“I raised more than 20,000 dalasis in profit in four months,” says young poultry farmer

The proprietor of ML’s Poultry Firm, Modou Lamin Fatty, a 22-year-old entrepreneur, has described his poultry business as one of the most lucrative ventures in the country. ML, as he is fondly called, said the poultry business is one of many ventures that young people can pursue in order to earn a decent living.

According to the 22-year-old, he was inspired to start up his business because of a scarcity of chicken in local meat markets. “About 90% of the chicken we consume is imported and there are a lot of misconceptions attached to them. As a result, I deemed it fit to venture into this business, to give locals something that is home grown,” ML said.

Fatty explained that he acquired a sum of 100,000 dalasis from his family, as well as from his own savings, to start the business in February of this year. Within a few weeks of founding his business, Fatty started to reap the benefits of his investment.

“After investing this money in February and later selling my chicks, I have started to make profit. … I was able to recover my expenses and generate 20,000 dalasis in profit within a short period. Even though my farm is young, I’m able to employ two young people. I envisage to expand and create jobs for many young people in the not so distant future,” Fatty explained.

Only a few months into its existence, Modou Larmin Fatty’s farm has started to receive outside support. Fatty recently acquired a grant, as well as 250 broiler chicks and 20 pieces of equipment, from the Youth Empowerment Project. He also received funding from the Global Youth Innovative Network, who named his farm as a runner up for young agribusiness of the year.

The assistance, according to Modou Lamin Fatty, has helped stabilize his business. Fatty encourages other young Gambians to follow his lead.

“You see, many young people are obsessed with the idea of travelling to Europe through irregular means. Let me tell you, this is not only risky, it is a waste of time, because nowadays there is little or no guarantee that an irregular migrant will be granted asylum once he or she enters Europe. So I think it is about time for young people to venture into meaningful ventures like poultry farming,” Fatty said.

Modou Lamin Fatty is also a third-year student at the University of the Gambia, where he is studying agriculture.

Commenting on Fatty’s story, the manager of the Youth Empowerment Project cited Fatty’s business as one of the key success stories in Gambia. He added that the young entrepreneur is an example for many young people to follow.

TMP – 16/08/2018

Photo caption: Modou Lamin Fatty, a successful young Gambian poultry farmer