World Bank Advised President Koroma to Build Lungi-Freetown Bridge Instead Of An Airport

The World Bank Country Office in Sierra Leone and the sub-region has expressed interest to look into long term possibility for the construction of an alternative means of transportation in the form of a bridge from Lungi to the capital and other places instead of the construction of a multi-million dollar airport project.

This disclosure was made over the weekend, Saturday 13th August 2016 at the Golden Tulip former Kimbima Hotel at Aberdeen during a joint press conference between the Government of Sierra Leone (through the Ministry of Information and Communication) and the World Bank Country Office.
The occasion was for the announcement of a five hundred thousand dollar free high-speed internet service to ten best performing secondary schools and ten tertiary institutions in the country.

According to Dr. Henry Kirali, Country Director for Sierra Leone and West Africa based in Accra, the timing for the Mamamah Airport project is not yet feasible but that other alternatives can be explored in the long term.

“The second issue also looks at alternatives, the World Bank has made a commitment to improve connectivity with Lungi and we will also help the government to look at longer term options for opening up the Port Loko area; maybe the construction of a bridge, a toll bridge. These are options that need to be looked at in the long term,” Dr. Henry Kirali said.

Contextualizing the notion with regard to the promise that World Bank will offer help in every sector but excluding the construction of an international airport at the moment, Dr. Henry Kirali said he will not avoid replying to the questions about Mamamah because journalists were expecting that the World Bank will avoid it.

In reply he said: “I have said before, that as far as the World Bank is concerned, we look at the economic viability of investments, particularly infrastructural investments.

If we have a proposal for spending three hundred and fifty million dollars on an airport; the first thing we ask is: how many flights are coming per day?”

He noted that although there will come a time for the need of such a project to be implemented, “when you have enough flights per day to justify the construction of a three hundred and fifty million dollar airport, then there is no problem.”

Dr. Henry Kirali further said: “Right now, you have fewer flights per day, per week to justify the construction of such an airport.”

“So, once again, when the timing is right and you have enough flights to justify the construction of a second and bigger airport, we will be the first one to offer support,” Dr. Henry Kirali assured the press.

Good News:10 Universities/Tertiary institutions to get free internet Access in Sierra Leone

At a joint press conference organised by the Ministry of Information and World Bank, held over the weekend at the Golden Tulip, a $500,000 free internet connection was unveiled by the Bank for Universities, Colleges and schools to further emphasise the importance of Information Communication and Technology (ICT) and its effect on education.
The World Bank Country manager Perminda Brar while announcing the project said the government is going to make fibre available to educational institutions and the Bank will “pour in the capital investment needed for making internet available”.
Brar disclosed that “ten universities, tertiary institutions and ten academically well performing schools in the country will be targeted”. The first phase will cover Njala, MMCET, FBC and other universities and schools.
Brar said this is a huge investment in rolling out the fibre back bone on an East West axis as well as the North-South Axis “so we have fibre running from Liberia to Guinea and from Freetown to Zimmi then to the Liberia border. Fibre is already here now and it is time for Sierra Leoneans to benefit from this investment”.
The visiting Executive Director for Sierra Leone on the Boards of the World Bank Group Dr. Louis Rene Lacrose said through a telecommunication system “we can communicate certainly within Africa, our country and the rest of the world”.

He said “for the Bank, good communication system is part of our sustainable developments goals”. He congratulated the government for making sure the country enjoys this “worldwide investment.”
He added that at this time people should be able to communicate faster, efficiently and bring down the cost of business and most of all “be connected to the rest of the world”.
Rene Lacrose assured all that as the country’s representative to the World Bank, as “we are in the Golden Tulip hotel be rest assured of a Golden endorsement from me.  I assure you of 100% support to all projects”.

Henry Kerali WB Country Director for Liberia, Ghana and Sierra Leone said the Bank sees “development of Sierra Leone as one of our key commitment not only to the people of Sierra Leone but to the world”.
He went on, looking at the level of internet access in Sierra Leone, it still has a long way to come up to the average of the ECOWAS countries. With the new facilities, this gap that we have will begin to close. Our objective is to deliver services to the people at an affordable rate to achieve greater access of ICT for the people of Sierra Leone” Kerali noted.
The Minister of Information and Communications Mohamed Bangura thanked the World Bank for their gesture, saying this will not be the end to ask for support as they will keep on knocking on the doors of the Bank.


He added that ICT should be the bread basket of the country as minerals have failed but that with ICT “you will not get it wrong.” He disclosed that, “this project will be completed within five to six months.
Memunatu Pratt of the Sierra Leone Research and Education Network and lecturer of the University of Sierra Leone said the network is concerned with creating internet network linking of all universities in Sierra Leone to academic institutions across the world.
She maintained that education becomes viable because of access to internet and globalised information. At the 21st Century she noted, “some students leave the universities without access to even computer and that is a serious problem.” She thanked the Bank and the Government for the venture.
By Betty Milton