Sierra Leone is moving toward a revenue-led financing model while expanding targeted social protection programmes to cushion vulnerable households from rising living costs linked to global commodity price shocks, senior government officials said.
Financial Secretary Matthew Dingie said the government is responding to mounting economic pressures highlighted in the International Monetary Fund’s April 2026 Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa, particularly the impact of elevated oil prices on import-dependent economies.
“Well, what we are trying to do is to design social protection programs that will at least alleviate the burden on the vulnerable population,” Dingie said, noting that the government is deploying targeted subsidies in key sectors including transport, health and education.
He said the aim is to maintain affordability of essential services despite inflationary pressures driven by higher global energy costs.
The support measures are being coordinated across multiple ministries, including the National Commission for Social Action, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Basic Education and the Ministry of Transport. According to Dingie, the objective is to ensure continued access to basic services for low-income households most affected by the oil price shock.
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“We can provide support directly from the budget to really ensure that the cost of the services are maintained… so that people are going to afford these basic services,” he said.
A key component of the government’s response is the use of contingency financing embedded in existing development programmes. Dingie pointed to the Contingency Emergency Response Component as a mechanism that allows authorities to quickly redirect funds within ongoing projects.
“We can trigger under each of the projects that are being supported… and use those resources to support education services,” he explained.
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He said similar interventions are planned for public transport and agriculture, with the goal of stabilising food supply chains and preventing further price increases in staple goods.
In education, contingency funds could be used to sustain flagship initiatives such as free schooling programmes. In transport, subsidies would help maintain affordability of public services, while agricultural support would focus on safeguarding food production and market stability.
“The World Bank is really helping us… to trigger an emergency response, and we use those resources now to continue to fund these services so that at least they will be there and affordable for the vulnerable,” Dingie said.
Beyond short-term relief, the government is also rethinking its broader fiscal strategy amid concerns about declining official development assistance to low-income countries. The IMF has warned that reduced aid flows could increase fiscal vulnerabilities across Sub-Saharan Africa.
Dingie said Sierra Leone is responding by shifting toward stronger domestic revenue mobilisation to reduce reliance on external financing.
“That is why all the new instruments… they all move around domestic revenue mobilization,” he said.
He added that development partners are increasingly linking funding to measurable progress in tax and revenue reforms, marking a shift away from traditional budget support.
“We agree on strategic policies… to beef up revenue, and then if we meet the target… the bank gives you money,” he said, describing performance-based financing arrangements that reward incremental improvements in domestic resource collection.
According to Dingie, the approach is intended to build long-term fiscal resilience by ensuring that domestic revenues gradually replace external support as the main source of budget financing.
“They know why they are giving you money… but your revenue is growing gradually, so that in the event the financing dries out, your revenue will take over,” he said.
He stressed that strengthening public financial management systems and tax administration has become essential as concessional financing is expected to decline over time.
“We cannot continue to depend on this year in, year out for years to come,” Dingie added, noting that a stronger domestic revenue base would help the country better withstand future economic shocks.
