London, United Kingdom, 13th October 2025 Sierra Leone’s Chief Minister, Dr. David Moinina Sengeh, on behalf of His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio, has reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to inclusive growth and sustainable partnerships at the Sierra Leone Investment Forum held in London under the theme: “Ready for Investment Open for Partnership.”
The high-level forum, organised by British International Investment (BII) in partnership with the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), Invest Africa, Invest Salone, Herbert Smith Freehills, ARIA, and Sierra Leone’s National Investment Board (NIB), brought together government leaders, investors, and development partners to explore business and investment opportunities in Sierra Leone.
The event served as a strategic platform to promote Sierra Leone’s economic progress and investment reforms under President Bio’s leadership, providing direct engagement between Government and investors from the UK, Europe, and across Africa.
In his keynote address, Dr. Sengeh emphasized that Sierra Leone’s economy has entered a phase of stability and renewed investor confidence, driven by tangible reforms, improved governance, and a clear national development vision.
“Sierra Leone is ready for investment and open for partnership. This is not a slogan; it is a statement of intent backed by real reforms, real numbers, and real opportunities,” he affirmed.
Dr. Sengeh anchored his message around President Julius Maada Bio’s Big Five Agenda, which guides the country’s transformation journey — Feed Salone, Human Capital Development, Youth Employment, Public Sector Reform, and Technology and Infrastructure.
“These priorities are interconnected each reinforcing the other,” he said. “Together, they represent a single purpose: to build a prosperous, resilient, and equitable Sierra Leone.”
The Chief Minister shared key economic achievements:
• Food imports reduced by 6%.
• Inflation dropped to 5.85%, the first sustained single-digit rate in over a decade.
• The Leone remained stable, depreciating by only 1% against the U.S. dollar in the past year.
• The economy grew by 4.4% in 2024 and is projected to expand by 4.5% in 2025.
“These are not abstract figures,” Dr. Sengeh stated. “They tell a story of stability, predictability, and confidence — a story that says clearly, Sierra Leone is open for business.”
Highlighting the Government’s structural reforms, Dr. Sengeh noted the establishment of the National Investment Board (NIB) under the NIB Act of 2022, which now serves as a one-stop authority for investment facilitation and approvals.
Through the One-Stop-Shop model, investors can now register businesses, obtain permits, and access incentives in a transparent and efficient process.
He also pointed to landmark land governance reforms through the Customary Land Rights Act and National Land Commission Act (2022) — which provide legal certainty for investors while safeguarding community rights.
Additionally, the Tax and Duty Exemption Act (2023) and Medium-Term Revenue Strategy (2023–2027) have made fiscal incentives predictable and transparent, offering benefits such as duty-free imports of machinery, tax holidays, and research and development deductions.
“Your capital is protected. Your profits can be repatriated freely. And your investments are guaranteed by law,” Dr. Sengeh assured investors.
The Chief Minister identified priority sectors for investment including:
• Agriculture and Agro-Industry: Supported by the Feed Salone initiative to boost large-scale production and value addition in rice, cocoa, coffee, and oil palm.
• Energy and Renewables: Competitive incentives for independent power producers in solar, hydro, and biomass projects.
• Manufacturing and Industrialisation: Tax holidays and R&D support for investments above USD 10 million.
• Tourism and Hospitality: Leveraging Sierra Leone’s natural beauty and cultural heritage for sustainable tourism.
• Infrastructure and Financial Services: Expanding roads, ports, housing, and digital connectivity through public-private partnerships.
Dr. Sengeh also spotlighted the creative industries — now contributing 4.5% of GDP and employing over 10% of the formal workforce — as a rising pillar of Sierra Leone’s economic diversification.
He announced two key policy initiatives:
1. Establishing a Collective Management Organization (CMO) by the end of the year to ensure artists earn royalties globally.
2. Overhauling the Copyright Act to strengthen intellectual property protection. “We recognise the creative economy as a serious economic sector,” he said. “When creativity meets commerce, everybody wins.”
Mr. Chris Chijiutomi, Managing Director and Head of Africa at British International Investment (BII), praised Sierra Leone’s reform momentum and reaffirmed the UK’s long-standing development partnership with the country. “We have a long-standing history of supporting Sierra Leone’s growth, dating back to the 1960s when we helped finance the hydroelectric dam,” Mr. Chijiutomi noted.
“More recently, we have committed over $100 million to critical sectors aligned with the Government’s development priorities.” He said BII’s investments align with President Bio’s Big Five priorities focusing on job creation, youth empowerment, inclusion, and advancing technology and infrastructure. Mr. Chijiutomi also referenced the Africa Resilient Investment Accelerator (ARIA), co-founded by BII, the Dutch Development Finance Institution (FMO), and Proparco, the French Development Finance Institution, as a landmark initiative first piloted in Sierra Leone to unlock investment in frontier markets. “Given the progress and level of commitment we’ve seen, Sierra Leone remains one of our priority markets as we move forward in our investment strategy,” he concluded. Dr. Sengeh closed by reaffirming Sierra Leone’s readiness for meaningful investment partnerships that drive shared prosperity and sustainable development.
“When you invest in Sierra Leone, you are investing in a country where profit and purpose coexist — where sustainability is not an afterthought, but a competitive advantage,” he said. “Sierra Leone is ready for investment. Sierra Leone is open for partnership.” The Sierra Leone Investment Forum 2025 in London forms part of ongoing efforts by the Government of Sierra Leone to attract responsible investment, deepen economic cooperation with international partners, and showcase progress under President Julius Maada Bio’s Big Five Agenda.
