The near-total destruction of Sierra Leone’s ailing infrastructure during the country’s civil war was a stumbling block in the nation’s post-war development. The Government of Sierra Leone (GoSL) put the restoration of the infrastructure sector as one of the pillars of its post-war development agenda. The aim was to move the country from post-war humanitarian assistance to socio-economic development and poverty reduction. To achieve this goal, the GoSL sought counsel from the World Bank’s Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility (PPIAF) in 20091. The PPIAF provided technical assistance to support public enterprises entering into long-term contractual arrangements with private sector service providers, and to develop minimum standard and regulations governing private-public partnerships (PPPs) contracts2. Their effort resulted in the inclusion of PPP as a funding mechanism for Sierra Leone’s infrastructure development in the ‘Agenda for Prosperity’, the country’s third generation poverty reduction strategy (PRS) (2013-2018)3.
Since then, the PPP financing model has been operationalised and several projects have been instituted. Even though the main actor pushing Sierra Leone’s PPP agenda, the World Bank Group, is promoting gender equality in PPPs, Sierra Leone’s PPP legal framework is gender insensitive. In order to understand the issues of gender equality and PPPs in Sierra Leone, this paper will be divided into two broad sections. The first section provides background context on the concepts, the infrastructure sector, the PPP regulatory framework and the energy and agriculture sectors. The second section focuses on Addax Bioenergy Sierra Leone Limited (Addax/ABSL), the case study for this report looking at women’s rights, resistance and struggles against Addax Bioenergy, the social and economic impacts of ABSL and the downsizing of the addax and the transfer to Sunbird energy.
Grain by Grain
Through Mabinty’s eyes, we experience the intimate moments of a farmer’s journey and witness the slow erosion of a community’s way of life. Mabinty is the mother of Kandeh, who receives a handful of rice daily as an encouragement to do well in school. But as Kandeh’s stash of rice grows, so does the realization that things are no longer as they were. The humming of Mabinty lures us into the heart of Sierra Leone’s countryside to witness the impacts of an agricultural bioenergy project supposed to bring “development” to rural communities. Grain by Grain is a silent, yet powerful reminder of the hidden costs of public-private partnerships and the false promises of “clean agriculture” projects.
Mabinty used to exchange the rice she harvested for all kinds of fresh produce
at the local market.
The Podcast
Corporate power and the capture of the state in post-war Sierra Leone
Join Hussainatu J. Abdullah, a leading Sierra Leonian feminist author, as she discusses the nefarious influence of corporate power in her country’s post-war, post-ebola context.
In this episode, renowned feminist economist Corina Rodríguez Enríquez and international development expert Sue Godt interview Dr Abdullah on public-private partnerships in West Africa.
They delve into Abdullah’s article “Gender Equality, Women’s Rights And Public-Private Partnerships In Sierra Leone’s Agro-Energy Sector: A Case Study Of Addax Bioenergy Sierra Leone (ABSL) Ltd.” The experts examine how PPPs are being portrayed by governments and funders as the new silver bullet for public services and infrastructure projects across the global South. They shed light on the power of the PPP model, and how it is installed in a country and embedded deeply into the system, often resulting in a dangerous process of pauperization of the workforce, amid other detrimental consequences.
What does it take to build the foundation of governance systems and architecture before sustained development can move forward?
Connect The Dots
The discourse on PPPs and gender equality is dominated by two perspectives: the first view is promoted by donor governments and international financial institutions (IFIs) on one hand, and on the other hand, is the position of social justice campaigners such as gender equality and women’s rights activists, civil society organisations (CSOs) and Trade Unions, criticising the viewpoints of the
former. The IFIs led by the World Bank Group (WBG) and their cohorts are pushing for PPPs to be the instrument for financing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In furtherance of their agenda, they are assisting countries to develop PPP regulatory frameworks to provide advice and finance for PPP projects. In the case of Sierra Leone, the WBG, through its various agencies, has been instrumental in shaping the nation’s PPP agenda. Although the country’s PPP framework is gender insensitive, the World Bank has developed a robust argument making the case for gender mainstreaming in PPP programmes and projects by advancing the development of infrastructure that
reduces poverty while promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment in the long term.
On the other hand, CSOs, trade unions, women’s rights organisations, and other social justice entities have pointed out that it is impossible to use the PPP framework to promote social development not only because it undermines it, but also because it is flawed. These flaws are obvious in relation to their impact on gender equality: the lack of data on the positive impact of PPPs,
particularly on women; the narrow approach of PPPs to gender equality; and the way in which the success of PPPs is measured. Furthermore, they argue that PPPs and social development, including gender equality and women’s rights are diametrically opposed to each other because the former is based on achieving profit from the provision of service, while the latter’s goal is to attain long-term
change. This paper will use the perspective of social justice organisations in analysing the Addax case study to highlight how Addax Bioenergy Sierra Leone Limited (ABSL) has undermined women’s rights and social development in its area of operation.
Read now Women’s Rights and Public-Private Partnerships in Sierra Leone’s Agro-Energy Sector: A Case Study of Addax Bioenergy Sierra Leone Ltd (ABSL) by Hussainatu J. Abdullah.