcement of
property rights. Good governance does mean responsible economic management”.
But it means all of these other things as well. And this integral concept of
governance is what Gambia lacks both in terms and in fact today.
The absence of these concept and structures of governance in today’s Gambia
conduced to the rise of a host of unvarnished scoundrels, who occupied the
epicentres of power in Gambia. The Jammeh regime has succeeded in running
Gambia aground in the sandbanks of poverty.
So for me, it is not rocket Science or Brain surgery; it is Leadership the
driver of Gambia’s problem TODAY is leadership. Gambia’s failure to escape
from poverty, after forty five years of independence, and over millions
Dollars Development aid, is squarely the failure of leadership. To state it
without rhetoric or embroideries: the major trouble with Gambia today is
that felons, who should be inhabiting maximum security prison yards, are the
ones occupying the seats of power; residing in the government houses in
Gambia; masquerading as leaders. The only difference lies in the fact that
where the colonial masters consulted imperial interests, our leaders
substituted it with primeval interests of egocentric and avaricious
dimensions.
I will end by quoting Ogbunwezeh, E. F. who said” It is only in immoral
climes that thieves have cheerleaders”
The Struggle Continues!!!
Ndey Jobarteh
>From: Joe Sambou Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
> To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: A grand dream for a
>grand plan for Education Date: Wed, 13 Sep 2006 22:52:40 +0000
>
>Malanding, I like your dream and I wish it was the only variable.
>Question, what do we do with our current farmers, most of whom do not have
>formal education and depend on their farms for survival? They have to
>live, in the interim. The amount of foreign exchange we spend buying our
>food from the outside at exorbitant prices is also not acceptable. Also,
>to achieve the results your dream, the infrastructure (not buildings) to
>make the dream needs to be in place.
>
>I would also argue that corruption and embezzlement is the dead weight that
>any government in the Gambia must shed first, because, the very resources
>you want to rely on for your education dream will be sucked dry, the reason
>why, forty years after independence, we still rely on the moon to see at
>night for the most part; the reason why our classrooms are not equipped and
>teachers not highly trained; the reason why the culture and arts are
>neglected; the reason why folks are dying for lack of basic health care;
>and on and on. This is the same story all over Africa. Corruption is all
>over the world, but unlike other places that have checks and balances, and
>a stick for punishment, ours is accepted and some how infused in our
>culture and everything goes with no checks and balances, especially those
>at the top of the food chain. Within the space of your projection, if we
>cut out corruption and embezzlement but 50%, there is no doubt that we can
>begin to get our act together. The APRC certainly will never address their
>corrupt practices. Thanks for your thoughts.
>
>Chi Jaama
>
>Joe
>
>
>>From: Malanding Jaiteh Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing
>>list
>>
>>To: [log in to unmask] Subject: A grand dream for a grand plan
>>for Education Date: Wed, 13 Sep 2006 14:20:34 -0400
>>
>>If one is to go by the NADD Manifesto, The Alliance's Document and the
>>statement by SoS Touray that the APRC government is to provide farmers 500
>>tractors, looks like Gambians are poised for the same old, same old - dump
>>more of our hard borrowed cash into the agriculture basket. By now it
>>should be clear to all that the trouble in the agricultural sector is more
>>than just lack of funding. Few would disagree that dispite two
>>governments, aid from two Chinas plus the West and even Iran, countless
>>Departments of Agriculture, projects (Mixed Farming, GARD, Jahali-Pacharr,
>>LADEP) institutions and agencies (NARI, NADA), and billion of Dalasi,
>>the Gambia is neither self-sufficient in food production nor has it
>>increase earning from agriculture. Infact the contribution of agriculture
>>to our national economy has been on the decline while all these is going
>>on. Given the current state of the physical environment (climate and water
>>resources) and economic environment (globalization and crop pricing), it
>>is hard to imagine what agriculture can do for the Gambia. Given the
>>above, I would argue that it is high time we take a second look at
>>agriculture (represented by the Axe and the Hoe on our coat of arm) as the
>>engine to national development efforts since independence. I would go a
>>step further to ask the incoming government (APRC, NADD or The Alliance)
>>to make a "put man on the moon" kind of declaration on education.
>>Cornerstone of this would be immediate expansion of the University system
>>and begining 2010 to train free of charge:
>>
>>2500 undergraduate degree and 100 graduates each year (2010 - 2015) 5000
>>undergrads and 500 graduate degrees ( after 2015)
>>
>>In addition to free training, the government should negotiate with US, EU
>>and other large economies to help provide these with temporary worker
>>visa. In return the students will be required to pay through their
>>employers 10% of their salary towards re-embursing the Gambia government.
>>The idea is to borrow and invest in a product more marketable than
>>peanuts.
>>
>>Some back of the envelop calculation: At the end of the fourth year, with
>>10000 students * $2,500 per year tuition is $25,000,000 (the cost of 500
>>tractors) suppose 50% of those landed in a job in the UK or US ($35000)
>>per year. Remittance at 10% of salary is $3,500 * 5000 = $17,500,000. Nay
>>Bad! and defintely more than what we get from peanuts these days. This
>>would not include money sent home to family and friend, on vacations
>>(knowing you do not have to worry about the visa office), on a retirement
>>house or two (every Gambians wish). Infact we are losing that many to
>>immigration as we speak. Just that the ones we are losing now are less
>>prepared to survive in Babilon, with barely a driver license much more a
>>high school diploma to compete the skilled labor from Poland or Mexico.
>>
>>Perhaps I am just dreaming. Certainly I do hope its a dream come true.
>>
>>Malanding Jaiteh
>>
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