The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development (MoDEP) on Thursday 5th December 2024 ended the Fourth Quarter 2024 Development Partnership Committee Meeting (DEPAC) at the Conference Hall of the Foreign Service Academy, Tower Hill in Freetown on the theme “The Role of Data and Statistics for Monitoring and Evaluation and Effective MTNDP Implementation.” In her welcome address, the Minister of Planning and Economic Development (MoDEP), Madam Kanyeh Barlay highlighted prominent activities that have been undertaken by DEPAC over the years that have created impact but cautioned that the Fourth Quarter Meeting is to actualize the MTNDP 2024-2030 supporting the Big Five Game Changers especially the Feed Salone Program.
She also appealed to development partners for continued support and commitment to advance development in Sierra Leone through the coordinating mechanism of the Ministry which adheres to developing firm monitoring trajectories.
Among the issues raised by participants included that all sectors should have a clear cut and well-structured mandate, that cross-cutting issues should be addressed, that MoPED should ensure that all working groups have Terms of Reference (ToR), that governance is a sub-set of democracy, that all stakeholders must participate and create impact and that Permanent Secretaries should be included in each sector working group.
Other issues highlighted were that availability of reliable data is a challenge, that working groups must use best practices to gather data and that there is need to avoid duplications.
During the discussions, the Minister of Planning and Economic Development (MoDEP), Madam Kanyeh Barlay promised to follow-up on all the issues and recommendations raised as well as operationalize the working groups and proposed a meeting of Co-chairs of development partners and government underscoring that the discussions have been very useful and that the Ministry would now focus on Government’s Big Five Game Changers.
She also commended the DEPAC Working Group and her colleague Ministers for the success of the meeting.
The Minister of Finance, Mr. Sheku Ahmed Bangura enlightened about the macro-economic performance of the economy, economic growth, inflation, exports and imports, foreign reserves, exchange rate, that the economy is resilient and that agriculture contributes 60% to the economy and employs the majority.
He furthered that there has been an increase in the industrial and service sectors, decline in inflation, increase in mining mainly iron ore, that the country’s debts are being managed, exchange rate stable, National Revenue Authority above target, wages within the economy and informed that there is a lot of expenditure on security.
He also highlighted subsidies to the energy sector, extra-budgetary expenditure like emergencies, that the economy is being operated within target, that the external debt is $2 billion and domestic debt $3 billion respectively.
The Statistician-General, Mr. Andrew Bob Johnny articulated that the main objectives of the 2025 Census are to provide accurate and reliable updated data which can be used to guide policy decision making at national, regional and district levels stressing that it is also meant to correct shortcomings in the implementation of the previous census.
He continued that the 2025 census would also inform the implementation and monitoring of the Medium-Term National Development Plan (MTNDP) and the International Development Agendas (SDGs, ICPD and 2063 African Union Agenda).
Other Ministries, Departments and Agencies including MaMED also made PowerPoint presentations.
