Floriculture is the growing of flowers and the sector is among those that are affected by the pandemic in Gambia. Madam Thelma Ndella Cole, vice president of the Floricultural Association Garden on the Bertil Harding Highway, said it has been very difficult for them as growers since the covid-19 outbreak.
“From the onset of the pandemic, buying flowers was the least people could think about. So our business was down. If I say down, I mean our business was and still is down for about a year, most of us depend on growing and selling flowers for our livelihood, we live by hand to mouth, this is where we feed our family."
“Looking at the tourism sector, hotel owners come to buy flowers from us to beautify their hotels for tourist attractions, but with the advent of Covid-19, most hotels are closed and tourists are not coming in. So they are no longer buying flowers, and they are one of our biggest clients,” she said. Modou Keita, a vendor who sells flowers at the Bertil Harding Highway, said they are affected in every 100 sales. According to him, if the profit was 80, currently it has dropped to 20 in a 100. “This is how bad our businesses have been affected,” Keita said.
A vendor who preferred to remain anonymous and spent most of his life selling and growing flowers laments the low-income sales since Covid-19 erupted. “I have been growing and selling flowers here for over 14years. Since the corona struck, sales have dropped, and it has been this way for the past years. I just hope and pray that Corona is finally gone, because this is my source of living, I depend entirely on this business to feed my family and it has been very difficult for me since then. The tourism season is like any other season these days because it makes no difference, my business used to be very lively and profitable, but not anymore,” he said.
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