The Vice President said that the magazine “shows where we came from as a government and where we want to go as a country.”
He noted that this government came to power under very challenging circumstances while outlining the achievements made by the government captured in the magazine, he said a key one was the launching of the country’s mid- term development plan, which he said, maps out the government’s development agenda, which he said is the commitment of
President Bio to transform the country’s development narrative within the human capital development context from a PRSP mentality to one that is people-centered.
Within that context, government’s emphasis is on economic diversification, he said. He spoke on the new lease of life given by the New Direction
government to basic primary and secondary education including provision of teaching and learning materials, building of new schools,
recruitment of new teachers and introduction of the school feeding program.
Quality, he said, will be improved with partners including UNESCO, as well as steps being taken to tackle exam malpractices.
On the economic front, Dr Jalloh noted that in 2018, GDP was on a downward spiral which they have managed to break and stabilize and is now growing at a moderate 5%, with inflation under control, domestic revenue having increased and the international financial community having regained confidence in the government witnessed to by IMF’s re-engagement with the country and the granting of an extended credit facility.
Government, Dr. Jalloh said, has rationalized expenditure with every cent now accounted for. Financial benchmarks are being met and the infrastructure to boost revenue collection in place.
Stating that the country spends $400 million importing food yearly, he said diversification of the agricultural sector in order to achieve food security by 2030 through improving the sector’s social structure to create jobs and to gradually reduce food imports through the private sector is a key priority.
He reported that the government has transformed 52 agricultural business centers, done over 600 kilometers of feeder roads and strengthened pest and disease control.
Meanwhile, the government, the Vice President noted, is putting together a national agricultural transformation and investment plan.
In the energy sector, the sector which, according to him, is both economic and social had been problematic over the years, with the government
investing in distribution and transmission with a view to making the sector viable and reduce the government subsidy which will be attained
through new investments and the West Africa Power Pool project.
The fight against corruption, he said, has employed both process and structural approaches that include rigorously recovering stolen money and faster prosecution of cases by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
VP Jalloh dilated on the ongoing public sector structural reforms including the auditing of key sectors, improved financial management and
improved transparency and accountability in the financial sector.
