Also, government’s drive towards improving electricity supply and distribution, with the completion of the Bumbuna Hydroelectric Power Plant and additional thermal plants, contributed to increased productivity particularly in the manufacturing sector. However, going forward, there is a need to achieve a higher growth rate to stimulate economic activities and create more employment. Your Excellency, ladies and gentlemen, the state of the economy was presented by the Honourable Minister of Finance and Economic Development, in his statement of Economic and Financial policies for 2011. During 2010, fiscal policy was geared towards enhancing revenue mobilisation to support government’s expanded capital expenditure requirements. Emphasis was therefore placed on improving tax administration by reducing inefficiencies in tax collection and increasing the levels of compliance. The performance of the newly introduced Goods and Services Tax (GST) was encouraging, with a compliance rate of 60 percent. This is an indication of hope for future revenue performance in Sierra Leone. On the other hand, expenditures exceeded the budgetary targets due to salary increases, expenditure on the health sector and infrastructural outlays. In this regard, the Bank would like to stress that the global financial crisis has resulted in global austerity measures worldwide, and Sierra Leone should not be left behind in making difficult financial choices. Compared to 2009, the year 2010 reflected a wider deficit which was financed mainly from the drawdown of Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI) resources, some external financing and domestic borrowing mainly through Ways and Means Advances.

Inclusion – expanding the reach of microfinance One of the key challenges for microfinance has been providing access to financial services where it is unavailable, but needed the most. Expanding the reach of financial services, and finding new ways to do so cost efficiently, lie at the very heart of efforts to increase inclusion. The right channels can also create emotional connections, not just geographical ones. Making it easier for borrowers to connect with financial institutions in ways that they feel comfortable with, can build affinities with financial institutions which in turn, encourages participation and timely repayments. Mobile banking is an excellent example. The portability, affordability and ubiquity of mobile gadgets effectively put a bank in everyone’s pockets today. The numbers are telling. Half the global population use mobile internet. We spend 4 hours on the phone and use 12 apps in a single day. The tremendous success of mobile banking in Africa has been hailed as a transformative platform for greater financial inclusion. If providers leverage digital platforms well, finance can literally be at the fingertips of the unbanked. Leveraging on digital platforms can also create a virtuous cycle. Over time, such platform providers will accumulate a wealth of data on customer preferences and behaviour. This can in turn drive drive analysis for new product offerings in the future. This is of course, highly contextual and an effective delivery strategy will likely differ across countries, communities and cultures.