SIERRA LEONE SCORECARD AND REACTION

UNCLAS FREETOWN 000670 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EEB/IFD/ODF E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID PREL PGOV ETRD KMCA MCC SL SUBJECT: SIERRA LEONE SCORECARD AND REACTION REF: A) STATE 152489 B) STATE 14677 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Following recent elections, a new government has been installed in Sierra Leone. In the course of making introductory calls on the new cabinet ministers, the Ambassador discussed the MCC and provided copies of the scorecard to key Ministers. The delivery of the scorecard was seen as being timely as it comes at the beginning of the new administration and provides a baseline for the new government to work from. Several Ministers, notably Finance and Mineral Resources, appeared well acquainted with the MCC and aware of the size of the programs that MCC has with other African countries. The new Ministers would welcome visits by MCC staff to help move Sierra Leone toward eligibility. Embassy provided copies of the scorecard to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in late October. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) Ambassador Perry provided a copy of the scorecard to the newly appointed Ministry of Finance, David Carew, during her introductory call on November 6. Carew welcomed receipt of the scorecard and said that its delivery was 'timely' coming as it did at the beginning of his ministerial appointment. Carew noted the similarities of the MCC criteria to World Bank and UN indicators. ¶3. (SBU) Later on November 6, the Ambassador paid an introductory call on the newly appointed Minister for Mineral Resources, Alhaji Abudakar Jalloh. The Ambassador took the opportunity to describe her experiences with the MCC process in Lesotho. In the course of the meeting, Minister Jalloh summoned two fellow Ministers (whose offices are located in the same complex); Alimamy Philip Koroma, Minister for Trade and Industry, and Benjamin Davies, Minister for Lands, Country Planning and Environment. Minister Jalloh, who was teaching at the University of the District of Columbia before taking up his Ministerial appointment, was well acquainted with the scale of the MCC programs in other African countries. He appears enthusiastic to move Sierra Leone toward eligibility. Embassy will follow up with the three Ministers to provide additional information on the MCC. Ambassador Perry cautioned the Ministers that reaching threshold status required considerable effort on the part of countries to meet the criteria. ¶4. (U) Embassy would welcome a visit by MCC technical experts in early 2008 to establish contact with the new government and to assess necessary steps Sierra Leone would need to take to meet minimum criteria. PERRY