A newly built US Embassy shows the government’s confidence in Sierra Leone.

THE principal barrier to investment in Sierra Leone is its international image. It has been four years since the end of the war and despite international recognition for the success of its Demobilization, Disarmament and Rehabilitation process, and the pullout of UN troops, there is still a lag in perceptions, and an impression abroad that the country is unstable.

The solution, according to Mohan Kaul (INTERVIEW), Director of the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC), is to encourage people to visit the country.

“Once people see the situation on the ground and appreciate the wealth of investment opportunities available, they will be far more enthused about investing here,” he says.

With this aim in mind, CBC together with the Ministry for Trade and Industry and Africa Recruit, is organizing the Sierra Leone Investment Forum, to be held in Freetown in March 2006, from the 27th to the 29th.

This is the first global investor conference in post-conflict Sierra Leone and with stability restored, and the rule of law firmly established, it will provide the perfect opportunity for international investors and entrepreneurs to take a look at the country.

Dr. Kadi Sesay (INTERVIEW), Minister of Trade and Industry, says that the focus is on rebuilding infrastructure and strengthening the legal framework and judicial capacity to attract foreign companies.

“We have conducted a study on all of the administrative barriers that inhibit trade and investment, and are now implementing its recommendations,” she adds. “Investors in many sectors are beginning to show an interest.”

The adoption of a new investment code in the Investment Promotion Act of 2004 was an important step, providing a clear regulatory framework and laying out a range of incentives. These include a 10-year tax exemption form the standard corporate tax rate of 35% for investors in large-scale agriculture projects, the scrapping of minimum capital requirements and the duty-free import of tourism-related materials.

Investment procedures have also been simplified through the establishment of the Sierra Leone Export Development and Investment Corporation as a one-stop shop for investors. The agency guarantees business registration within seven days. Further security is provided by the bilateral investment protection agreement that Sierra Leone has with the United States, and its membership in MIGA, the convention establishing the World Bank’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency.

The country’s business-friendly attitude is set to be further enhanced by tax incentives and tariff reductions in an upcoming Investment Incentives Bill, and the gradual lowering of trade barriers in the region as part of the Economic Community of West African State’s timetable for trade harmonization.

Investment opportunities abound in mining, fisheries and tourism but the priority is agriculture. Sierra Leone is already producing coffee, cocoa, rice and palm oil, and major players are already investigating the options for expansion in this sector.

The Forum will also see a variety of organizations coming together to try and reverse the brain drain that sees thousands of Africa’s best and brightest minds leave the continent every year. These organizations are convinced that it is Africans around the world that hold the key to the continent’s future. As Dr. Titilola Banjoko, Managing Director of AfricaRecruit explains, “AfricaRecruit is a NEPAD (New Partnership for Africa’s Development) program which mobilizes African Diaspora skills and financial capital for Africa. It exemplifies how the Sierra Leone Diaspora can engage in development.”