Sierra Leone unlocks its trade potential through sustainable trade coordination and capacity

KEY RESULTS

• Sustainable Aid for Trade coordination: The National Implementation Unit (NIU) was absorbed into Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) in 2019 through the establishment of a stand-alone department. It has developed skills through Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) capacity-building to the point where it now supports the implementation of projects by other development partners. 
• Leveraging trade expertise: The MTI, through the NIU, is now better equipped to leverage the expertise of development partners, including the World Bank and African Development Bank on the National Trade Policy and Action Plan, the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) on establishing industrial and special economic zone policies, as well as a Team Europe initiative on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and continental economic integration.
• Increased capacity in trade: Capacity-building among trade sector stakeholders – including the NIU, public sector agencies, the private sector, micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), and women cross-border traders – has ensured their access to trade spaces, built negotiation skills and partnerships, mobilized support, and established sustainability beyond the EIF.
• Tourism on the rise: With EIF policy and strategy inputs to Sierra Leone’s tourism development efforts, the number of visitors to the country has increased significantly. This growth also drew the attention of TIME Magazine, which recognized the country as one of the "World’s Top Destinations 2023".

Located in West Africa, Sierra Leone’s population of 8.8 million (2023) is very diverse, with 15 ethnic groups, each with its own language, and a common language, Krio – a combination of English and several local languages. Its main exports are diamonds (63%), cocoa and coffee. A 2024 World Bank Macro Poverty Outlook for Sierra Leone revealed the country’s 2023 poverty rate to be 25.3%.

Since 2005, Sierra Leone has developed three Poverty Reduction Strategy documents and is currently implementing its Medium-Term National Development Plan 2024-2030.  The EIF’s partnership with Sierra Leone began in 2009 following a 2006 Integrated Framework-supported Diagnostic Trade Integration Study (DTIS). This DTIS was conducted by the World Bank and aimed at prioritizing and sequencing policy reforms and other interventions for mainstreaming trade into national poverty reduction and development strategies. Despite considerable constraints, Sierra Leone achieved significant progress in a range of areas specified in that analysis, including legal and regulatory changes to advance the overall business climate and improved institutional capacity for the formulation and implementation of trade policies. A DTIS Update followed in 2013, which was also conducted by the World Bank. This built on the progress made through the initial DTIS and aimed to complement and assist in its full realization.

A critical part of the EIF's work in Sierra Leone was done through the NIU, which was established in 2009 and later absorbed into the Ministry of Trade and Industry in 2019 through the establishment of a stand-alone department. During the partnership between the Government of Sierra Leone and the EIF, the NIU has developed skills through EIF capacity-building to the point where it is able to support the implementation of projects by other development partners. Such projects have included support by the NIU working with the World Bank and African Development Bank on a National Trade Policy and Action Plan, with UNECA on establishing industrial and special economic zone policies, as well as a Team Europe initiative on the AfCFTA and continental economic integration.

Anchored in policy

The partnership between the EIF and Sierra Leone aimed at developing and implementing high-quality trade policies and strategies to raise the country’s competitiveness in global markets and foster pro-poor growth. The EIF, together with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, conducted a trade policy review and integrated sustainable trade practices into Sierra Leone’s National Trade Strategy. This strategy focused on diversifying the country’s economy, promoting inclusivity and gender equality, creating employment opportunities and generating foreign exchange. This was carried out in line with the country’s development goal of reducing its budget deficit from 14% to 11.5% through export promotion and diversification during the period from 2019 to 2023.

The EIF trained a total of 321 officials, of whom 184 were women, at the Ministry of Trade, as well as other ministries, departments and agencies. The aim was to support their collaboration with the World Bank, the African Development Bank and various national institutions in the development of the country’s National Trade Policy 2020 and Action Plan and its Cooperative Development Policy. Training and collaboration also resulted in a Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Policy, which formed the basis for the SME Act. This, in turn, led to the establishment of the SME Development Agency (SMEDA), as well as the National Agri-business Policy and Strategy. 

Putting tourism on the map

Tourism was identified in Sierra Leone’s Trade Policy as having high export growth potential. With its diverse landscapes, ecology, heritage sites and beautiful beaches, eco-tourism is ideally suited as a means towards pro-poor development. Tourism is also a priority in Sierra Leone's Poverty Reduction Strategies: its Agenda for Change 2007-2012, Agenda for Prosperity 2013-2018 and its two recent National Development Plans (2019-2023 and 2024-2030, respectively). 

The EIF supported the update of the Development of Tourism Act 1990, along with development of a Tourism Governance and Financial Management Strategy and the creation of the e-Tourism Strategy. These, together with investments in tourist-related infrastructure and services, have paved the way to leverage further resources and put Sierra Leone tourism on the map. 

Speaking at the December 2023 EIF Steering Committee, Hon. Minister Nabeela Tunis, Sierra Leone’s Minister for Tourism and Cultural Affairs, recognized the important role the EIF has played. She said: 

Support for Sierra Leone’s eco-tourism sector has already led to significant growth, with visitor levels surging higher than ever before and the country earning a spot in TIME Magazine's 2023 list of the world’s greatest places to visit. 

An inclusive tourism agenda

Sierra Leone's local authorities and communities have been central to all aspects of EIF support. Under the sustainable tourism initiative, information and awareness-raising were recognized from the start as key to gaining buy-in from stakeholders such as local councils, chiefs, line ministries, the private sector and non-governmental organizations. 

Local communities were consulted on the environmental and social impacts of developing eco-tourism sites. The communities also submitted proposals for these sites to the National Tourist Board (NTB) for consideration by the Small Grant Programme Appraisal Committee. The eco-tourism sites being promoted include the Banana Islands, Tiwai Island and the Wara Wara Hills, all of which are ideal eco-tourism and cultural heritage sites. At all these sites, the EIF, working with various partners, including local communities, developed or refurbished eco-tourism infrastructure such as chalets, craft centres, benches, natural trails, water and energy supply systems, and restaurants and jetties. The EIF also helped develop suitable management models for the sites in collaboration with the NTB.   

Across all the eco-tourism sites, skilled and unskilled community members have been hired for the construction and rehabilitation work, mainly using local materials. Local communities are being trained to take over the maintenance and running of the facilities. Others have been trained as tour guides, thereby increasing employment opportunities. Already, Tiwai Island’s eight communities each receive an annual lump sum of approximately USD 30,000. 

Setting up structures to supply necessary skills

The Milton Margai Technical University, Brookfields Campus, serves as Sierra Leone’s hotel and tourism training college. With EIF support, the campus is being refurbished after damage caused by the decade-long civil war in the 1990s. The upgraded facilities include landscaping, a kitchen and dining room, a bedroom block and six classrooms. It is being set up to function as a practical 24-bed hotel, where students gain hands-on experience by providing services to actual tourists. 

During a tour of the progress on the upgrading of the college and hotel in May 2023, then-Minister of Tourism and Culture, Dr Memunatu Pratt, highlighted the dramatic transformation of the facility. She stressed that it was not just about the structure but the education itself: 

Alongside structural improvements, new curricula offering a higher national diploma and bachelor’s degree certifications have been developed. In 2021 and 2022, there were 112 and 223 graduates, respectively, from the campus.

At the same event, Fatmata Mida Carew, the NTB General Manager, added: 

Capacity-building as a key ingredient for sustainability

Throughout the EIF's partnership with the Government of Sierra Leone, capacity-building – extending beyond the NIU to MSMEs and local community members – has been an important element. To this end, public and private sector stakeholders received training to negotiate Sierra Leone's position on trade in services in the AfCFTA, with the NIU Coordinator playing an active part as lead AfCFTA negotiator, and the EIF complementing European Union financing to support this training. Support was also extended to the SMEDA, to train women-led SMEs, mainly engaged in cross-border trade, on AfCFTA-related aspects, raising their ability to engage in and take advantage of the African continental market. 

Partnerships have also been leveraged to encourage other development partners to invest in Aid for Trade for Sierra Leone. The EIF and UNECA, for example, partnered to support the development of policies for the country’s industrial and special economic zones (SEZ). These policies are expected to boost regional trade and integration and support the establishment of an SEZ for agro-processing as a means to increase exports. Building on the EIF tourism sector support, the World Bank has a Sierra Leone Economic Diversification Project running from 2020 to 2025 that includes a USD 16.5 million tourism sector subcomponent supporting areas such as marketing, training, as well as developments at Tacugama, Leicester Peak and Bureh Beach tourism sites. This work was coordinated closely with the EIF project's eco-tourism site support.