Presidential Lodge, Freetown, Tuesday 20 February 2024 – His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio has received Dr George Agyekum Donkor, President of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development, EBID, who prefaced his meeting with a condolence message to the Bio and Jalloh families for the death of the late Mrs. Agnes Deen-Jalloh, the President’s elder sister.
Chief Minister David Moinina Sengeh, introduced the team, stating the purpose that the visit was prompted by an engagement President Bio had with them a few years ago, where he invited them to come and invest in Sierra Leone. He said the bank had, therefore, expressed the desire to invest in the country.
Acting Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kadiatu Alie, informed that they had had fruitful initial engagements on some ongoing projects and others that were expected to start, as well as on how to engage the Bank on new creative ways for the full participation of Sierra Leone in the Bank’s activities.
President of EBID, Dr Donkor, thanked the President for receiving them, stating that, “His Excellency, we are here as a follow-up on our discussion in Brussels on several issues”.
He recalled that they had had initial discussions with the deputy minister of finance and team and were looking forward to actualising them, stressing that the bank was in Sierra Leone to initially invest $200 million, especially on the construction of Kono University and other projects.
Dr Donkor said the Medium-Term National Development Plan was a very laudable initiative by the government because it captured important issues including the FEED SALONE, Human Capital Development, Job Creation and Cashless Economy which aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.
“All your enablers, including promoting growth and diversifying the economy, accountability and governance, gender mainstreaming are very important issues that align with the strategy of the Bank.
“His Excellency, I would like to assure you that EBID will commit to supporting your government in implementing your agenda as we go through this process, and to further inform you that we are here to strengthen the relationship. We…are very mindful of the good initiative that you have,” he affirmed.
President Julius Maada Bio accepted the condolence message on behalf of his family and welcomed them to Sierra Leone. He said he was excited to know that the Bank had kept to its promise of coming to strengthen the relationship with the country.
He reminded the team that “we are aware of the fact that we are lagging behind in terms of keeping a strong tie with the bank in the area of our involvement in the activities that should be beneficial to us.
“We will try to increase our activities henceforth. We want to see how we can accelerate the level of our activities with the Bank on the many things that we have to do in the country”.
President Bio informed the Bank of how his government started with education in his first term, where a solid foundation had been laid despite the difficulties. He pointed out that his second term would focus on agriculture as the flagship project, adding that “we want to stimulate economic growth, attack unemployment, and also make sure food security is assured.
“So, in addition to continuing to consolidate education, we are now focusing heavily on food security. I hope that with the $200 million and by working with other players, the bank will be able to increase that investment,” the president urged.
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