SIERRA LEONE maq 4ª.indd - agrilife - Europa

Table 16. Freetown to District headquarters: Price in Le for one 50kg bag
Makeni Kabal Bo Kenema Kono
Dry Season SLL 2000 SLL 2500 SLL 3000 SLL 3500 SLL 3500
Rainy Season SLL 2000 SLL 2500 SLL 3500 SLL 4000 SLL 4500
Average SLL 2000 SLL 2500 SLL 3250 SLL 3750 SLL 4000
Source: Freetown Interview: December 2006 Economic Policy and Research Unit, Ministry of Finance Government of Sierra Leone
May 2007 (Data from Fieldwork, November 2006).
rainy seasons. Consequently, the preference for
local rice in rural areas would obey not only a
preference for taste or nutrition but the fact that
in low harvest years, consumers must rely in the
more expensive imported substitute.
Other food crops have a similar marketing
system, entirely in the hands of the private sector.
Palm oil is generally marketed by itinerant traders
who purchase the oil from village processors
and resell to retailers in urban areas. Production
and marketing of traditional export crops has
collapsed during and since the war. Gradually
some of the coffee and cocoa farms have been
rehabilitated and buying sectors have been
reactivated by private agents in a number of
areas. (NSADP, 2009)
There is potential for adding value to
agricultural output through increased processing,
for both domestic and export markets. However,
there is need to improve infrastructure, market
information (including information on prices,
services, packaging, conforming to international
product standards etc.) across the country.
Infrastructure & Investment
Rural infrastructure is poor. The rate of
investment in Sierra Leonean infrastructure is
lower than the Sub-Saharan African average,
with progressively lower levels of percentage
GDP spending between the years 2005 and 2007
(Table 17).
Adequate physical infrastructure in rural
areas is a crucial requirement for high rates of
growth to be achieved in the rural economy.
Poor or inexistent roads, particularly feeder
roads, make access to rural villages and farms
difficult, especially during the rainy season. This
primary constraint, faced by service providers
to the sector, contributes to inefficient delivery
of support services to farming communities.
Moreover, the inadequate state of the overall road
network restricts access to major markets (FAO,
2005). Output markets are underdeveloped
with most farmers depending on occasional
local markets or intermediaries for the sale of
their produce. Farm-gate prices are therefore
low, further complicated with high levels of
Table 17. Sierra Leone and Sub-Saharan Africa investment spending on infrastructure, 2005-2007
Investment spending (% of GDP)
Sierra Leone Sub-Saharan Africa
Year 2005 2006 2007 2005 2006 2007
Total investment 17,4 15,5 13,5 20,2 21,6 22,2
Public investment 5,8 5,1 3,5 6,8 7,4 7,7
Private investment 11,6 10,4 10,0 13,4 13,4 14,6
Source: IMF (2009)
Rural poverty reduction and food security: The case of smallholders in Sierra Leone
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