Africa-Press – Gambia. Yonna Forex Bureau unveiled its Yonna Agri-Business initiative in The Gambia, offering tractors for sale accompanied by free mechanical assistance.
The ceremony, hosted key figures including Susheel Chander Badola, General Manager of Yonna Agri-Business Company Ltd, Momodou Barrow, General Manager of Yonna Forex Bureau Ltd, and Fatou Cham, Head of Business Development and Marketing.
Badola emphasized the importance of local food cultivation and community empowerment through investments in Agribusiness, offering a range of tractors to suit diverse farming needs, available not only at Yonna Islamic Microfinance but also actively inviting collaboration from various stakeholders.
“We want the Gambia to grow its own food cultivation, and we want to enrich the farmers and the communities to sustain themselves by going back to the land. And we have invested a lot of money into Agribusiness, we are providing tractors of different sizes and different powers. And they are available at Yonna Islamic Microfinance as well,” he said.
Badola extended an invitation to individuals, companies, and both governmental and non-governmental organizations to engage in the project actively.
“All of you are very welcome to this project. We have already supplied two loads of our tractors into the country, and this is the third load available right now. Every month we have different supplies for tractors that can be used in different farming sectors. All implements and all machines will be available from 60 horsepower to 225 horsepower,” the Agri-business General Manager said.He explained that as they set out on the journey towards mechanized agriculture in the Gambia, their aim was to empower those invested and interested in the project.
“In these activities, we will be giving them spare parts services, we will be giving them information on how to mechanize agriculture. We will be providing them with technical qualifications, and technical expertise so that they can understand how agricultural and mechanization systems work. We will be giving you spare parts services, and we will be providing you with mechanical information in case you have any breakdown of any of the machines. We will be coming up to you guys to sort it out,” he said.
Modou Barrow, General Manager of Yonna Forex Bureau, echoed the sentiment, encouraging interested parties to explore financing options at Yonna Islamic Microfinance.
“Today on this occasion we are trying to unveil the three batches of tractors of Yonna Agri-business. We have already assembled six tractors here with their trailers and other materials that are here with us. And before we hand them over to their beneficiaries, and then I’m sure others will be available for sale as well. So we are calling on people who are interested in tractors to ensure that they try to grow or increase their productivity in terms of agriculture. They can come to Yonna, and then I’m sure we will be very, very glad to receive them, and they will be able to really help them to acquire these tractors in the cheapest way,” he said.
Highlighting the accessibility of their offerings, Barrow stressed the availability of financing options for interested individuals, ensuring that acquiring tractors is feasible even for those with limited financial resources.
“Most of the time, customers don’t have a lot of money, or they think they don’t have a lot of money. We will encourage them that there are financing opportunities available at Yonna Islamic Microfinance where they will be assessed to ensure that they have a tractor financing facility,” he said.
Furthermore, Barrow outlined the broader vision of Yonna Agri-business, aiming to modernize Gambian agriculture, create employment opportunities, and stimulate economic growth, urging stakeholders to join hands in realizing this transformative initiative.
“What we want to see happen in the country is that people have to go into agriculture, as we say, is the backbone of this country. So, that means a lot of people are employed in agriculture, but then we are not mechanized, which means, we are still doing the old way of farming. So, with the intervention of Agribusiness, this will change in a short period of time because when you look around in the Gambia, you can buy all kinds of car fleets or luxury cars are available everywhere, but I’m not so sure if you can go around and talk to a company that’s selling a fleet of tractors. So we tend to think around that. And then I think this is a good opportunity for the country for everyone else to really partner with Yonna in making sure that food production in the country will be done by ourselves,” Mr Barrow said.
With the tractors conveniently accessible at all Yonna Islamic Microfinance branches across The Gambia, the initiative holds promise for revolutionizing agricultural practices and fostering sustainable development.
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