Finance Minister Fantamadi Bangura (Right) and Bank Governor Dr Ibrahim Stevens(Left) with World Bank Vice President Ousmane Diagana (centre) at the Washington Spring Meeting
World Bank Vice President for Western and Central Africa, Mr. Ousmane Diagana, and the International Monetary Fund Director for African Affairs, Abebe Aemro Selassie, have both praised the Minister of Finance, Mr. Sheku Ahmed Fantamadi Bangura, for his transformational role in the impressive macroeconomic performance of Sierra Leone.
The praises were made during the minister’s engagement with global economic leaders in a bid to position the country’s image in line with President Julius Maada Bio’s agenda. At a separate meeting, the leaders applauded the minister, signalling their commitment to assist the country’s economic thrive.
At a meeting with the World Bank Vice President for Western and Central Africa, Mr. Ousmane Diagana, and other senior sector directors of the World Bank Group, Vice President Diagana praised the macroeconomic performance and the many reform efforts of President Bio’s government. He reiterated the importance of economic stability in solidifying democracy.
The World Bank vice president assures Sierra Leone, through the minister of finance, that the bank will look “favourably” into all the recommendations put forward by Mr. Fantamadi Bangura in mitigating the impact of the crisis in the Middle East.
His comments were followed by the chief economist of the World Bank Group, Indermit Gill, who doubles as the senior vice president for development economics, who lauded the impressive macroeconomic performance of Sierra Leone and also agreed with the minister’s assessment of the transmission channels of the Middle East crisis. He urges Minister Bangura to protect the country’s macroeconomic stability and implement policies that target the most vulnerable population; hence, avoid untargeted economy-wide subsidies.
In another engagement, the minister of finance holds a productive meeting with the director for African affairs at the International Monetary Fund, Abebe Aemro Selassie, who confirms that the International Monetary Fund is not in the habit of praising but acknowledges that he is very proud of the economic results achieved by the government of Sierra Leone.
The Fund’s Middle East director emphasized that, despite being cognizant of the severity of the crisis in the Middle East, the IMF is working with other partners to provide the necessary support to help member countries mitigate the impact of the crisis. He encourages Minister Bangura to “make a support case,” especially in the area of access to the Resilience and Sustainability Facility, which is overseen by the Deputy Managing Director of the IMF.
While presenting a positive position for Sierra Leone on behalf of President Bio, the Minister of Finance, Sheku Ahmed Fantamadi Bangura, thanked the World Bank Group for its continuous support to the country across various sectors. He briefed the bank vice president on the government’s tremendous progress in the past two years in implementing key economic and public financial management policies that have resulted in improving macroeconomic performance.
The finance minister revealed that inflation was at 4.35 percent in December 2025, the exchange rate was stable, the interest rate on government securities had fallen to sustainable levels, and the primary balance was positive at the end of December 2025. He disclosed that the bank’s portfolio is stable and that the implementation of projects in the education, health, and energy sectors is proceeding extremely well.
Mr. Bangura reflects on the impact of the ongoing Middle East crisis that has contributed to reversing gains already made by the country in many sectors but calls on the bank to provide the necessary support to the government to preserve these gains through targeted policies, thereby limiting the adverse impact on the various transmission channels.
In an engagement with the IMF director for African affairs, Minister Bangura expressed the government’s appreciation for the support over the years from the institution and the advice of the fund. He associates the impressive economic performance Sierra Leone is benefiting from with the tremendous support of the African Department.
Copyright –Published in Expo Times News on Monday, 20th April 2026 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
