By Hassan Osman Kargbo

The Minister of Energy, Alhaji Kanja Sesay has in a press release dated 14 September 2023, informed the public that, World Bank has approved $13 million additional grant for the Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority’s (EDSA) energy access project.

According to the release, the grant is an extension of the initial project of the financed IDA grant of $50 million which was approved in 28 January 2021 and was made effective in May 2021, adding that it brings the total IDA financing project to a huge sum of $63 million.

‘The parent project, financed through an IDA grant of US$50 million was approved on January 28, 2021, and declared effective on May 2021. This AF brings total IDA financing for the project to US$63 million,’ part of the release stated.

It furthered that the main reason of the Additional Fund (AF) is to support EDSA in addressing the challenges the energy sector faced not only within the country, but also in the world especially the current situation in Ukraine.

The release noted that the AF is structured to enhance the utility’s operations and help the effectiveness of the distribution segment in the country.

‘The funding is structured to enhance the utility’s operations and help ensure the continuity of the distribution segment to ‘Keep the light on’ following the increase of energy cost due to the Ukraine-Russia conflict,’ it stated.

It could be recalled that the National Revenue (NRA) Authority Commissioner-General, Chief Ibrahim Brima Swarray had confirmed that government of Sierra Leone owes the Turkey’s Karpowership over $46 million for the supply of electricity in the city which has led to the incessant ‘blackout’ in the city.

The capital city has been hit by power cut for over a month now, which citizen say with the boost from the World Bank AF grants to the Energy sector; they are expecting the issues of ‘blackout’ ends in not only in the city, but the country as a whole.