The Executive Director of IMF, Maxwel Mkwezalanba has concluded his visit to Sierra Leone where he met with President Julius Maada Bio on Tuesday at State House after engaging with different financial sectors like Bank Governor, NRA and Ministry of Finance.
President Bio said, “We are determined, we are well meaning but to be able to do the things we have promised to this nation, we need support and as quickly as possible”.
The IMF Executive Director said he has been looking forward to see how best they can help in eliminating some of the challenges the country is faced with and because of such situation he has meeting with different sector as he met with the Minister of Finance, the Bank Governor, NRA and other members of the private sector… “to know the economic situation the country is now faced with and in the discussion we have looked on how the fund can support your effort better , in order to ensure that things get properly”.
Sierra Leone “is also a country that has peculiar circumstances that these issues should be addressed appropriately. So we looked at the discussions that are there regarding the support that you could be getting from the IMF”.
In his response President Bio said the country needs “support to be able to get unto the things we have pledged ourselves to do especially as a government”.
The president stated, “We have taken certain measures to take in as much as we can in terms of revenue and we are introducing few legislative issues that you have requested just so that we can re-join the programme again”.
President Bio pleaded with the IMF “so that the help come as quickly as possible t so that we have the okay to deal with other development partners. We need help as quickly as possible quiet a lot is happening and we need to move on”.
The president also had a meeting with Irish Africa Director of Development in the Africa Division, Fionnuala Gilsenan.
Gilsenan thanked President Bio for the audience and said it was a good time to visit Sierra Leone when the new government was settling down, adding that her visit was to help strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries.
The Irish envoy also stated that her government was examining priority programmes of the New Direction to see where they could help.
“Ireland and Sierra Leone have always had good bilateral ties. My visit here is to help strengthen those ties between the two countries. Our government will look into the priority programmes of your new administration to see areas of possible assistance,” she assured.
President Bio expressed appreciation to the government and people of Ireland for their support to Sierra Leone over the years. He said that Ireland had been supportive, adding that among other things his administration would prioritise education on the government’s agenda.
BM/26/6/18
By Betty Milton
Wednesday June 27, 2018.
ADVERTISEMENT