Honourable Minister, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Regrettably, I should have made this submission yesterday, last week, last month, last year or even several years ago. It is already late, but better late than never!!
I say Export or Die because reading the newspapers, watching TV and listening to the Radio and conversations in public places, I know that everybody gets it!! Our exchange rate is where it is now, Le9000 = $1, simply because our export base is weak.
Last year during an episode of the popular SLBC current affairs programme “Wey Yus”, a dollar boy at Sweissy summarized the situation and said, “We nor dae export natin”. This is self-evident from the Leone: Dollar Exchange Rate from 2015 to 2019 inclusive.
In 2015, the average Leone-Dollar Exchange Rate was Le4,600, in 2016, Le6465, in 2017, Le7,200, in 2018, Le7,800, and in 2019, Le8,600. Today it is hovering around Le9, 000. Could it be trending towards Le10, 000? God Forbid!! The implications for our household budgets will be devastating.
From the trade statistics, the depiction is that our export base is one dimensional, a very dangerous position to be in. It is minerals, minerals and more minerals and some agricultural products like cocoa and coffee. Alas we do not control the international prices of our minerals and agricultural products. There is no value addition. Where are the minerals when we need them today? Is the sector performing for Sierra Leone or the foreign mining companies?
Recently the newly appointed Minister of Mines and Mineral Resources, Honorable Rado Yokie, stated, during his confirmation in Parliament, that if our mineral resources do not work for us then we should leave them in the ground. I whole heartedly agree with this sentiment. I also note that it was reported he has just recently revoked the mining license of Shandong, the iron ore mining company for failing to comply with mining regulations.
In order to revive our economy, I strongly recommend and believe with respect to the economic diversification policy espoused during the last few years that we prioritise the following sectors- Tourism, Marine Resources and Agribusiness – with a strong value addition component.
With respect to minerals, if we cannot aggressively pursue a path to value addition, then leave them in the ground, because it is a travesty of justice what has happened in a place like Kono, where diamonds have been mined for nearly 90 years with nothing to show for it. Yes, leave them in the ground!!
Last year, courtesy of GIZ and RecentDst Ltd, a Sierra Leonean Consultancy, I had the privilege of participating in a business development programme wherein we were tasked to assess Agribusinesses with a strong value addition component. One of the districts we visited was Kono, a district rich in diamonds, but it is little known for its Agricultural prowess, which is where I believe its sustainable economic future lies.
We assessed a range of agribusiness products from baby food, palm products to instant cocoa and coffee. Today I am presenting two women who are self-starters and have developed value addition agri-businesses who I believe should be given support to take their businesses to the next level.
Case Study No.1
Mrs. Bridgette Amaoteng is the Managing Director of Lambano (SL) Ltd, established in December 2012, but started operations in 2017. The business processes and packages with informative labelling, our local foodstuffs ranging from green shakpa, bitter leaves and sawa sawa leaves, cayenne pepper, ogiri, honey and ginger, hot and spicy benny, etc., neatly processed and packaged at the business premises at Mile 13, Freetown, Western Rural.
Lambano employs 12 staff, 8 females and 4 males. She also has a small outlet at 14A Wilberforce Road, King Street, off Congo Cross, Freetown.
Lambano produces a range of organic products distributed through supermarkets and shops, retail sales and farmers’ markets, but if empowered and enabled can do more to widen the distribution network.
Bridgette Amaoteng faces several challenges such as supply chain limitations, including fluctuations in the price of raw materials and sustainable access to adequate and quality raw materials from out-growers, transportation, obtaining machinery for processing the products and packaging materials, etc.
Lambano is seriously considering exporting these range of products to the West African sub-region, the United States and Europe and earn foreign exchange, but has to overcome challenges such as transportation/freight and trade barriers, among others.
Case Study No.2
Mrs. Esther Komba-Fonjah is co-owner of Fonjah Farm at Ngugbordu Village, Fiama Chiefdom, Kono District. She graduated from Njala University with a Bsc. degree in Home Economics Education. Her product is called “Baby Grow”, a nutritious mix of fish, rice, benny, banana flour and groundnuts, which she started at home for her family, friends and community members and now she is taking it to the next level by processing and packaging for the Kono District market and subsequently the National Market.
Remember, as long as babies are born, “Baby Grow” market’s potential continues to grow indefinitely. I had been involved in developing this business concept and during a visit to her farm in Kono last year, we organised a test feeding session with suckling mothers on the farm and each child could not get enough of “Baby Grow”. We all know that children at that age cannot be fooled. If they don’t like it, they will turn their heads away. She plans to distribute through retail sales and wholesales through agents.
Her challenges are transportation, inadequate energy supply and security, all of which requires an injection of funds.
You will have noticed that there is a common direct or indirect theme between these two case studies, inadequate funding!
CONCLUSION
We are a nation with a sense of humour; we come up with slogans that encapsulate our economic situation, “de san hot”, the sun is hot, “de gron dry”, roughly translated, “times are hard”.
I have as much of a sense of humour as the next person. However, on a serious note, there are families up and down this country that go to bed hungry. Yet from January to December we repeat these slogans, ironically mostly by the ones who go to bed hungry. Are we a serious country?
Great nations emerge from difficult situations. There are opportunities that will spring from “de san hot” or “de gron dry”. Esther and Bridgette are just two examples of women that have seized the moment to sustain themselves, create jobs and will eventually pay taxes when their businesses become profitable.
President Kennedy once stated that you should not ask what your country can do for you, but rather what you can do for your country. I listened to President Julius Maada Bio on the BBC’s Focus on Africa 12th June 2019) and he stated, “As we try to diversify, we want to take the emphasis away from just mining to agriculture so that we are not only producing enough food for Food Security of our country, but we are able to export…”
He also talked about Marine Resources and Tourism, so it seems we are on the same page. Your Excellency if you happen to be listening, today, I have presented Esther and Bridgette who are the self-starters and there are many women like them in Sierra Leone today and they need to be empowered. They need to be provided with grant funding in the first instance and then soft loans based on sound business plans and as their businesses grow, more and more business development training and mentorship will be required.
Successful businesses should be showcased to encourage more women entrepreneurs to start their own businesses. Take notice that we are already behind the curve, so we should be in a hurry as a country if that is possible!
Esther and Bridgette have families yet they continue to take risks. They and other women up and down this country, with respect to economic empowerment, deserve your undivided attention. Therefore today I implore you to declare a National Economic Emergency for the Agribusiness sector with a strong emphasis on value addition, which will empower Sierra Leoneans to start their SMEs, create badly needed jobs, put food on the table and widen our export base over the medium to long term. There will be short term pain, but I believe that if we are serious, we will achieve the economic prosperity, whether it’s hot or it’s dry, that has been divinely pre-ordained.
Thank you for your attention!
15th June 2019
Arthur Johnson is Managing Director of Sonako International Services Ltd, a Project, Business Development and Property Consultancy established in 2005 in Sierra Leone.