December 15, 2021
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Intl Cooperation, Mamadi Gobeh Kamara, on Thursday Dec 10, presented four agreements for ratification to the house of parliament. They include the Agreements on;
- Trade and Economic Cooperation,
- Elimination of Double taxation with respect to income tax,
- Protocol of Cooperation in science and technology between Sierra Leone and Turkey and
- Protocol of cooperation on Higher Education between both countries.
Speaking to members of parliament, the deputy foreign minister gave a step-by-step explanation about the benefits of the various instruments to the government and people of both countries.
The agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation she said, reaffirms the government of Sierra Leone’s commitment to scaling up economic relations with Turkey as well as reinforce cooperation in the public and private sectors on the foundation to raise the mutual foreign trade volumes between both countries to over USD100 million. The government of Sierra Leone she informed her audience recognizes on going trade and investment interests by both the public and private sectors of both countries, therefore an agreement of this nature will further boost the increasing economic and trade ties between “our two countries.
The agreement on the Elimination of Double Taxation with respect to Tax on Income and the prevention of Tax Evasion and Avoidance, Deputy Minister Mamadi Gobeh Kamara noted, will prevent taxpayers from paying double taxes on income earned from the source country as well as ensure that our tax laws are not manipulated.
The Protocol of Cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation between the Ministry of Technical and Higher Education and the directorate of science Technology & Innovation of SL and the Scientific and Technological research council of Turkey (Tubitak) will strengthen cooperation and facilitate exchange programs between students and academic staffs of both countries through research programs, workshops, seminars and academic sabbaticals.
The fourth agreement, Protocol of Cooperation on Higher Education Scholarships between the Ministry of Technical and Higher Education of Sierra Leone and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism the Presidency for Turks abroad and related communities, will pave the way for more scholarship offers in the fields of Medicine, Engineering, Science and Technology to meet the human capital development priorities of Sierra Leone. The award of scholarships will be done through merits and deserving students from various universities across the country will benefit from the scheme.
Responding the chairman of the committee on Foreign Affairs, Alhaji Ibrahim Ben Kargbo commended the leadership of the ministry for what they’ve achieved in this short space of time since assuming their role in the Ministry. He noted that the number of agreements and protocols ratified by the house of parliament in the last seven months points to the fact that President Bio made the right choice with the choice of Minister and his Deputy to manned the affairs of this all-important Ministry. He assured the deputy minister that his committee in parliament will continue to provide the right oversight for the Ministry, so that they will continue to work hard in achieving the Ministry’s objectives. Other members of parliament including the deputy leader of government business, Hon Bashiru Silikie called on colleague MP’s to monitor the implementation of the contents of these agreements, so as to ensure that their contents are fully implemented for the benefit of all.