By Nasratu Kargbo
Deputy Leader of the Opposition 1, Daniel B. Koroma has questioned the government’s ‘Feed Salone’ agenda using the Torma bum project as a yardstick. He said so much money has been spent on the rice project which he claimed is yet to yield benefit to Sierra Leoneans.
The MP during his debate on the bill entitled Appropriation Act 2024 said despite the monies spent on the project, “Unfortunately as we speak now, not even 50 kilo bag of rice is evidence of the project. What went wrong with the Torma bum project?”
He presented a series of documents highlighting when the project started, and officially launched and also spoke on the huge sums of money that have been allocated towards the project.
Speaking on taxes, the MP said that after the enactment of the Finance Act 2024, the Minister of Finance Sheku F. Bangura in a press briefing said the restoration of tax on rice will support and promote local rice production but the MP disputed the minister’s assertion.
He further stated that the Financial Secretary Mathew Dingie in the same press briefing said that the import duty on rice is not new, explaining that it was suspended in 2009 by the government as a result of the global crisis. The MP quoted paragraph 4 of the budget statement, saying that it states that the government is restoring tax due to the global crisis.
Koroma added that the Financial Secretary also said that the government has been losing eighteen million dollars annually from the exemption of the 5% tax on rice.
He also spoke of the wage bill, noting that there are many persons in the Ministry of Agriculture, highlighting the Minister, the Deputies 1 and 2, Director amongst others, stating that there was no need to add a rice specialist. The MP stated that certain positions are not necessary.
Responding to concerns raised by MPs Deputy Minister of Finance 1 Jeneba Bangura said: “We have realized that it is important to restore (tax), if Feed Salone were to succeed we need to make sure that we reinstate that rate, and as it was read in the budget it is going to be ring-fenced”.
She explained that tax from rice will be ring-fenced in the Feed Salone programme.
Paragraph 48 of the budget statement says “The goal of the Feed Salone programme is to establish a framework, involving several interventions for delivering food self-sufficiency within the shortest possible time. The key objectives of the programme are to: reduce the importation of food items, including our staple food, reduce hunger and malnutrition, and create job opportunities, especially for the youth build resilience to climate change and food price shocks and boost export earnings from agriculture”.
Paragraph 53 speaks of investing in Agricultural Research, Innovation and Extension Services, as the government seeks to scale up investment in agricultural research, innovation and extension systems to promote climate-smart agriculture and agricultural technologies in a bid to produce a high-yield variety of seeds to boost resilience against climate change.
Parliament enacted the Appropriation Act 2024 on the 28th of November 2024.
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