ThreshWorks is driven by a founding team of passionate engineers and strategists united by one goal — building practical technology that makes a real difference for smallholder farmers in The Gambia and beyond.
Three women driving agricultural innovation in The Gambia — combining strategy & finance, operations, and marketing & partnerships to build technology that matters.
Isatou AB Jallow leads ThreshWorks' strategic direction and financial planning. Her focus is growth, strategy, and partnerships. As Director of Strategy and Finance, she develops the business model, identifies target markets, builds partnerships with farmer cooperatives, NGOs, and government programmes, leads funding and grant applications, develops sales strategy, coordinates with organisations supporting agriculture in The Gambia, and defines the long-term vision and expansion strategy while managing finance and budgets.
The outcome she is responsible for: ThreshWorks grows, gains partners, and generates revenue. Her work includes the organisation's relationships with UNDP and The People of Japan and developing financial models that ensure the ThreshWorks rice thresher remains affordable and accessible for the smallholder farming communities it is designed to serve.
"Our goal is to build something that lasts — technology that farmers can actually access and that continues to serve communities long after the initial development phase."
Awa Badjie focuses on building the machines and running operations. As Director of Operations, she oversees engineering and prototype development, manages production and fabrication, supervises machine assembly and testing, ensures quality control, manages procurement of materials and equipment, coordinates workshop activities, and oversees technical staff or technicians.
The outcome she is responsible for: Machines are designed, built, tested, and working properly. Awa ensures the team's work translates into real-world progress — coordinating field visits to farming regions in CRR and WCR and maintaining the organisation's relationships with operational partners including USET.
"The machine has to work in the field — not just in a workshop. My job is to make sure we stay connected to that reality at every stage of development."
Sally AB Manneh focuses on communication and visibility. As Director of Marketing & Partnerships, she manages social media pages, handles public communication, develops marketing strategies, creates promotional materials, manages outreach and awareness campaigns, maintains relationships with stakeholders, manages the company's presence on LinkedIn, and coordinates media opportunities.
The outcome she is responsible for: People know about ThreshWorks and its innovations. Sally ensures that ThreshWorks' mission and impact reach the right audiences — from partners and funders to farming communities and the wider public.
"People need to know what ThreshWorks is doing — and why it matters. My job is to make sure our story reaches the right people and that our innovations get the visibility they deserve."
ThreshWorks was not founded by accident. Isatou, Awa, and Sally came together because they shared a recognition — that the challenges facing smallholder farmers in The Gambia were not going to be solved by importing technology designed elsewhere.
They understood the problem from the inside. Growing up in The Gambia, seeing the realities of smallholder farming firsthand, and combining that with formal education in engineering, finance, and operations gave the ThreshWorks founding team a perspective that few agricultural technology startups possess.
This is not just a project. For Isatou, Awa, and Sally, ThreshWorks is a commitment — to their country, to its farming communities, and to the idea that practical technology, designed with care and engineered with rigour, can genuinely change lives.
ThreshWorks is looking for partners, collaborators, and supporters who share our passion for agricultural innovation and our commitment to improving lives for smallholder farmers. Whether you are an NGO, a researcher, a funder, or an institution — we would love to hear from you.
Explore partnership opportunities or get in touch with the team directly.