Sierra Leone’s Minister of Energy, Alhaji Kanja Sesay, has switched on the rural mini grid at Moyamba Junction,and by extension, connected hundreds of households and commercial outlets at the strategic junction to the country’s off grid infrastructure.

Welcoming the Minister and his team, Paramount Chief of Fakunya Chiefdom,PC Samuel Bengeh III, expressed his delight at the ceremony and lauded the efforts of President Julius Maada Bio in lighting up his chiefdom. He described the development as monumental and strategically significant to the locality.

While officially commissioning the facility, Alhaji Kanja Sesay described the day as an historic one, recalling how in 2004 he superintended over the construction of the market facility at the junction when he was the NaCSA Commissioner. He described Moyamba Junction as a strategic town with lots of commercial, transportation and agricultural potentials.

He congratulated stakeholders for their hands-on-deck attitude towards the project, noting that government’s priority was to provide electricity to every part of the country. Mr. Sesay however reckoned that it was always going to be difficult to connect every area to the national grid, adding that that was why the rural mini grid project was being aggressively pursued.

The Minister of Energy identified towns in Moyamba district that have benefitted from the rural mini grid,including but not limited to Senehun, Mokehleh, Sengeh, Bomtok, Mano Daseh, Bradford, Taiama, Rotifunk, Kangahun, Bauya and Moiba Junction.

He said his Ministry was partnering with independent power producers like Power Leone and was engaging donor partners like the European Union for the expansion of off grid facilities. Mr. Sesay called on residents to own the project, avoid illegal electricity abstraction and rightfully pay their bills so that they would enjoy the facility.

Member of Parliament of Constituency 096, Hon. Fefegula, praised the Minister of Energy for thinking about his constituency and his district in particular,citing the Moyamba Township Electrification Project as one giant stride undertaken in the district. He expressed the appreciation of his constituents and promised that his people would cooperate with the providers.

Power Leone Community Liaison Officer,Daniel Kamanda Kargbo,spoke about the work and areas of operation of his company. He assured that his company would run the facility and called on residents to cooperate with his company by paying their bills.