By: Precious Miracle Kargbo
Minister of Transport and Aviation Fanday Turay has confirmed that his ministry will play a major role improving the transportation sector in enhancing the economic growth in Sierra Leone.
According to the transport technical advisor Dr Adam Steven at the Ministry of Transport and Aviation explains that the role of the Ministry is large and that it needs support to enhance all its activities in every sector of Transportation in the country. He furthers that the Ministry want to reassign ownership of transport infrastructure agencies and ensures that the strategic plan from the ministry which will run from 2024-2028 will guide them on their line of work at all time and gain full control of all transportation agencies operating in the country with special emphasis to the clearing and forwarding agencies.
Minister Fanday laments that for far too long the Ministry have not had a policy or destination where they want to go, so it will be impossible for the ministry to achieve a particular destination if there is no roadmap or plan to show directions on every step of decisions that are made in the Ministry’s interest. He added that over the past years the Ministry have answered the question of transport sector polices and they are still on the planning to ensure there is an agreement of how to gain funding and maintains government’s commitment on the need to ensure that services are catered in all sphere at the very best.
The Ministry secures the mandate to develop policies and provide guidelines in the delivering of safe, reliable and sustainable maritime land administration and the aviation system throughout the country and the several deliberations with international partners is all in the name to ensure a successive outcome for the ministry.
In her keynote statement, Minister of Planning and economic development, Kenyeh Barlay maintains that the effort from the Ministry of Transportation and Aviation is a part of President Bio’s five big game changers to give jobs and create opportunities for the young people in the country. She adds that the Ministry of Transport is at the heart of Technology administration pillar because the President carries a dream to transform a technological transportation infrastructure in the country that will make it easier for people and goods to move in the country and internationally in a safe, secure manner but this objective cannot be complete without an effective and efficient transportation system in the country. Madam Kenyeh highlights that the sector is the largest employer of youths in the country, so empowering it will help boost the human capital in the country.
Minister Barlay assures her commitment to a reform of the Transport sector and pleaded with all agencies to work directly and ensure that they all work with what is in the strategic plan to ensure its success and benefit the entire citizens of Sierra Leone.