Austine Luseni
Communications Specialist
Ministry of Energy
Contact:077377042/034157390
Conference Room,Ministry of Energy, Monday May 5,2025—— The Chairman Board of Directors of Infrastructure 4 Development Sierra Leone,I4D-SL,Charles Mambu,has told the Energy Sector Lead and officials of the Ministry of Energy that it was imperative for the collaboration or partnership between civil society organizations and government ministries to be strengthened for the purposes of enhancing accountability,transparency,servicedelivery,and the effective implementation of projects.
Mr. Mambu was speaking at the Ministry of Energy where he had led members of a consortium of civil society organizations to discuss with officials of the Ministry of Energy the current successes,thechallenges,and the way forward for the sector.
He said the consortium was keen on monitoring five different areas of infrastructure which were critical for the development of the country,noting that the energy,housing,road,transport,and water sectors play important roles toward national development.
Mr. Mambu noted with delight the progress that has taken place in the sector particularly between 2018 and 2025,praising efforts at increasing the generation capacity of the sector and the boom in mini grids.
He highlighted the challenges and spoke about the way forward while calling on the Ministry to strengthen its collaboration with civil society organizations like his to ensure effective public education.
Responding,Energy Sector Lead,Dr. Kandeh Yumkella,thanked the consortium for the visit,stressing that his Ministry was not averse to forging partnerships with civil society organizations.
He spoke about plans to increase the sector’s generation capacity through a variety of projects,including the Nant Project,the mini grids,and the solar energy projects at Newton and Lungi.
Dr. Yumkella said they were taking the climate change issues and the human activities affecting the Bumbuna Hydroelectric Dam very seriously,adding that the consortium will form part of the delegation from the Ministry that will be visiting Bumbuna in a couple of weeks.
The Energy Sector Lead concluded by saying that he had inherited a sector for which expectations for delivery were and are still high and urgent. He called for patience and support and understanding and warned against any reliance on quick-fix solutions.
Deputy Minister of Energy l,Ing. Edmond Nonie,gave an overview of the lay of the energy land in Freetown and nationwide.
He said the government was on track with respect to project implementation and policy reforms with the view to solving the electricity challenges in the country.
With the energy sector and the Feed Salone agenda being inextricably linked,reforms continue in the sector.
