Gambia - Food and Agriculture Sector Development Project (FASDEP)

The Gambia has a narrow economic base relying heavily on agriculture, which provides employment for about 75% of the labor force. Performance of the sector has fluctuated, contributing on average 22.3% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2012, and a growth rate of 4%. Despite its potential, agricultural production evidences low and unpredictable yields and high susceptibility to droughts and erratic climate patterns. The sector is basically rain-fed, with only 3% of the arable land estimated under irrigation. The prevalence of drought as a climatic phenomenon was very severe in 2011 to the extent that the gains in the sector were almost completely wiped-off in a single year’s drought situation. The Food and Agriculture Sector Development Project (FASDEP) seeks to reduce rural household poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition (stakeholders resilience) through increased agricultural production and productivity, and commercialization. The FASDEP will be implemented over a five-year period, and it covers three administrative regions comprising of four agricultural regions namely :(i) Central River Region-North (CRR-N) ; (ii) Central River Region-South (CRR-S) ; (iii) Lower River Region (LRR) ; and (iv) West Coast Region (WCR), where poverty and food insecurity is endemic, when compared to other regions in Gambia. The total cost of the project is USD 27.3 million consisting of USD 26.6 million from GAFSP (Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme) and USD 0.7 million from the GoTG (Governement of The Gambia).