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United Nations Département des Affaires Économiques et Sociales Développement Durable

Sierra Leone's Big 5 Game Changers for Accelerating SDG Implementation
Description of commitment

1. Feed Salone: Essentially aimed at boosting agricultural productivity to ensure food security, and inclusive economic growth.

2. Human Capital Development: Focusing on nurturing inclusive skills and healthy population for the 21st century demands through scaled-up investment in human capital development;

3. Youth Employment Scheme as a Catalyst for Democracy, Economic Productivity and National Security: Aimed at creating 500,000 jobs for youths in the next five years;

4. Enhancing Public Service Architecture for Empowering Democracy and National Development: Aimed at ensuring effective service delivery, efficiency and professionalism in the public service architecture; and

5. Technology and Infrastructure: Focused on increasing investment in infrastructure, technology and digitalisation.

National benchmark for reducing poverty and inequality by 2027

Yes (e.g., 35.3% for 2027 for national income poverty, and 8.6% for inequality in terms of the " Share of income of the bottom 20% income earners in total household income"), please see attachment for more details.

Strengthening of national planning and institutional frameworks to support commitment

In line with the need to greatly increase efforts to drive SDG transformation, the following arrangements will be adapted and improved by the Government in the remaining years of the SDG implementation:
a. SDG-aligned Integrated National Financing Frameworks (INFFs) and budgeting: The ongoing multiple crises have made it difficult for the country to mobilize the resources to finance basic service delivery and have derailed development, threatening progress towards the SDGs. Sierra Leone's government has prioritised domestic revenue mobilisation through key policy reforms, including measures to strengthen the country’s tax administration and revenue collection. Despite some progress, challenges remain and need to be addressed as financing the SDGs will continue to be at the centre of Government’s agenda for the remaining 7 years, emphasising on national domestic resource mobilisation.
In this regard, the Government will pursue the implementation of INFF-related initiative and strengthen the institutional mechanism by enhancing the national INFF oversight committee to effectively and coherently steer strategic decisions, oversee implementation and maximise the flow of resources towards sustainable financing of development programmes.
The MoPED had worked with the UN RCO and UNDP to implement an INFF-related project, Strengthening Domestic Resource Mobilisation for the Implementation of the SDGs in Sierra Leone. This project, financed through the UN Joint SDG Fund window, supported the promotion of financial literacy and digitalisation, the operations of the National Revenue Authority, the expanding of the social security coverage of the informal sector by the National Social Security and Insurance Trust, and boosting capacity of local councils in the monitoring of revenue flows and expenditure management. However, this has just been a small aspect in the range of financing options contained in the country’s INFF. Therefore, more project resources will be required to implement these options as new ones will be explored.
Recently, GoSL in collaboration with the UNDP concluded the following studies and assessments within the country’s INFF: a) a study on barriers and enablers of women participation in the domestic resource mobilisation in Sierra Leone; b) a study on diaspora investment potential in Sierra Leone; and c) an SDG Investor Mapping to identify and propagate market incentives and signals for private investment. Once these studies are launched, it will be critical to develop and implement projects to scale-up financing for the SDGs in the country.
Given the projected fiscal and financial constraints faced by Sierra Leone, possible financing options for the investments derived from the identified SDG interlinkages are: tax and revenue reform, debt for SDGs, climate finance, blended and public-private finance, SDG aligned business environment and investment, accessing financial markets and insurance, remittances, philanthropy and faith-based financing. Looking ahead to the future and in response to emerging challenges that are impacting the sustainable development gains, the Government of Sierra Leone and its partners will need to continue their fruitful cooperation and joint efforts to bring innovative financial mechanisms to scale to enhance sustainable and inclusive economic growth and development, focusing in particular on women, youth and rural communities at risk. The Government will continue to explore optimal financing instruments to leverage and channel private and Diaspora investments into national and local SDG aligned priorities.
b. Aligning the SDG Acceleration Roadmap to the New National Development Plan 2024-2028 that is underway: The acceleration roadmap to inform the successor of the current national development plan to ensure further that national commitments to SDGs are reflected and operationalised in national and sectoral development plans.
c. Strengthening the coordinating role of the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development: The capacity of MoPED will be strengthened in respect of its role in coordinating the implementation of the SDGs in the country. In the last 7 to 8 years, the planning ministry has coordinated follow-up efforts in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, including the voluntary national reviews that Sierra Leone has done three times.
d. Development cooperation: Strengthening development cooperation and coordination mechanisms in Sierra Leone to foster development effectiveness and accelerate progress towards the implementation and monitoring of the SDGs.
e. Capacity to develop bankable projects: There is need for a sustainable project preparation fund (PPF) to finance the development of viable projects within the public sector that are financially and economically sound. Technical and financial capacity in this area is currently acutely limited, thereby narrowing the absorptive capacity to utilise earmarked resources for national development programme. A well-managed and implemented PPF will be developed.can help.
f. Sectoral coordination: Strengthen sectoral coordination to minimise duplication of activities.
g. Strengthening local capacities: Accelerating the implementation of SDGs requires strengthening the capacity of local authorities to finance and advance SDGs, including enhancing capacity in revenue and expenditure forecasting, revenue collection strategies and reporting for fiduciary staff of local councils, enhancing the national statistical system and harnessing SDG-related monitoring and evaluation system at national and sub-national levels to track progress in implementing the agenda across the country .
h. Policy effectiveness: Increasing the effectiveness of policy and regulatory frameworks and provision of adequate business development services for the implementing ministries/entities. More attention should be given to policy/programme prioritisation and sequencing.
i. Monitoring and evaluation: The government and the UN will continue its efforts towards the establishment of a National Digital SDG Monitoring and Evaluation Platform anchored in the national statistical office, Statistics-Sierra Leone. There is need to revamp the monitoring and evaluation mechanisms and strengthening national statistical systems for the SDGs within this proposed.

(See attachment for detailss.)

Ares of strengthened institutional frameworks

Making SDG achievement a more central focus in national planning and oversight mechanisms, Aligning domestic budgets and financing with the SDGs, Strengthening regulatory frameworks to align private sector governance models, operating principles and disclosure requirements with sustainable development objectives, Strengthening the capacities of local and subnational governments to advance the SDGs , Rejuvenating and strengthening public sector institutions , Boosting transparency and access to information, Strengthening national statistical systems, Securing country-level data for the SDG targets, Increasing domestic financing for data and statistics

Additional information

Action Network
Type of initiative
National Commitment to SDG Transformation
Member State
Sierra Leone
Geographic scope
National
Key priority transitions
Leaving no one behind, Investing in women and girls, Making the digital transformation work for everyone, Adopting a life course approach to essential services, Tackling the global crisis in education, Investing in peace, Accelerating access to energy for all and the shift to renewables, Securing food, water and sanitation systems, Protecting biodiversity and natural resources , Preventing and/or reducing disaster risks , Aligning trade policies with the SDGs, Delivering on climate finance, Increasing funding for SDG related research
Annual Updates
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