Agricultural health in The Gambia I: Agricultural practices and developments.

This manuscript reports results of our study to characterize the historical developments of agricultural practices in The Gambia and related health risks of farm workers. It surveys the various factors that shape production agriculture in the country and examines the degrees to which hand tools, animal traction, motorized traction and manual labour all contribute to the inherent hazards of farm work. The principal objective of this study is to lay the ground work for detailed research of occupational health hazards in Gambian agriculture; and development of policies and programmes to promote the health of Gambian farmers. The authors of this paper assume the belief that one must first understand the industry and its people before effective policies and programmes can be developed. The study concludes by highlighting the need for the integration of epidemiological investigations in the country's agricultural research programme.