By Nasratu Kargbo
President Julius Madaa Bio has called on donors to support the Lungi Bridge project. He made this call in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, on the 7th February 2022 during a Business Forum organized by United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).
He said part of the country’s strategy is to build the bridge that connects the capital to the area where the airport is currently located, noting that this infrastructural development will attract enormous economic and other benefits.
The president said: “There is a struggle mobilizing exclusively private capital to finance such a large venture. This is where we think multilateral institutions like the World Bank can come in with products that de-risk such large capital investments in transportation infrastructure thus making them more attractive”.
Speaking on the theme “Investing in multimodal transportation to optimize the benefits of the continental Free Trade: A focus on the air transport and tourism”, Bio said poor transportation and the prohibitive existing cost of transportation within, to and out of Africa has served as one of the major constraints that hinder economic productivity and economic integration in Africa.
He said one of the reasons for poor transportation infrastructure is the falling public finance investment in transportation infrastructure. He also stated that governments are struggling with high debt burdens, rising inflation, and overall low productivity; he added that the pandemic worsened the situation. Bio further mentioned that Private capital has been unable to support the wholesome development of transportation infrastructure.
The President emphasized that ships, boats, trains, planes, and automobiles are all vital to developing productive sectors of the economy and for overall economic development, saying there is a need for financial streams to revamp existing transportation infrastructure or develop new ones.
Therefore, he explained that boosting intra-African trade is a must and that taking in larger volumes of investment capital, expands the economic productivity and participating fully in the global market.
The President told his colleague Heads of State and all present that the ratification and implementation of Intra-African Agreements that facilitate trade and economic development are important for improving connectivity and reducing costs.
He explained that Sierra Leone is one of the first countries to draft and validate a new National Trade Strategy developed with the support of UNECA. “This was informed by 200 consultations undertaken with various stakeholders’ in-country, from the public sector (such as the ministries responsible for gender affairs), private sector associations, development partners, and think tanks,” Bio said.
Highlighting some achievements, the president mentioned the expansion of the maritime port at the natural deep-sea harbor, and of having rehabilitated and expanded highways leading to the Liberia and Guinea borders. He said these initiatives demonstrate their willingness to invest in multi-modal transportation.
Copyright © 2022 Politico (09/02/22)
