The World Bank Vice President for Africa West and Central Region, Ousmane Diagana, has reaffirmed the Bank’s commitment to strengthening its development partnership with Sierra Leone.
Diagana, accompanied by the World Bank’s new Country Manager for Sierra Leone, Issatou Jalloh, made the commitment during a high-level visit to the country, which included a courtesy call on Minister of Finance Karefa A. F. Kargbo.
Welcoming the delegation, Minister Kargbo described the visit as an honour and highlighted the significance of the World Bank’s extensive portfolio and contribution to Sierra Leone’s national development.
Diagana congratulated Minister Kargbo on his appointment and expressed his pleasure at returning to Sierra Leone. He emphasized the importance of ensuring that World Bank-supported programmes deliver measurable results, stressing that development outcomes should correspond with the resources disbursed.
The discussions focused on several of the Minister’s priorities, including fiscal discipline, domestic revenue mobilization and effective cash-flow management. They also examined the Bank’s support for social cohesion and improved access to public services across Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
A key focus of the engagement was the Country Partnership Framework (CPF), which will guide the World Bank’s future engagement and investment priorities in Sierra Leone.
Minister Kargbo assured the delegation of the Government’s commitment to meeting the required deadlines, particularly in view of the approximately US$600 million financing envelope available to the country.
He called for frank dialogue, clear benchmarks and stronger coordination to ensure that Sierra Leone meets its commitments and remains eligible for future financing.
The Minister also highlighted the Development Policy Operation (DPO), a financing instrument that provides budget support linked to agreed policy and institutional reforms. He stressed the importance of meeting the DPO requirements and said the Government expects outstanding processes to be completed by the end of October.
The courtesy meeting was followed by a high-level session with selected Cabinet Ministers, who presented achievements, priorities and challenges within their respective sectors.
Ministers responsible for Health; Technical and Higher Education; Basic and Senior Secondary Education; Gender and Children’s Affairs; Fisheries; Transport and Aviation; Environment and Climate Change; Energy; Communication, Technology and Innovation; and Lands outlined the impact of World Bank interventions and identified areas requiring additional support.
The World Bank delegation welcomed the presentations, using the session to assess progress, discuss implementation challenges and explore opportunities for strengthening the impact of its programmes.
Financial Secretary Matthew Dingie noted that the Ministry of Finance plays a central role in negotiating financial agreements, after which resources are channelled to the relevant ministries for implementation.
He described Sierra Leone as fortunate to continue receiving the World Bank’s attention and support and expressed hope for additional financing.
In his closing remarks, Minister Kargbo described the World Bank as a trusted development partner that understands Sierra Leone’s challenges and aspirations. He, however, stressed that Government must also fulfil its commitments and ensure that agreed programmes produce tangible results.
The engagement underscored the shared commitment to stronger accountability, effective implementation and greater development impact from World Bank-supported investments.
The session concluded with Deputy Minister of Finance II, Isata Marah, presenting souvenirs to the World Bank delegation as a gesture of appreciation for Diagana’s visit and the Bank’s continued support to Sierra Leone