Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members,
I. Introduction
Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members, I rise to move that the Bill entitled, “An Act to provide for the services for Sierra Leone for the Financial Year 2014” be read for the first time.
2. Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members, you will all recall that His Excellency, the
President Dr. Ernest Koroma, made a commitment to improve the lots of youths and women of our beloved country, Sierra Leone. Government has therefore dedicated this budget to the youth, women and our workforce. Hence, the Theme: “Improving the Livelihood of Youth, Women and our Workforce.”
3. This budget is the first annual plan of the Agenda for Prosperity (2013-18) aimed at charting the road to our collective prosperity and to a Middle Income Country (MIC) Status. This budget offers new opportunities, it provides for a new economic model and a paradigm shift in our national economic development.
4. This is a pro-poor budget that provides the foundation to diversify our economy, to be globally competitive and to accelerate our human development. In so doing, it
proposes to improve labour conditions and employment opportunities for our youth and women, improve governance, mainstream social protection and empower our youth and women. This is a people centred budget, a plan for inclusive economy and finance, and a strategy that put money in the pockets of our people.
5. This budget subsidizes tuition fees for about 18,000 University Students,
provides school fees subsidy for about 1,350,000 school children, improve access to credit for our youths and women, establishes a Fund to train our youths and women, creates a Fund to economically empower our youths and women, provides opportunities for our youths and women to actively participate in the agriculture value-chain and other enterprises, and protect our girls from teenage pregnancy, among others.
6. Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members, our people witnessed the tremendous transformation throughout the country as we implemented the Agenda for Change. We have witnessed a resilient economy underpinned by strong economic growth in the face of global economic challenges, declining inflationary pressures, a new record low domestic interest rates, stable exchange rates, increased output of food and export crops, increased investment in trunk, city and feeder roads, increased electricity generation including solar street lights in Freetown and the provinces, free health services for children, pregnant women and lactating mothers; free primary school education; and payment of examination fees for NPSE, BECE and WASSCE; reduction in the barriers to business development; significant improvement in public financial management; and increased inflows of foreign direct investment; all of which have translated into significant reduction in the incidence of poverty from over two thirds of the population in 2004 to about half of the population in 2011.
7. Our social services are also improving with the implementation of the free
health care programme. The number of children sleeping under insecticide treated bed nets increased three-fold. The proportion of deliveries taking place in health facilities increased from 17.8 percent in 2008 to 55 percent in 2011 and further to 60.9 percent in 2012. The percentage of children immunised against common childhood diseases increased from 54.6 percent in 2008 to 83.8 percent in 2011 and further to 87 percent in 2012.
8. Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members, these achievements have not gone unnoticed. They have been recognised by our development partners and international rating agencies as highlighted below:
• the MO Ibrahim Governance Index rated Sierra Leone as having the third
fastest improving governance score for the past six years
• the World Bank’s Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) elevated
our country from being a weak to medium performing country in 2013
• The World Bank’s Doing Business Report rated us among the top 10 reforming
countries in general and the best in protecting investors in particular
• Our country used to occupy the bottom position on the United Nations
Development Programme Human Development Index (HDI) up to 2009 but
moved 10 places from the bottom in 2012.
9. Mr. Speaker, in spite of these accolades, more needs to be done. Significant
challenges still remain. Unemployment, especially among the youth, is still high.
Child, infant and maternal mortality rates as well as primary school completion rates, though improving, are yet to reach the averages for Sub-Saharan Africa. Our infrastructure is still relatively weak. Given this situation, we must respond to His Excellency, the President’s call to do more.
10. Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members, I will now briefly review global and regional economic developments in 2013 and outlook.
Editor’s note: Read the rest of the budget speech by clicking here.
Photo: Finance Minister Kaifala Marah (dated photo)
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