In a recent meeting at the State House, Chief Minister Dr. David Moinina Sengeh discussed ways to enhance service delivery for Local Councils with the Minister of Local Government and Community Affairs, Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr and officials from the Freetown City Council (FCC).
Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyer highlighted significant advancements in service delivery, including the Kingtom Treatment Plant, which converts waste into briquettes.
She also noted improvements in education, with FCC collaborating closely with primary and secondary schools using gender-responsive and digital approaches.
Additionally, the city has improved waste management with 22 tricycles and nine trucks, and engineers have conducted feasibility studies to reshape the iconic cotton tree and plan urban beautification through tree planting.
Minister of Local Government and Community Affairs, Tamba Lamina, expressed gratitude to the Chief Minister for the engagement, urging timely fund allocations to Local Councils to enhance their service delivery capabilities.
Dr. Sengeh emphasized the central government’s focus on supporting Local Councils, mentioning four key areas: service delivery, performance contracts at the ministerial level, ownership of the Medium-Term National Development Plan (MTNDP) 2024-2030, and central government financing.
He stressed the importance of optimizing service delivery and supporting council activities to accelerate the MTNDP.
Dr. Sengeh also addressed the collapse of the cotton tree last year and the need for efficient garbage collection during the rainy season to maintain city cleanliness.
He lauded FCC’s creation of 120,000 jobs, aligning with President Julius Maada Bio’s Youth Empowerment Scheme (YES) aimed at generating 500,000 jobs in his second term.
“We need more collaboration at the decision-making level,” Dr. Sengeh concluded, promising to engage relevant Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to provide technical support to FCC for maximizing service delivery.
