By: Aaron Bundu Lahai
On Saturday 2nd November, 2024 the Honourable Vice President Commenced harvesting of his rice farm at Yeamia Village, Mathen Section, Lokomasama Chiefdom in the Portloko District. The Vice President of Sierra Leone disclosed that he was in the village for the symbolic harvesting of the community rice farm which he is supporting together with the community. He narrated that the one hundred acres of land was bought by him, and he mobilized and set up a team of community members to farm the land. He revealed that the original objective for purchasing the land was for planting corn but the community planted rice on the land because of the time constraint. Dr Jalloh informed that he is joining the community to own the farm and plant crops, noting that the rice farm is part of the community’s contribution to President Julius Maada Bio’s Feed Salone initiative meant for Sierra Leoneans to feed themselves.
Vice President Jalloh believed that the rice farm has impacted the Yeamia community enormously by creating jobs for young people who are charged with the brushing, management and security of the farm. He encouraged well meaning Sierra Leoneans and business people that Yeamia village and the Lokomasama Chiefdom have fertile land to grow food for consumption by Sierra Leoneans as pronounced by President Bio. He recalled promising the Yeamia people about his plans to embark on agriculture at the time he was in the village to secure the one hundred acres land few months ago, he hopes the farm would impact the community and continue to create job opportunity for young people particularly females. He continued the farm would also support the community’s support to Feed Salone.
He again revealed that corn is going to be planted on the farm in the next farming season, adding that corn is very critical for chicken feed. He assured the community people to look into the request made by the Paramount Chief of Lokomasama Chiefdom for the extension of the Yeamia community farm initiative to other parts of the chiefdom, stressing that he would work together with other stakeholders from Portloko District to achieve the community farm extension initiative. Prominent stakeholders that were present at the symbolic rice harvesting ceremony include Mrs. Emilia Gogra-Deputy Minister of Basic Education, Honourable Alpha Khan-Presidential Spokesman, Honourable Sankoh Yilla representing Portloko District in the present Sierra Leone Parliament and others.
The Honourable Vice President described the farm as a community driven enterprise that should be owned by the community people. He encouraged the community people to see the farm as their development since it creates jobs for them, and it also helps their local economy. He assured that the community people would be the first to test the harvested rice.
Vice President Jalloh made a stopover at the Pee Cee Agricultural Farm Limited at Mathen Village where he was taken on a conducted tour of the farm facilities by the Farm Consultant Luc Teriyn. He visited the farm reservoir, water pumping station, storage facility, and the farm itself. After the tour, the Vice President said that Sierra Leone expenditure on food import was thirty-five percent between 2017-2019, though it has reduced to twenty-five percent from 2019-2023. He told the press that one main objective of President Bio’s vision which is Feed Salone is to reduce the dependency on food importation and invest in domestic food production, by building the infrastructure such as road, energy, irrigation to support production. He said that Government has created the enabling environment for private sector investment in agriculture, adding that Pee Cee Agriculture Limited is the largest producer of onions in Sierra Leone that has contributed to the reduction of onion importation by ten percent.
Paramount Chief Bai Marrow Raka III of Lokomasama Chiefdom thanked Vice President Jalloh for establishing a farm in his chiefdom, and he called on his people to join hands with the Vice President to ensure the farm benefits everybody in the community. He requested for the Yeamia community farm initiative to be replicated across the chiefdom.
Pa Adelikalie Sesay-Chiefdom Speaker of Lokomasama Chiefdom who doubles as the manager of the Yeamia community farm expressed appreciation to Vice President Jalloh for bringing President Bio’s Feed Salone programme to the community. He referred to the symbolic harvesting by Vice President Jalloh as a test case to show that people can feed themselves from community farming. He encouraged people to utilize the bush through farming in order to feed themselves. He disclosed that over fifty people are presently working on the farm.
Madam Emma Abshr Kamara, one of the women working in the farming thanked Vice President Jalloh for bringing the community farm initiative to Yeamia Village. She expressed happiness for the employment opportunities the farm has created for young men and women in the village, noting that the community farm has reduced the idleness among the youths as well as brought development to the people.
