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USAID announces new partnership with the Tony Blair Africa Governance Initiative

The USAID has announced its support for the AGI Sierra Leone programme in order to promote broad-based economic growth by improving government support to investors and smallholder farmers.

The AGI programme in Sierra Leone works to provide practical advice and support to help President Koroma bridge the gap between his vision for the country and the capacity of his government to achieve it.

Announcing the partnership in a speech at USAID’s Democracy, Rights and Governance Conference last month, USAID Administrator Dr Raj Shah said,

“Beginning this year, we will fund a partnership between AGI and the Government of Sierra Leone. This assistance will help President Koroma strengthen his country's institutions, while deepening his leadership bench. [...] We must promote, build and nurture leadership so that governments have a realistic chance to provide results. And we must realize that foreign leaders face enormous pressure to satisfy multiple constituencies, while operating with limited resources and capacity. Understanding that complex political reality will help us shape our assistance in more effective ways. As Prime Minister Blair has said ‘If we miss the politics, we miss the point.’”

AGI works with government counterparts to help deliver the public services that Sierra Leone’s citizens have the right to expect, in the key areas that the President has identified of health, agriculture and private sector development.

AGI’s Founder and Patron Tony Blair said,

“I am delighted that USAID and the people of the United States will be supporting the work AGI is doing in Sierra Leone to help the government to promote broad-based economic growth. The potential for impact is huge: some 80,000 farming families are expected to benefit from the bold new agricultural programme. By equipping committed African leaders like President Koroma with the capacity to deliver services and grow their economies sustainably, we are helping them to tackle poverty and ultimate move beyond aid for good.”

The AGI team in Sierra Leone will work with the Ministry of Agriculture to support Sierra Leone’s own, home-grown entrepreneurs by supporting the delivery of the Smallholder Commercialisation Programme. This programme aims to help smallholder farmers to move from subsistence to commercial agriculture through the provision of seeds, storage facilities, fertiliser and training.

We will also work to strengthen the capacity of SLIEPA (the Sierra Leone Investment and Export Promotion Agency) to attract and secure high quality foreign direct investment, promote tourism and build the infrastructure and services necessary to support a fast growing economy.