The Government of Sierra Leone (GoSL) has developed the “Quick Action Economic Response Programme (QAERP) due to the accumulative impact of the COVID-19 that will adversely affect the effective implementation of the Medium-Term National Development Plan and the 2020 Budget.
The overall objective of the QAERP is to maintain macro-economic and financial stability in the country, and to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 shock on businesses and households.
The strategic actions for the aforesaid objective, according to the Government, are that the National Revenue Authority (NRA) will provide tax deferments to importers and manufacturers of locally consumed goods to the tune of Le300 billion (US$30m), which is estimated to amount to 3% loss in total revenue to the state; the Bank of Sierra Leone will provide Le500 billion (US$50m) support to the private sector for the importation of essential commodities; the Bank will also provide a special loan facility at concessional interest rates to support the production, importation and distribution of essential goods and services; and, the QAERP will also establish and maintain stock and price monitoring system for essential commodities.
Though the specific objectives of the programme look very sound and attractive on paper, thousands of businesses and millions of households will continue to bear the brunt of the impact of the COVID-19 shock if the programme is not successfully implemented by government.
Despite Sierra Leone practises free market economy, the government is very much relaxed over stabilizing prices for essential commodities. Even under normal circumstances, there are disparities in the prices of essential commodities of the same values and sizes because there is complete lack of price monitoring mechanism by the Ministry of Trade and Industry to help ameliorate the plight of impoverished Sierra Leoneans.
It is no gainsaying traders set their prices for essential commodities at whim, and no one would dare query them even if the prices are astronomical to the discomfort of the ordinary people who depend largely on Government for their welfare, security, medication, education and other basic things in life. So how would the general public believe that the programme would establish and maintain stock and price monitoring system for essential commodities when no Government had ever established such mechanism in the interest of the poor? It is yet to be seen because, over the years, many citizens had raised serious concerns over the disparities of prices of essential commodities, but at no time had the Ministry of Trade and Industry taken any action that would ensure the harmonization of prices of essential commodities in the country. Every Jack and Jill sells the way they like and no one would dare query them.
It is fair to say that government had been effectively implementing its Medium-Term National Development Plan and the 2020 Budget prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, but the economic geography of the country was still terrible partly because of the financing of debt services, given the whopping domestic and external debts it inherited from the previous Government.
The cumulative impact of the pandemic has only exacerbated the poor economic situation as millions of households that live on hand to mouth continue to languish in poverty and squalor, especially when the inter-district restrictive measures or regulations have pegged most people in their respective communities around the country with little or no vehicular traffic.
With the effective implementation of the programme objectives, it would be certain that the Government will succeed in building and maintaining an adequate stock level of essential commodities at staple prices; providing support to hardest hit businesses to enable them to continue operations, avert lay-off of employees and reduce non-performing loans; providing credit facility at concessional interest rates to support the production, implementation and distribution of essential goods and services; providing safety nets to vulnerable groups in the form of cash transfers and dry ration; and, supporting labour-based public works and provide assistance for the local production and processing of staple food items.’
While five ACC and NaCSA are being investigated on the grounds of corruption, with regards the safety nets which NaCSA has been providing to vulnerable groups in the form of cast transfers and dry ration, it is only hoped the US$166million Economic Response Programme could not be another grandiose scheme to enrich Government officials that would be implementing it, but a tangible and realistic programme that would benefit every Sierra Leonean, irrespective of political affiliation, region or ethnicity.