Sierra Leone Telegraph: 22 January 2022:
EU Ambassador to Sierra Leone – Manuel Müller and the Head of Cooperation, Gerald Hatler early this week presented the European Union – Sierra Leone cooperation strategy 2021-2027 to the country’s Minister of Planning and Economic Development, Dr Francis Kaikai and a host of other State authorities in Freetown.
Ambassador Müller said that the EU’s cooperation with Sierra Leone is based on shared values, and is committed to support the Government of Sierra Leone’s development initiatives to foster sustainable peace, unity and prosperity.
The cooperation strategy document also known as the Multi-Annual Indicative Programme (MIP) for Sierra Leone 2021 – 2027, focuses on three main priorities. They include Green Economy, Human Development and Governance.
Green Economy – focuses on addressing the crucial social issue of addressing decent jobs and a sustainable, inclusive green economic transformation. It aims to increase access to a modern, sustainable, affordable and reliable energy for jobs and growth and to develop a sustainable, employment-oriented agriculture and fisheries food systems for health and nutrition security. It. This component will also specifically focus on addressing restoration, management and protection of terrestrial and marine biodiversity and ecosystems in Sierra Leone.
Human Development – this component focuses on creating an enabling environment for people to enjoy long, healthy and creative lives through sustainable investment in Basic and Secondary Education and TVET, improving the quality literacy and numeracy, skills and qualifications of the population. It will also address social protection issues with the objective of reducing vulnerabilities and enable sustainable growth.
Governance – the EU aims to promote democratic institutions, fundamental rights and freedoms. Credible and inclusive elections will remain key priorities of the EU action, as well as government’s effectiveness and public service delivery at national and local level. Economic governance will also be targeted to underpin sustainable economic and social policies by strengthening public finance management, transparency and domestic resources mobilization and improving the business climate.
In 1987,Liberia Master Sergeant Sameul K Doe, realised his county was in the grip of extraordinary graft or corruption epidemic. So the best way he felt to salvage Liberia’s economy and save it from total bankruptcy was to ask the Reagan administration to send in American technocrats, economist, accountants, management consultants to help arrest the financial affairs of the Liberian government, because according Doe, he did not trust any of his ministers, that were busy fleecing the Liberian budgetary needs provided by the American government under the banner of USAID. Six months later, the seventeen Americans technocrats have to wave the white flag, because they realised corruption is epidemic within the Doe government.
Because Doe and his officials developed ways to skirt around American imposed conditions, with superficial spending habits, where bribery and kickbacks just like Bio’s Sierra Leone is part of government every day activity.They had their work cut out. Once the Americans set up shop in the Liberian government ministries, their first act was to demand for transparency and accountability from all government expenditure and contracts signed . Which anyone interested in the development of Sierra Leone is what they will hope for us. No doubts our European Union partners are well intentions and is in there interest to support and stabilise governments in the Sahel region which is the underbelly of the European Union.
There is a lot going on in the west African region, to sound the alarm bells within the European Union capitals, that in the absence of peace, economic freedom, and security in our region, the European Union will find it very difficult to keep us out of their door steps. This support to Bio which so far since he took office amounts to millions of US dollars, and four years on nothing to show for it, just like American did with Doe in the late eighties, the European Union should send their experts technocrats to shadow Bio’s one directionless government ministries and see where their European tax payers money are spent. If the European Union are interested in seeing results, to the life of the ordinary people of Sierra Leone benifet from their financial assistance they should demand for transparency and accountability from this corrupt Bio government.
Really good and some of us would like to see this happen in the country, like for some of us who have being volunteering lecturing into some of this Technical Vocational institution where not encourage, not paid at the end of the day for our service, only a stipend less than two hundred thousand Leone, can this stipend upkeep us with this high cost of living? We are only surviving with the grace of God, with this how can the society value us upon all our years of struggle? Some of us came from less privilege home wherin our parents are not educated and they are no more, we only fight for our survival, please those in charge should check in to some of this institution. We had wanted also to further our studies but we are not empower. From Engineer Mohamed Fatu kargbo flower corner Makeni, lecturing electrical engineering principles SLOIC Makeni campus.