“Become Entrepreneurs with Innovative Local Solutions…” -Pres. Bio Inspires Graduands

February 26, 2020

By Edward Vamboi

Acting as Chancellor of the University of Sierra Leone USL, His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio at the National Stadium on Saturday 22 February 2020 urged thousands of young graduands, before conferring their degrees, diplomas, and certificates, to become entrepreneurs with innovative local solutions.

“We can roast locally grown Arabica coffee to various tastes and package and label those as organic products from the rainforests of Sierra Leone. When marketed accordingly, it will create a brand Sierra Leone, contribute to GDP, create jobs, and create wealth for the entrepreneurs in Sierra Leone. Whatever efficient technologies you use, whether adaptive or disruptive, your objective is clear – create and pursue goals that others are not seeing or can see but have not taken advantage of,” he said.

He further emphasised that for entrepreneurship to thrive he had always stated that they as a Government must create a conducive entrepreneurial ecosystem that would increase participation in entrepreneurship.

“You see our economy, as it was constituted over the last decade and more, is characterised by low to no diversification, low productivity, mainly survivalist ‘han-to-mot’ petty trading or microcredit schemes, and a teeming surplus of labour in urban areas. There is also rural poverty.

“And all of this as we sit on over 1.5 million hectares of fertile, arable land traversed by more than half a dozen rivers and with over 7 months of rain, a generous coastline and natural deep harbours to boot,” he urged.

The President, however, said that he saw an opportunity in some of those concerns, adding that as they graduate he wanted to challenge them to be bold entrepreneurs and to relieve themselves of the old and stale logic of “the other party say the gron dry, so leh we vote for dem neks tem”.

“Adopt a new logic that says ‘I or we can develop a solution for adding value to agricultural products and market those locally and internationally’ or ‘We can develop solutions or products to cater for tourism, transportation, or other services’.

“I am gratified beyond all measure this morning because you are graduating at a time of great expectations from family, your community, and your nation,” he added.

President Bio further stated that this year’s congregation, which had as its theme: “Education toward Entrepreneurship,” especially resonated with his vision for the future of the country.

“The Vice-Chancellor, in his address, referenced the young entrepreneurship programme that will benefit from the NUFFIC Orange Knowledge Grant to the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture and the Maastricht School of Management in the Netherlands. I implore university administrators and faculty to develop home-grown entrepreneurship training programmes too that will foster a culture of entrepreneurship among our tertiary education students. In that way, our students and graduates will see that there is a lot more wealth in establishing and running a viable business than in looking for or complaining about the lack of public sector jobs. Government recognises the value of entrepreneurship to national development. That recognition is embedded in the medium-term national development plan.

“We have set our sights broadly on creating an inclusive, diversified, and thus resilient economy with broad policy imperatives that favour scaled-up investments in agriculture and agro-value chain development, tourism, fisheries, renewable energy within a green economy among a huge compendium of other opportunities.

“We believe that we can make it easier for young entrepreneurs to breakthrough by opening up access to credit and expanding credit guarantee schemes, supporting infrastructure and capital development schemes, and guaranteeing innovative but low-interest financing products and loans that will support growth sectors.

“Of course, we now hear the refrain, ‘Pappay, the gron dry,’from the teeming population of young persons in mainly urban areas of Sierra Leone. Graduates are not excluded. ‘All man dae ala say the gron dry.’ But what are you doing ‘for make the gron soak for you’ and for your community and nation?

“Global entrepreneur and my friend, Bill Gates, would say that ‘your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.’ The phrase ‘the gron dry’ by young people has given me pause for thought especially on the great potential and limitless possibilities for young Sierra Leoneans in Sierra Leone.

“Thinking deeply about this, to me, is not about winning the next elections. To me, it is about how we permanently transform our nation for our own good,” he said.

Pro-Chancellor of USL, Professor Hector Morgan, said that in line with last year’s theme of “Restoration of Excellence,” they had been able to establish partnership with other universities abroad for sharing and upgrading their materials and human resources, a center for technology innovation and entrepreneurship and a functional business center outlet in each campus.

Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the USL, Brigadier General Professor Foday Sahr, said that the event was another congregation for the purpose of conferring academic awards to deserving graduands who had worked so hard over the years to achieve their dreams. He added that they were also celebrating with the graduands, their parents and loved ones for realising those remarkable achievements.

NP-SL Continues to Positively Contribute towards Poverty Alleviation

February 26, 2020

By Amin Kef Sesay

One of the most successful business entities currently operating within the country is indisputably the National Petroleum – Sierra Leone Limited (NP-SL Ltd) which has been rated as excellently doing very well in terms of importation and marketing of high grade petroleum products. Without any iota of exaggeration, the immense contributions that the company is making towards the socio-economic transformation of personal lives as well to the overall development of the country cannot in anyway be overemphasized. The company has made it possible for many who were hitherto jobless to now be gainfully employed having various sources, according to their job descriptions, of deriving income which are utilized to take care of personal responsibilities and welfare.

What is so outstanding about the company is the fact that it places premium on giving preference to Sierra Leoneans in terms of employment, a posture that is in sync with the country’s Local Content Policy. It is on record that the 100% indigenous owned company employs almost 100% Sierra Leoneans as employees.

It is important to note that under the current Local Content Act, industrial, manufacturing, mining, petroleum, services (legal, financial and insurance), agriculture and agro-business, transportation (road, maritime and aviation), hotel and tourism, public works/construction, energy and health have been identified as key areas covered by the Act to enhance sustainable socio-economic growth. Investors are supposed to be employing Sierra Leoneans in managerial and lower level positions as required by the Act thereby increasing job opportunities in the country.

NP-SL, by giving preference to employing Sierra Leoneans, is a clear indication of a company that is utilizing local talents thus making it possible for indigenes to acquire useful knowledge and skills.

The National Petroleum Company is of course one of the largest taxpayers to the Government of Sierra Leone and those taxes paid are beefing up the public revenue base from which various development programmes are funded. Through its corporate social responsibility, the company over the years has done a lot of good things nationally thereby complementing the development interventions of the Government. It was in fulfilment of such that NP-SL Ltd decided, late last year, to avail the National Fire Force (NFF), Kissy Branch, with a state of art water facility, costing millions of Leones from which water could be sourced to carry out its fire extinguishing activities within Greater Freetown. As a matter of fact it was the second time that the company has provided such a significant facility for the NFF which by all estimation is very much important for such a vital institution.

It is on record that other significant development assistances had been provided by the company and if they are to be mentioned here then there will be little space here to catalogue all of them but the bottom line is that the company is really on top of situation when it comes to rolling out its corporate social responsibility which it is doing impressively.

One notable thing for which the company has been identified is its effectiveness in maximizing customer care for which it has proudly bagged the accolade, 1st For Customer Care. The shareholders of the company as well as Management at all times deem their numerous customers as very important because without them there will be no NP-SL Ltd. In line with this realization, the company imports high grade petroleum products which can best give its numerous esteemed customers utmost satisfaction.

Equally too, all transactions are done transparently devoid of any form of underhand games very evident in the use of modern calibrated pumping machines at its Filling Stations which always give customers the satisfaction that indeed they are deriving value for money. These pumping machines display the quantity of fuel pumped as well as the prices, making transactions very much transparent.

To make transactions also simpler, the company went ahead to introduce what is now becoming vogue, the use of NP Smart Card. With this device a particular customer could purchase fuel, either petrol or diesel, without using physical cash. The use of the card is very advantageous for big companies, such as those that are involved in the manufacturing industry as it would be very difficult for drivers to cheat as it exhibits exactly what has been deducted and what is left. From what this medium learnt, more and more people are now using NP Smart Card.

NP Gas is a device that is gaining currency and a household name in the country. It is manufactured in different cylinder sizes, said to be environmental friendly and easy to refill. This cooking device is very easy to manage and could be accessed at all the company’s Filling Stations and from authorized dealers. Feedback from those who have long since be using NP Gas stated that indeed it is worth acquiring it for domestic use.

It can be safely concluded that NP-SL Ltd is indeed tremendously and very meaningfully contributing towards individual and overall national development.

Tax Perception Survey Report Launched by PFM Consortium

February 26, 2020

By Fatmata Jengbe

On the 24^th February 2020 the Public Financial Management (PFM) consortium led by Christian Aid Sierra Leone and four partners including the lead, Budget Advocacy Network, Restless Development and the Centre for Accountability and the Rule of Law (CARL) launched a tax perception survey report at the British Council.

All the organizations and civil society bodies are working towards strengthening the aspects of public accountability, transparency and participation of the citizenry in all matters dealing with Public Financial Management in Sierra Leone. With support from UK Aid the consortium is currently implementing a Project titled: “Strengthening Public Financial Management, Anti-Corruption and Accountability Institutions in Sierra Leone”.

Naturally, there is always the desire to know how the Government is making use of taxpayers’ monies and what impact(s) the taxes have made in the overall national development of Sierra Leone. A good part of the taxes is derived from businesses; salaries of civil servants; workers; entertainments; entrepreneurs; petty traders; investment companies and the likes. Against this backdrop it has been established that it is but vital to understand taxpayers’ wider views of Government and how such relates to their attitudes and motivation towards paying taxes.

It has become apparent that Government’s main domestic revenue source is the various tax levies. It is not a secret that the Government is sourcing revenue from the National Revenue Authority (NRA) and other revenue generating institutions which is allocated to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for the running of the business of Government to ensure national development.

The NRA has been hitting various targets –the current is in trillions. Government’s expenditure keeps improving as the bar in setting the revenue generating targets is kept high. Now to what extent is the revenue generated from taxes benefit the general masses? The TPS report state that 34% of the 2,755 tax payers interviewed in the perception survey think that the Government is using tax revenues in the right and correct way. 25% said corruption in Government circles demotivates them to paying taxes and to under-declare their tax income.

On the scope to strengthen social contract on tax and provision of services, 45% of businesses said they pay tax because it contributes to the provision of public services such as the Free Quality Education and roads. 79% said if they had seen more services being delivered in their area by the local council, they would be willing to pay more taxes.

Almost all tax payers targeted in the survey said the taxes are too high and authorities in charge of state resources are mismanaging the country’s revenue. With regards businesses which said they didn’t pay tax, 37% of businesses said they didn’t pay tax (1007 in the survey), and of the 1007, 72.9% said it was because the rates were too high and blamed the multiple tax rates applied to their businesses.

The current administration has made revenue mobilization a key Government priority and has set to achieve a domestic revenue-to-GDP ratio target of 20 % by 2023. Current revenue to GDP ratios is well below this target, although recent reforms are starting to take effect. Domestic revenue is the main source of Government resources needed to provide essential public services and reduce poverty as outlined in the Medium-Term National Development Plan (MTNDP). Current domestic resources fall short of the levels required to meet the Government’s development aspirations.

The survey targeted a total of 2,755 businesses across the 16 administrative districts of the country; and achieved a response rate of 98.4 %. It collected data from businesses on their perceptions, knowledge, attitudes and practice in relation to taxes; the tax system; services; accountability in the use of taxes by the Government; tax administration reforms; and the conduct of the staff of the NRA and local council when carrying out tax administration processes. The survey covered a range of business types excluding the UN Agencies, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), Community Based organizations or CBOs (except for those that are directly engaged in the production and distribution of goods and services in their localities), and MDAs.

Malaria Elimination in Africa Needs Participation of Local Authorities

February 26, 2020

By Ms. Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr OBE, Mayor of Freetown

When the Global Fund declared US$14billion in early October 2019 to combat AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria the world celebrated.

With this incredible fundraising effort, there emerge the opportunity to kick-start a renewed effort to rid the world of three diseases that have killed millions of people and ravaged communities on every continent. Malaria was responsible for 228 million cases and 405,000 deaths in 2018 alone, with a child dying from the disease every two minutes. And whilst we are right to celebrate the outcome of the Global Fund Replenishment, the fight does not end there – more must be done.

In 2016, for the first time in a decade, malaria cases worldwide were on the rise. Many people in malaria-affected communities still lacked access to the means to prevent and treat malaria, and in some countries, malaria had slipped down the political agenda. In response to this situation, the African Union Commission and the RBM Partnership to End Malaria are rolling out a continent-wide Zero Malaria Starts with Me campaign, to reignite a grassroots movement and inspire everyone to play their part in the fight against malaria. Originally launched by the Ministry of Health of Senegal in 2014, with the support of Speak Up Africa and PATH, the expansion of this movement across the continent shows that malaria elimination is becoming a national, regional and continental priority.

Since its endorsement by African Union leaders in July 2018, the Zero Malaria campaign has gathered momentum, with 12 nations now having launched their national campaigns and others soon to follow. On World Malaria Day in April 2019, Sierra Leone joined the ranks and officially launched its own Zero Malaria Starts with Me campaign, known as “Malaria E Don Wan Dae Na Mi Han” in Krio. I look forward to seeing communities across our nation reap the benefits that this movement is bringing. My own city, Freetown, is home to more than 1 million people and we are certainly ready to step up the fight against this deadly disease.

Why? Because in my country, malaria is one of the most pressing public health crises, with the entire population at risk of the disease. Around 1.7 million malaria cases and almost 2000 deaths were confirmed in 2018, affecting a high percentage of the 7.5 million inhabitants. While the disease burden is higher in rural areas, cities can and must get involved in the malaria fight. Ultimately, Zero Malaria starts with each one of us – all citizens have a personal responsibility to protect their families and communities from this preventable disease.

In Sierra Leone, the campaign will look to secure political commitment, attract private sector funding and engage communities in the fight against this disease. The National Malaria Control Programme will also raise awareness at the community level through a multi-layered media engagement strategy and the involvement of key influencers within chiefdoms and local councils. This will also serve to amplify the impact and community buy-in for the upcoming mass mosquito net distribution campaign at the end of May 2020.

In Freetown, citizens and local authorities are already working under the banner of the Transform Freetown Agenda to create a healthy urban environment, including community engagement campaigns such as the Cleanest Zone Competition to improve sanitation – which also helps to reduce the burden of mosquito-borne diseases like malaria.

As Mayors, we have a key role to play in the fight against malaria. Malaria prevention and vector-control measures should be inherently linked to urban development strategies, including new housing and infrastructure projects. By investing in well-designed infrastructure and housing, improving access to sanitation and drinking water services, and promoting sustainable environmental management, we will reduce the malaria breeding sites and prevent thousands of cases.

On World Malaria Day 2019, I was inspired to see Francophone Mayors come together to sign the “Zero Malaria Starts with Me” declaration, committing to integrate malaria in urban development strategies in support of global efforts towards a malaria-free world. I urge other Mayors across Africa to tackle malaria head on through urban development strategies and encourage all individuals and communities to join the growing Zero Malaria Starts with Me movement.

Those who are at risk from malaria today are real people, with real lives, real families, in real communities across the world. We must do more to ensure that these people are at the top of Governments’ priorities, and that policies are made to strengthen health and education systems and ensure that citizens have access to the services necessary to be protected from the deadliest creature on earth – the mosquito.

So, will you join us?

UniMak Produces 11 Incarcerated Graduates

February 26, 2020

By CO Leslie Cole- Showers (National PRO, SLCS)

Eleven (11) inmates at the Makeni Correctional Centre, on Saturday 22nd February, 2019 for the first time in the history of offender management graduated from the University of Makeni.

They graduated with a twin certificate in Community Development Studies & Entrepreneurship. The modules offered included: Information Technology, Agriculture, and Psychosocial Counselling. The course, which started in July 2019, lasted for six months.

“When the course started, sixteen inmates were enrolled, but some could not pass the final exams, as is more often than not the case in every academic journey,” according to Superintendent Salieu S. Turay- Officer- in- Charge of the Makeni Correctional Centre.

He said UniMak did it as corporate social philanthropy, adding Unimak provided both notes and text books for the inmates.

While addressing the congregation, Professor Joseph A. Turay, Vice Chancellor of the UniMak said there were 384 graduands that day.

“The Community Development Studies Department was the one which initiated the UniMak-SLCS partnership for which both institutions have been placed on the spotlight,” the Vice Chancellor said.

Head of the Community Development Studies Department, Mr. Unisa Patrick Kamara assured that the UniMak-SLCS partnership was not going to end at the said graduation ceremony. In fact, for him, that was a sign of the beginning of a lasting partnership.

“As long as the Makeni Correctional Centre keeps having inmates with at least 3 credits at the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), we will continue to provide the learning atmosphere. We want to help offenders become better people in society upon their reintegration, to contribute to economic development.”

The inmate ,who performed exceptionally well in the exams, expressed his delight over the opportunity that was accorded them by the UniMak. He said he would never return to his offending ways when he shall have been discharged from the Centre and he would put to good use the knowledge he had gained from the UniMak.

Pres Bio Urges Heads of Public Institutions to Accelerate Service Delivery

February 26, 2020

By Edward Vamboi

At the Bintumani Conference Centre on the 25 February 2020 His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio opened the first-ever Presidential Seminar for all 83 Heads of Commissions, parastatals, agencies and state-owned enterprises.

With the theme: “Consolidating the Foundation for Service Delivery”, the Seminar, among other objectives, seeks to provide the officials with political orientation and to help them accelerate effective service delivery to the last mile from 2020 and beyond, deepen the understanding of a performance management system that enhances organizational output.

Delivering his welcome address, Chief Minister, Professor David John Francis, said that the event was a historic one because it was the first time in modern Sierra Leone that a sitting President would meet with all heads of institutions at one go. He said that the seminar was important because it recognized that Commissions, parastatals, agencies and state-owned enterprises were an important component of state governance.

He also mentioned that all the agencies must clearly understand, remain committed and be inspired by the President’s New Direction Agenda to change and transform Sierra Leone, and more importantly, to accelerate effective service delivery. He noted that since his election, President Bio had made consistent efforts to engage relevant stakeholders as a way of moving the country forward.

In his keynote address, President Bio said that his presence and the seminar itself was a clear manifestation of his recognition of the important role and contribution of commissions, parastatals, agencies and state-owned enterprises to the achievements of his New Direction Agenda to change and transform the lives of ordinary Sierra Leoneans.

He said that he had directed the Chief Minister to convene the Seminar because he wanted to clearly state and outline his political and governance expectations in the New Year in terms of concrete service delivery to the people, and more importantly, to focus on strategic planning and prioritization with clear and realistic targets to achieve results.

“I have declared 2020 as the Year of Accelerated Service Delivery: I want and I expect Delivery of Results and Outcomes from you this Year and I expect to see tangible results by the 2nd and 3rd Quarters of this Year. Simply, no more excuses. We are here to get a clear understanding of my political message to motivate and inspire you to focus on getting tangible results and outcomes that will impact on the lives of the people of Sierra Leone.

“Let me commend you all for all the successes and achievements you have made in the past 22 months in Governance. But this is a New Year and this is not the time to become complacent with our achievements. The people are impatient for results to impact on their daily lives. So as a Government, we must improve on the way we run our institutions,” he said.

President Bio also challenged the various institutional heads to be bold and innovative, adding that he wanted to motivate them to be inspired and to leave a legacy in their institutions which was what the New Direction was all about. He encouraged the various institutional heads to develop the professional habit and culture of efficient political and economic management of the State.

COMMENTARY… Untrained, Unqualified & Poorly Motivated Teachers Can’t Deliver Bio’s Quality Education

February 26, 2020

By Amin Kef Sesay

The 2018 theme for World Teachers Day was: “The right to education means the right to a qualified teacher”. It was chosen to mark the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), where education is recognized as a key fundamental right – A right that cannot be fulfilled without qualified teachers.

Trained and qualified teachers are fundamental to the right to education. To move the country’s shameful state of education to another level where the majority that go through it can read, spell, write, do basic arithmetic and mathematics calculations well, and think rationally and reason and behave properly, there is an increasing demand from stakeholders (i.e. Governments, learners, parents and employers) to ensure quality, value for money and the success of learners.

While within the past decade there have been tremendous efforts made to improve access and ensure equity; quality has in most instances been compromised. In which regard, reports monitored across the country recently told a deeply frustrating story by majority of students in public funded schools that they go to school, spend the entire day with, if they are lucky, only one or two teachers entering their classrooms to teach them.

“The teachers do not teach at all,” many of the students interviewed lamented.

“The best they do is to give assignments which to have them marked you have to pay for in cash or sex or other material payments,” one girl in one of the secondary schools in the far east of Freetown told this Press pointedly.

This is hardly the kind of teacher-learner environment that His Excellency President Bio expects his dream of quality education for over two million learners in the primary and secondary categories of the education system to get quality education.

The decrease in wages in Sierra Leone since the 1980s has had a harmful effect on the quality of education, by de-motivating teachers and particularly those who are trained, qualified and experienced from seeing teaching as a career, as other well paid motivated employees in the civil service do.

As such, recruitment of thousands of new teachers by the Government does not necessarily solve the problem of providing our kids with quality education.

Sad fact is that, the majority of teachers in our schools, especially in the rural areas are untrained, unqualified and not career teachers.

In providing the much needed quality that will make education useful and productive for those that go through the systems, most important is enhancing teacher education for bridging the education quality gap that is very widespread in the country.

This fundamental restructuring of the learning system is crucial if we are to accelerate progress towards the Education for All and education-related Sustainable Development Goals – particularly SDG4 on inclusive and equitable quality education and especially target 4.c on increasing the supply of qualified teachers through international cooperation for teacher education/training, and SDG9 on innovation.

It was in this light that the first World Teachers’ Day was held on 5 October 1994 to celebrate the role teachers’ play in providing quality education at all levels that enables children and adults of all ages to learn to take part in and contribute to their local community and global society.

As the situation in the county stands, there are no established benchmarks regarding the rights and responsibilities of teachers and standards for their initial preparation and further education, recruitment, employment, teaching and learning conditions.

To provide the backbone for injecting quality into the country’s moribund educational systems, the focus has to be placed heavily on teachers’ professional development and other areas of learning related to the continuum of education (i.e. curriculum teaching and learning materials and measurement of learning outcomes).

Specific objectives must include:

Addressing the issue of teacher quality;
Promoting the integration of ICT into teaching and learning;
Promoting appropriate learner assessment approaches to ensure quality learning and teaching;

To improve the learning systems and learning outcomes satisfactorily, the above call for marked capacity building in all departments and aspects of the primary and secondary educational systems that currently is hardly on a durable, sustainable basis.

As such, going forward, much more needs to be done not only to pursue the goals of access and equity but also relevance and quality simultaneously with the aim of ensuring the success of learners.

Alhaji Kanja Sesay Emerges as New Mandingo President

February 26, 2020

By Amin Kef Sesay

At State Lodge on the 24 February 2020 the National Mandingo Union presented its new President, Alhaji Kanja Sesay, to His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio.

Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Tamba Lamina, before presenting the team said the event was a historic one for the Mandingo people, adding that they were “good people who represented peace and patriotism”.

The Minister further congratulated the new traditional leader and thanked President Bio for making time to meet them.

President Bio, in a brief statement said that: “On behalf of the Republic of Sierra Leone and as President, I recognise Alhaji Kanja Sesay, presented to me by the Mandingo community of this country as their indisputable President. Representing the State, I recognise you formally as the President of the Mandingo community in Sierra Leone. Congratulations”.

On his part, Alhaji Kanja Sesay thanked the President for recognising his leadership, saying that the process leading to his endorsement was a long and seriously consultative one among their membership across the country following the death of their former leader. He said that he had accepted the honour from his people to take over the leadership of the Union.

He said that the main function of the Union is to coordinate and supervise the various Mandingo organisations across the country, hence consultations for his endorsement were wide and inclusive.

Alhaji Kanja Sesay also noted that they were people known for being loyal, peaceful and patriotic, adding that they would continue to live by those values.

The new Mandingo President also commended President Bio and his New Direction Government for putting focus on human capital development, especially the introduction of the free quality education programme. He added that that was a way of laying the foundation for sustainable development in the country.

He also thanked the First Lady, Madam Fatima Maada Bio, for the “Hands Off Our Girls” campaign that would protect and promote the welfare of women and girls in the country. He promised that they would work on by-laws to stop early marriage and teenage pregnancy among their membership. The Mandingo President also appointed the First Lady, a Mandingo herself, as a Mandingo Ambassador.

LEAVE AUTOSPECT ALONE!!!

February 26, 2020

By Ibrahim Alusine Kamara

Past Thursday February 20th, 2020, three foreign companies including Sierra Trading Company (STC), BILHAQ and IAS who are said to be owned and sponsored by some foreign nationals including a Ghanaian, Nigerian and Lebanese embarked on what many have described as a calumny campaign against Autospect (SL) Limited, a Sierra Leonean owned company that was awarded the contract for the production of number plates, vehicle registration, Licenses and most importantly the transformation of the Sierra Leone Roads Safety Authority (SLRSA) into a modern entity.

The three companies, who had been in charge of the production of number plates at SLRSA for over twenty three (23) years before their contract expired in 2014 alleged among other things during a press conference held at the Harry Yansanneh Hall on Campbell street in Freetown that Autospect is a foreign owned company that was recently awarded the contract without due processes, that Autospect intends to make over 300% increment on services they are to provide and that the SLRSA has been privatized among other allegations.

Cognizance to the allegations above, this medium therefore embarked on a due diligence mission and after a thorough investigation into the said allegations, it was discovered that Autospect is a Sierra Leonean owned company that is only contracted as a service provider.

It was further discovered that the said contract which is worth over twenty million dollars ($20, 000,000) was awarded way back in the days of the All Peoples Congress (APC) led administration following the expiry in 2014 of the contract of the three companies that had been producing the number plates for SLRSA with all due processes followed to the latter.

The $20 million Autospect contract according to investigations, will see the total transformation of SLRSA into a modern day entity that will be fully automated in which there will no longer be delays in the production of number plates, vehicle registration, licenses among other services.

Despite the massive transformation that will be brought to the Authority, our investigations furthered, over 500 jobs are also said to be created when Autopsect finally starts operation.

With these goodies and more packed in store, it therefore suffices to tell those calumny campaigners to leave Autospect alone and join the company in its course to rebrand the SLRSA as there are lots of opportunities packed in store for them.

SLCB Launches Visa Debit Card

February 26, 2020

By AminKef Sesay

Management of the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank launched the Visa Debit Card during a ceremony held on February 22nd 2020 at the Freetown Golf Club climaxing celebrations of the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank’s weeklong celebration of its 57th anniversary.

Managing Director, Fidelis Turay said the card can be used on POS devices and more than 20 million ATMs worldwide and also online to buy products and services.

Visa Debit cards work like cash, only better. They use funds directly from your bank account and are accepted worldwide.

They offer quick, secure and convenient access to your money in person, online, overseas and over the phone.

In his speech before the launching of the Visa Debit Card, MD Fidelis Turay thanked the Freetown Golf Club for collaborating with SLCB to deliver a successful combined golf and tennis tournament and gave hearty congratulations to all tournament participants.

He stated that thrills and spills, fierce competition and humorous banter filled both competitions, noting that, “No doubt, some of you will have bragging rights but I consider you all to be champions even if you haven’t won prizes.”

MD Fidelis Turay reported proudly that “The Bank continues to grow from strength to strength, bolstered by its digital transformation drive.” He added: “We have launched innovative products and services which have been well received by our valuable customers.”

He maintained that the bank has no intention of resting on their laurels as the most profitable bank with the largest customer base. “We will continue to delight you, our customers with products and services befitting the immense loyalty and support you continue to show us,” he said.

The Visa Debit cards which can be used anywhere in the world to buy goods and services, he said is another step in that direction.

For those that are tarrying to get onboard the SLCB train, he invited them to come and join SLCB in its exciting journey enhancing their banking experience.

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