FREETOWN, November 6, 2008 -- World Bank Director of Strategy and Operations for Africa Colin Bruce paid an official visit to Sierra Leone October 28-30 to meet with Government officials over development programs in the country.
During his three-day visit, Bruce met with President Ernest Bai Koroma, other top ranking government officials and heads of donor agencies. Bruce had fruitful discussions with the Minister of Finance and Economic Development Mr. David Carew, and Minister of Energy Mrs. Hafsatu Kabba on ensuring that Sierra Leone’s electricity supply is not disrupted within the next six months. Prior to World Bank support early this year towards the provision of emergency thermal electricity in Freetown ahead of the completion of the Bumbuna Hydroelectric project, only two percent of households were able to access electricity in Sierra Leone. Across the country, there were only 40,000 electricity customers out of a population of six million, implying one of the lowest connectivity rates in the world.
Bruce also paid visits to the Kingtom Power Station, which generates thermal electricity in Freetown, and to the Western Area Rural District, where he was taken on a tour of a World Bank funded “cash-for-work” project. According to Bruce, the World Bank “cash for work” program was initiated to serve as a mechanism to provide cash to vulnerable individuals and households and to help address the global increase of food prices and other essential commodities.
During his stay, Bruce called on local community leaders to make diligent use of donor resources and to work earnestly towards meeting their development targets. He said the World Bank will always lend support to developing countries but that the onus rests on the communities themselves to draw on their own strengths and resources.
Whilst in Sierra Leone, Bruce made stops at the rehabilitation of the Soso Town Road, part of the Devil Hole Community Initiative (funded under the Bank-supported National Social Action Project); he inspected the Bank-funded construction of an administrative office to be used by the Western Rural District Council; and he visited a school constructed with the assistance of the Bank-funded Rehabilitation of Basic Education Project locally known as the “Sababu Education Project”. Bruce also visited facilities of the Seventh Day Adventist School in the same vicinity supported by the Institutional Reform and Capacity Building Project.
As head of operations, Colin Bruce is responsible for supporting the Bank’s Africa Region Vice President Obiageli Ezekwesili, and for helping disburse the Bank’s funds in 48 African countries. In the last three years, Bruce has helped oversee the disbursement of US$5.7 billion worth of support to Bank operations in Sub-Saharan Africa. The World Bank is expected to disburse about US$7.2 billion over the next three years, with Sierra Leone on course to harness US$89 million of those funds.
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