The Vice President of Sierra Leone, Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh has pleaded with Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) members to explore methods to lure in private sector investment in the energy sector.

Vice President Jalloh made this request at a five-day delocalized meeting held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation headquarters in Freetown.

Dr. Jalloh highlighted the enormous challenges that are facing the energy sector in the sub-region.

He said the sector lacks the capital for expansion and that most nations in the sub-region cannot afford to meet capital requirements for sustainable energy production.

The Vice President also spoke on the challenges faced by the Bio Administration including poor utility governance architecture, limited solar mini-grid, and inadequate infrastructure to generate, transmit and distribute electricity to local communities.

Dr. Jalloh said they have been able to sail through some of these challenges through the Elaborate Strategic Plan in which they have been able to increase electricity from 16 percent to 35 percent in the entire country.

He also highlighted the expansion of electricity in provincial towns like Bo and Kenema together with further expansion in the Kono District.

The Vice President ended by promising that energy expansion will reach 50 percent in Sierra Leone soon.