President Bio’s National Address on New Year’s Day 2025

Fellow Sierra Leoneans.

As we step into this brand new year, I bring you greetings with a heart full of hope, gratitude and determination.

The dawn of a New Year is an opportunity to reflect, reimagine and recommit ourselves to the ideals that bind us as a nation, and walk towards building a peaceful and prosperous land that we love, Sierra Leone.

As alluded to in my Christmas Day message, the past year has brought its share of challenges, but it also served as a testament to our unwavering spirit as Sierra Leoneans. A spirit that we can be proud of and draw confidence from.

From the bustling streets of Freetown and Makeni to the serene villages of Falaba and Bonthe districts. From the classrooms where our children learn, to the tills where our farmers toil, your efforts are the cornerstone of our nation’s progress.

Together we can overcome any challenge that confronts us as a nation. Fellow Sierra Leoneans, this year 2025 is a time for bold action. My government is committed to turning challenges into opportunities, and visions into reality. Our nation stands at a critical moment in our development journey and our choices today we determine the Sierra Leoneans we bear for, for tomorrow.

My government is fully committed to diligently implementing the medium term national Development Plan 2024-2030 for irreversible progress for our country particularly through the Big 5 game changers.

In the year ahead, we will redouble our efforts to create jobs, support local businesses and attract investments that will drive sustainable economic growth and ensure a brighter future for all.

As a government, our primary focus is on growing the economy to enhance the quality of life of every citizen, ensuring that no one is left behind in our journey of progress. We will continue to strive to reduce inflation to double digits and single digits in future. With the confidence of international partners, we will continue to mitigate the negative impact of the global economic headwinds on our local economy in order to maintain its growth trajectory. We will continue to pay salaries regularly, keep food and fuel on the market at reasonable prices, increase agricultural productivity and improve the contribution of the mining sector and manufacturing to our GDP.

We will scale up the implementation of flagship Feed Salone programme to increase and diversify value chains, reduce the food import bill and an improved livelihoods from farming.

Fellow citizens, meeting our country’s growing energy demand will be a top priority in 2025. We will continue to work on various initiatives to improve our energy mix to power our homes and industries. To accelerate our country’s development, we will we actively seek financing and technical partnerships for renewable or clean energy investments. Our well deserved $480 million MCC compact is a great step in the right direction to improve our energy access and reliability of supply to households, businesses snd social institutions in Sierra Leone.

Fellows Sierra Leoneans, there is no denying that the adverse impacts of climate change are at our doorsteps. Changes in rainfall and temperature, increase risk of drought and floods and an increase in sea level affect our nation’s agriculture, water, energy, Infrastructure and coastal areas. As a government, we will work decisively to mitigate the threats of climate change and adapt to our evolving realities.

Our environment is a treasure that we must protect. From combating deforestation to investing in renewable energy, Sierra Leone will contribute to addressing the global climate crisis. We owe it to future generations to safeguard our lands, waters and biodiversity. We will review and update Sierra Leone’s nationally determine contributions and develop a comprehensive strategic plan for climate change for 2025-2030. We will also strengthen our collaboration with our national and international partners to mobilise climate financing to support climate-related economic development activities.

Fellows Sierra Leoneans, we have made great strides in improving access to education and are recognised globally for our strides in advancing foundational learning. This year, we will double down on quality education, reaffirming our commitment to providing a solid foundation for our nation’s future. Will we invest more in equipping our teachers, modernising our schools and integrating technology into our classrooms.

With renewed zest, our Youth, the heartbeat of our nation will find more pathways to education, skills, training and entrepreneurship. We will continue to strengthen the legal and regulatory framework to foster the enabling environment for creating jobs in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, fisheries, tourism, construction, entrepreneurship and the service sector.

KEEP READING: https://sierraloaded.sl/news/bio-national-address-sierra-leoneans-2025/