Sierra Leone Spends US$500 M On Food Imports Annually
The Government of Sierra Leone spends the sum of US$500 million on the importation of staple food annually.
This was made known in a report by the World Bank which looks into Sierra Leone’s Agricultural Sector Risk Assessment.
“Import substitutions of key staples: Sierra Leone spends approximately US$500 million annually on food imports,” the report noted.
The report maintained that the target is a yearly reduction of 25 percent on food imports for key value chains over the next five years and that the 2024 spotlight will be on promoting self-sustenance in rice, poultry, onions, and cassava flour (as a replacement for wheat flour).
The report stated that the objective is to create at least 35,000 formal job opportunities by 2028, with the potential for thousands more in the informal sector noting that it will be achieved by developing agroindustrial zones dedicated to comprehensive production, processing, and marketing of key value chains which include rice, cocoa, coffee, cashew, small ruminants such as sheep and goats, cassava products such as gari and flour, and horticultural products, including fruits and vegetables.
That under the Feed Salone agenda, agriculture will substantially contribute to foreign exchange earnings, and that the focus will be on optimizing value chains such as cocoa, coffee, cashew, and horticulture (fruits and pepper) with the objective of increasing exports of these commodities by 50 percent annually.
That the Feed Salone initiative aims to bring the Food Consumption Score to an acceptable level (65 percent), halve the prevalence of chronic hunger, and reduce the incidence of micronutrient malnutrition among children by 2028.
And that to realize these objectives, the development of specific value chains, including pulses, tubers—particularly orange-fleshed sweet potatoes and cassava—and aquaculture will be prioritized.
As indicated by the report, adopting sustainable and climate-smart practices and technologies is essential to build a resilient food system. In the context of this objective, Sierra Leone will promote agriculture practices which enrich soil fertility, improve water retention, diversify crop production, encourage the cultivation of climate-resistant crop varieties, and increase vegetative cover with cocoa and cashew agroforestry.
