By: Hafsatu Z Bangura
The management of Sierra Leone Marine Time Authority (SLMA) has on the 2nd June 2023, turned sod on a Jetty Project at Yagoi, Bonthe District in the Southern province of the Republic of Sierra Leone. The management commence this project as a result of the manifesto promise made by His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio in 2018 to construct a Jetty for the free movement of trade across the region and to ensure the safety of people to travel across the sea.
The chairman of the occasion Mohamed Vandy welcomes the initiative by SLMA and team, stakeholders and the government who delivered their promise to make this project viable in their community and beyond.
The chairman said he was part of the various committee and engagements by the government and partners for the building of the jetty to bring solace to the problem of their people as the jetty is a major crossing point from Yagoi to Bonthe and another part of the country. This is to foster development in the region, he said.
The chairman said he was a strong supporter of the agenda of the president for the development of Yagoi jetty and entitled it a National Local development project to expand the livelihood of the people and to bring development to the doorsteps of the local community people as the area is a strategic tourism attraction area.
He further that the movement from one area to another in that part of the country is very difficult and they held several meetings at Mattru Jong and other communities to construct a jetty at Yagoi in order to facilitate the movement of people across the Ocean and ensured the gathering that they as community leaders and its people will make sure that the effort of SLMA and the president is maintained and sustained.
Delivering the keynote address, SLMA Executive Director Paul Sobba Massaquoi said, the SLMA is owned and supervised by the Ministry of Marine Resource and Aviation and that their duty is to look at people who travel by sea. The SLMA are the regulator for people who wanted to travel through our sea under the directive of their Board and Ministry.
He said they have held a series of consultations with community leaders and owners of land ranging from Sulima community, Yagoi and Netty which was accepted by the people to construct the jetty at Yagoi Village and that is why the project delayed
The plan to construct this project was from 2018 in line with the president’s manifesto but they were looking at the best way to do it without affecting the survival of the people, he explained.
He revealed that during the consultation engagement with the community people, they considered a compensation package for the people whose land may be affected by the construction of the jetty project and the location where the jetty is going to be located.
He maintained that the project will sustain the people for feature generations yet unborn, he said.
He concluded by urging the community people to take ownership of the project for sustainability as the main source of income is mainly fishing and farming in the area.
Many people made meaningful contributions to the programme including the Local Chief Alusine Foday, the Board chairman of SLMA Umaru Dumbuya, and Ibrahim Wurie SLMA safety Director among others.
The programme climaxed with the turning of the soil at the site which the engineer Rodney Collier of ASSIL Construction Company vow to include the community youth in the project for speedy conclusion within the period of one year.
