I sent this last evening but never made it out of my server.
Malanding
-----Original Message-----
From: Malanding Jaiteh [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Monday, March 10, 2003 4:16 PM
To: L-Soft list server at St. John's University (1.8d)
Subject: The way out of poor performance
I am not an expert in finance but the, HPIC "refund", 125 tractors and
aggressive tax collection will not make a dent if:
Our agricultural system continues to be totally dependent on rainfall.
Government continues to spend beyond whatever our income is.
On agriculture: The problem is not only we have too little rains but how we
utilize the little we receive. It cannot be overstated that Gambians are too
dependent on a very unreliable system. While there is little evidence that
our climate has changed for good, it would be fool-hardy to believe that
rainfall patterns will any soon return to the pre-1970s average. I might be
alone in this but I believe that millet could pay perhaps as much as
groundnut if it receives the level of subsidy and marketing groundnut gets.
The added advantage is that we do not have to rely on another Alimanta to
market it. More importantly it does not need the amount of on-farm labor
required by both groundnuts and rice. In that case leaving little
justification for banning Nawetan! Another important benefit is that we
really do not have to rely on annual floods or salt controls to grow millet.
For those who believe that we need to sell something to Europe to earn some
Euros, my advice let's try some other crops. With proper processing and
marketing strategies, vegetable gardening has proven to be very profitable.
It would be great benefit if our agricultural experts could study the cost
benefit of growing vegetables in Jahally-Pacharr instead of rice.
While we all may argue about the ways to keep government spending in check
we agree on one thing and that is we are spending beyond our means.
Financial success depends more on controlling spending that maximizing
revenue. To control spending the government must eliminate:
1. the Presidential jet.
2. fighter jets
3. excessive government travel. That is both internal (travel between Banjul
and Kaninlai) and external.
In addition, give up HPIC "refund" for a clean debt free life. Common sense
will tell us that the D113M from HPIC against 286M in debt servicing is not
going to reduce the deficit.
Malanding
Jammeh still Gambian economy will continue to suffer as long as we continue
live beyond our means.
Jammeh Explains Govt's Poor Performance
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The Independent (Banjul)
March 10, 2003
Posted to the web March 10, 2003
PK Jarju
Banjul
President Jammeh has told members of the National Assembly that a
combination of factors is responsible for the poor economic performance of
his government and the constant depreciation of the Dalasi and consequent
price instability.
Speaking at the State opening of the National Assembly Thursday, President
Jammeh explained that The Gambia has been adversely affected by the scarcity
of rainfall, dwindling domestic production of the main cash crops as trade
restrictions on the external front experienced along the country's borders
with her neighbours take its toll on the economy.
He also blamed the September 11 terrorist attack in the United States for a
huge fall in trade and significant drop in tourist arrivals.
President Jammeh believes that the Gambian economy was at the receiving end
of these inimical developments, culminating in continuous depreciation of
the Dalasi. He added that this has sometimes made the attainment of his
administration's stated policies seem elusive especially in targeting to
establish and maintain a sound, stable, liberal, transparent and effective
macroeconomic management system that would lead to increased growth and
poverty reduction.
He added that the country has now reached a decisive point in the HIPC
initiative begun in December 2000 whilst interim debt relief started
subsequently and funds amounting to D94, 308,568 and D103, 308,586 were
received in 2001 and 2002 respectively. He added that the bulk of these
funds were used on poverty reduction expenditures mainly in the social
sectors. President Jammeh further noted that this year, the HIPC initiative
is providing funds amounting to D110, 000,000 most of which would focus on
poverty reduction expenditure areas. He added that the Gambia is about to
enter into its completion point at the end of June this year to obtain a
permanent debt relief under the HIPC initiative which the Department of
State for Finance and Economic Affairs is collaborating with other
stakeholders in trying to meet the targets set for completion. He added that
to sharpen the effectiveness of the country's infrastructure, some
structural reforms have already been embarked upon including the
establishment of an independent Revenue Authority to bring Customs and
Excise and Central Revenue Department under one administration and
professionalise tax collection and administration so as to raise the tax-GDP
ratio.
He stressed that in line with today's requirement for transparency,
accountability and probity and the need for government to properly plan its
procurement operations against a backdrop of resource scarcity, government
must redouble its efforts to keep expenditures in check particularly in the
areas of procurement where huge amounts of resources are used in the
acquisition of a wide range of goods and services. This he said demands that
the procurement process must be accomplished in a capable and professional
manner to ensure efficiency and economy through which value for money can be
achieved for the ultimate purpose of safeguarding government's interest in
its drive for sustainable economic development and growth.
Agriculture On agriculture, President Jammeh stated that as a result of the
lack of rains, cumulative coarse grain production has also declined from
167,000 metric tons in 2001/2002 to a 118,407 metric ton loss whilst swamp
rice recorded the biggest loss with a reduction of about 74 percent (i.e
2,420 metric tons) in production in comparison to last year's total
production of 9,322 metric tons. He added that groundnut production also
registered a sharp decline of 47 percent from 151,069 metric tons produced
in 2000/2001 when compared to this year's total output of 71, 526 metric
tons. He added that another factor responsible for the decline in production
is the problem of the quality of the entire produce, which has dropped
sharply making it unsuitable as planting materials for the next cropping
season. He added that a number of key projects and programme interventions
have been undertaken in the past year to increase agricultural production,
improve food security and increase the income earning capacity of farmers.
He added that in a bid to further increase agricultural production and meet
the strategic objectives for food self sufficiency and increased export
particularly for non-traditional crops, the current policy is to shift away
from subsistence agriculture to a more dynamic, commercially oriented
production aimed at making farming a viable business undertaking. He added
that 125 tractors equipped with accessories would be distributed to farmers.
Health and social welfare On health, President Jammeh stated that the
quality of health service delivery has improved immensely. He added that
infant, child and maternal mortality rates are declining and exclusive
breast-feeding is increasing whilst life expectancy in the country is now
close to 60 years.
He added that government would continue to fight against malaria, diarhoea
and acute respiratory illness, which continue to be the major child killer.
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