By Kemo Cham
The COVID-19 pandemic is having a significant impact on Sierra Leone’s medium-term growth prospects, with the economy projected to contract by 2.3 to 4.0 percent in 2020 due to disruption in global trade, travel restrictions and domestic restrictions on mobility, a new World Bank report shows.
The report launched recently in Freetown notes that the fiscal and current account deficits were expected to increase due to increased crisis-related spending, while inflation is also expected to rise.
It adds notes that COVID-19 has set back the government’s recent fiscal consolidation efforts and recommends in the short term ramping up investments in public health, protecting the most vulnerable through cash transfers and other preventive measures in the context of limiting fiscal space.
“In preparation for the long-term recovery, the authors highlight that policy measures should focus on structural reforms to accelerate inclusive growth and diversify the economy, as well as efforts to strengthen fiscal buffers, improve debt management and transparency, and deepen financial reforms will be key,” a statement issued by the World Bank Country Office, which was shared with Politico, reads in part.
It quotes the author of the report, Youssouf Kiendrebeogo, saying:
“To respond to the pandemic, it is important to focus on measures to save lives and protect livelihoods as part of the immediate response.”
“Preparing the economic recovery will involve structural reforms to accelerate inclusive economic growth, as well as fiscal consolidation and a prudent monetary policy to stabilize the macroeconomy,” added Mr Kiendrebeogo, who is also a Senior Economist at the Bank.
The report, the 2020 Economic Update, takes a specific look at girls’ education and highlights that similar to 2014 Ebola crisis, COVID-19 is likely to affect adolescent girls’ education prospects and their human capital potentials. It cited evidence showing that adolescent girls were especially at risk when they are out of school as the risks of being married or having a child too early are magnified.
In turn, it ass, child marriage and early childbearing make it hard for girls to later return to school, leading to long-lasting negative impacts.
The report goes on to identify the need to prioritize investments in girls.
With schools currently closed due to the pandemic, the study recommends as immediate priorities support to students and families to cope with the crisis and ensure that learning continues while they stay at home.
In response to the crisis, the government introduced the Quick Action Economic Response Program in addition to the health sector COVID-19 Preparedness and Response Plan to reinforce the crisis response and facilitate economic recovery.
World Bank Country Manager for Sierra Leone, Gayle Martin, said praised this move by the government which she said had lessened the impact of the pandemic on the people.
“We welcome the government’s efforts to deal with the crisis and lessen its impact on people’s livelihoods. The COVID-19 crisis has had a negative impact on Sierra Leone’s recent fiscal consolidation gains. The loss of export earnings and lower foreign direct investment inflows, coupled with the need to sustain essential food and medical imports, add up to a substantial gap in financing the balance of payments,” she said in the statement.
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