Vice President Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh has called for a fundamental shift in how nations approach development, arguing that the goal should be to end recurring emergencies rather than simply responding to them better.
Vice President Jalloh revealed in Freetown that the current model of crisis management is not enough for countries like Sierra Leone.
“The objective of development is not to help countries manage crises more effectively,” He said. “It is to help them escape the cycle of crisis altogether.”
The Vice President’s remarks drew attention to the repeated shocks that have shaped Sierra Leone’s recent history, including the Ebola outbreak, the COVID-19 pandemic, floods, and global economic pressures that have driven up food and fuel prices.
He argued that development planning must move beyond short-term relief and build systems that are resilient before a crisis hits. That, he said, means stronger health infrastructure, climate adaptation, food security, and job creation for young people.
“When we only budget for response, we are budgeting to remain vulnerable,” Jalloh said. “True development invests in prevention, in institutions, and in people so that the next shock does not throw us back to zero.”
Dr. Jalloh said the government’s focus under President Julius Maada Bio’s administration has been to tackle structural weaknesses that keep countries in a loop of borrowing, relief, and recovery. He cited ongoing projects in rural roads, renewable energy, and technical training as examples of efforts aimed at breaking that loop.
“Development is not charity,” he added. “It is the deliberate work of building a country where citizens do not have to wait for the next emergency to define their future.”
The Vice President called on development partners to align support with national priorities that reduce risk, not just with programs that respond once risk becomes reality.