National Agricultural Investment Plan (GNAIP) 2011-2015.

The Gambia National Agricultural Investment Plan (GNAIP) is a medium-term (2011-2015) strategic plan to achieve the vision for the agricultural and natural resources (ANR) sector and food security in the country within the framework of the New Partnership for Africa (NEPAD) Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP). Fully aligned with the national goals of Vision 2020 it supports the realization of main national strategies, including the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper II (PRSP II 2007-2011) and the ANR Sector Policy (2010). The GNAIP has six strategic programmes: P1: Improved Agricultural Land and Water Management aims to increase food security, income generating capacity and nutritional status of the farmer beneficiaries especially women and youth through the use of sustainable land and water management practice. P1 comprises three components: (i) Lowland Development for Rice Production; (ii) Irrigation for Horticulture and Upland Crops; and (iii) Capacity Building of Support Services Institutions. P4: National Food and Nutritional Security has the objective to improve national and household food security and adequate nutritional levels, including during periods of disaster, with GNAIP attention to targeting the most vulnerable groups and households of rural and urban communities. This will be achieved through two components: (i) National Food Security; and (ii) Disaster Risk Management.
The proposed interventions are expected to achieve at least 8% growth in the agricultural sector and this combined with non-agricultural growth could stimulate the level of growth needed in the sector to transform the country’s rural areas and to significantly reduce poverty levels. P2: Improved Management of the Other Shared Resources aims to improve livelihoods and food security, and reduce poverty of populations that depend on The Gambia’s other shared natural resources (including rangelands, forests, fisheries, parks and wildlife) through sustainable management and use of these resources. The Programme comprises three components: (i) Management of Rangelands and Organization of Transhumance; (ii) Sustainable Management of Forest Resources; and (iii) Ensuring Sustainable Management of Fisheries Resources.
The Overall Goal of GNAIP is achieving an increased contribution of the ANR sector to the national economy by improving productivity through commercialization and active private sector participation on national macroeconomic framework aimed at enhanced growth and poverty reduction. To meet this goal, the Development Objective of GNAIP is to increase food and nutritional security and household incomes including for vulnerable households through increased ANR production, productivity and marketed output, based on sustainable use and management of natural resources in support of national goals of poverty reduction and improved livelihoods.
In addition, P3 deals with: Development of Agricultural Chains and Market Promotion aims to transform the agricultural sector from a traditional subsistence economy to a modern market-oriented commercial sector with well integrated food chains and a viable agro-processing private sector, resulting in increased incomes of agricultural value chain actors (including farmers, input suppliers, processors, traders and exporters). P3 comprises three components: (i) Development of Agricultural Marketing Chains (including food crops, groundnut, horticulture, agro-forestry food products, shortcycle livestock, dairy products and fisheries products); (ii) Strengthening of National Operator Support Services and Structures; and (iii) Development of Domestic, Intra-regional and Extra-regional Markets.
P5: Sustainable Farm Development aims to achieve increased and sustained agricultural production and productivity growth by introducing agricultural practices through people-centred learning processes that enhance and conserve local natural resources and the environment, and help smallholder farmers to adapt to climate change. The Programme comprises three components: (i) Sustainable Farm Management; (ii) Land Use Suitability and Land Tenure Security; and (iii) Capacity Building of Support Services and Farmer Organizations. P6: GNAIP Coordination, Monitoring and Evaluation is a precondition for effective implementation of the Technical Programmes 1-5 and achieving the stated objectives. It comprises four components: (i) Institutional Arrangements and Coordination; (ii) Financing Mechanisms; (iii) Monitoring and Evaluation; and (iv) Implementation Capacity Building.
In the context of governance, the last policy (2000-2004) institutionalised the National Nutrition Agency (NaNA) mandating it to coordinate nutrition and nutrition-related activities in The Gambia. In 2005, the National Assembly enacted the Food Act 2005, which established NaNA as a legal entity with defined roles and responsibilities. A number of institutions and organizations are actively involved in the area of nutrition as a developmental issue. At national level, NaNA will work with Regional Technical Advisory Committees for effective coordination and monitoring of nutrition and nutrition related interventions. At the community level, NaNA will work through and with existing local government and community based structures to implement the policy.