World Bank
Country Partnership
Human Capital
“FREETOWN, March 25, 2024 – Sierra Leone has made commendable strides in improving human capital development with the government demonstrating a strong commitment to enhancing the well-being and productivity of its population through significant investments in health and education, according to a new World Bank report launched today in Freetown. The report also highlights the prioritization of social protection interventions like cash transfers to extremely vulnerable groups as a notable intervention aimed at reducing poverty and building human capital.”
“However, Sierra Leone still faces challenges related to low human development outcomes, high poverty rates, and limited access to basic services, the report notes. The country ranks 151 out of 157 countries on the Human Capital Index (HCI). The HCI value is lower than the region’s average, indicating significant challenges in human capital development.”
International Finance
Corporation (IFC)
IFC’s Sierra Leone Country Strategy FY20-FY24 outlines three critical focus areas to support the country’s key sectors: agribusiness, energy, and mining. Each of these sectors will also benefit from the increased interventions to improve access to finance. The IFC Country Strategy also highlights the increasing role of the digital economy in improving efficiencies and productivity and is fully aligned with the World Bank Country Partnership Framework.
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)
MIGA recognizes the heightened perception of political risk and the prevailing fragilities alongside increased interest in foreign investment in the country. MIGA continues to actively explore opportunities to support private investment in Sierra Leone, especially in the power, telecoms, and commercial agriculture sectors, supporting independent power projects and off-grid power solutions. It aims to utilize the IDA Private Sector Window and any other transactions that may come to fruition.
Country Partnership
The Country Partnership Framework (CPF FY21-FY26), approved in May 2020, is strongly aligned with the government’s National Development Plan, which emphasizes human capital development and economic diversification. The CPF has three focus areas: (i) sustainable growth and accountable governance; (ii) human capital acceleration for inclusive growth; and (iii) economic diversification and competitiveness with resilience, and 3 crosscutting themes: governance, gender, and technology.
“Sierra Leone has an advantageous geography and abundant mineral, agricultural and blue resources, yet the country’s per capita gross domestic product (GDP) is almost the same as it was after independence. The country is roughly equidistant from Europe and North America, has among the largest iron ore and rutile deposits globally, is within one of the world’s most abundant marine ecosystems, hosts the deepest natural harbor in Africa, and has fertile agricultural land and the second highest rainfall in Africa. Yet, it performs poorly on most measures of development: 151-157 on the Human Capital Index (HCI), 150-160 on the Gender Inequality Index, 163-190 on the Doing Business Index, 156-160 on the Logistics Performance Index, 187-209 on the Government Effectiveness Index, 196-207 on internet access, and 179-195 on vulnerability to biological threats in the Global Health Security Index. The challenge facing the CPF is to position Sierra Leone for a job-rich, diversified and private sector-led economic expansion that will tap into the potential of all Sierra Leoneans, including women. This requires: investments in people and services; investments in the private sector; investments in the country’s economic governance and the regulatory environment; and investments in infrastructure (e.g., energy and technology), together with safety nets to put the most vulnerable on a path out of poverty. On this basis, the CPF is structured around: Focus Area 1. Sustainable Growth and Accountable Governance; Focus Area 2. Human Capital Acceleration for Inclusive Growth; and Focus Area 3. Economic Diversification and Competitiveness with Resilience. Three cross-cutting themes are included, governance, gender and technology.”
The World Bank portfolio stands at $1.082 billion, covering 18 national projects with $837 million; 4 regional projects with $245 million; and Trust Funds amounting to 46.65 million. The Energy Sector constitutes the largest share of the portfolio (22%), followed by Agriculture (19%) and Health, Nutrition, and Population (10%).