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Sierra Leone’s President, Julius Maada Bio has bragged about some of the achivements his administration has gained since he took over power in 2018.
The President made this revelation on Wednesday, 8th February, 2023, during the 13th National Delegates Conference of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), held at the Bintumani Conference Centre in Freetown.
President Bio stated that, since 2018, his government has recruited 8,700 Community Health Workers (CHWs) and given pin codes to 5,000 nurses, which enables them to be on the government’s paying voucher.
He added that his government has brought other developments to hospitals that are benefiting 20,000 people in 12 districts.
“Availability of essential drugs has increased by 90%. In the height of COVID-19, my government spent one hundred and ten million United States Dollars (US$110m) to import essential items mainly fuel and food to reduce the people’s suffering,” he said.
President Bio said that his government has been spending 22% of the national budget on free quality education, adding that his government has provided textbooks, teaching and learning materials to 12,000 schools in the country of which children are benefiting from no matter the status of their parents in societies.
“My government has hired and trained 10,000 qualified new teachers, established 10 technical training centres and created three new technical universities. We have also expanded grant-in-aid coverage and launched the students’ loan scheme,” he highlighted.
Bio said as a result of the free quality education, the pass rate in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) increased from 55% in 2018 to over 77% in the 2022. Noting that there were one million new learners now getting education.
“In the area of agriculture, my government provided 410 tractors, power tillers, etc., to boost rice production. In the 2021/2022 planting season, we did not import rice seed because we already had enough to cultivate,” he maintained.
President Bio warned that there was no place for tribalism in the SLPP, adding that it is the Sierra Leone People’s Party which presupposes that no particular tribe would claim ownership of it and as such everyone within the party will work together and see themselves as one people.
“The best thing that has ever happened to this country is the formation of the SLPP. So, when SLPP fails, the entire country fails. This is why we should leave this delegates conference as a united party that is determined to win the June 24, 2023, elections,” he said.
