By John Sheka Tarawalie
The British High Commissioner to Sierra Leone Lisa Chesney on Tuesday 14th December, 2021 joined the Mayor of Freetown, Yvonne Aki Sawayerr to visit the Council’s project sites in the Municipality.
The visit was at the Kingtom Faecal Sludge Treatment Plant, the Macauley Street Transfer Station, the main Council Building and other sites.
The visit of the British High Commissioner was to see on the ground how far the Freetown City Council is transforming the city.
The British High Commissioner expressed gratification to the Mayor of Freetown for the good job the Council is doing in the city. She showed satisfaction to the Mayor for transforming the city of Freetown, noting that it was a sweet visit to the project sites. She added that the projects are to improve sanitation in the city and that such will make a difference in the life of the people in Freetown. She maintained that the UK Government has been funding the projects and that they want to see that the facilities are sustainable.
The Mayor of Freetown said she is happy for the visit of the High Commissioner and expressed her thanks and appreciation to the UK Government.
She maintained that happy to have spent the afternoon with HE Lisa Cheney, British High Commissioner and Madam Kobi Bentley, Director of Development, FCDO as they visited the sites of FCC projects that are being funded by UKAid.
“We started out at the Faecel Sludge Treatment Plant, which is located next to the Kingtom dumpsite. We were joined by representatives from our implementing partner GOAL, Councilor Abdul Karim Turay, Chairman FCC Sanitation Committee, Mustapha Kemokai, FCC ESO and Ishmaila Bah, FCC CFO and together we were shown how the treatment plant operates. I am grateful for the excellent work being done by our implementing partner GOAL,” the Mayor informed the British High Commissioner.
She went on to state that “the concept for this unique liquid waste solution emerged from the FCC Sanitation Technical Working Group that met in 2018 and contributes towards the achievement of our sanitation target.”
She added that “the next stop was the Sanitation Transfer Station at Macauley Street, where we were joined by Councilor Rugiatu Kamara and Glynnis Cummings-John from our implementing partner, CRS. This structure is one of six Transfer Stations strategically located across the city (at Allen Town, Approved School, Shell New Road, Cline Town, Macauley Street and Lumley).”
According to her, Transfer Stations are to serve as local deposit points for the waste collected by the tricycle groups, adding that the Transfer Stations will help tricycles collect more waste by reducing the travel time, fuel costs and damage to the tricycles that result from them driving in the mud at the dumpsites.
“Unfortunately, as has been previously and extensively reported, none of the Transfer Stations have been operational since the project hand-over in May 2021, due to internal FCC challenges with the procurement of skip trailers.”
The final stop was the banking hall at FCC where the Freetown Mayor and her visitor saw the new property rate and business license system (MOPTAX) in operation. They were later joined by FCC Budget and Finance Committee Chairman, Cllr Mohamed Darboh, Emile Manley of the Valuation Department expertly demonstrated the system to our guests, answering questions and pointing out improvements that have been made in the 2022 tax cycle! With IGC and ICTD as implementing partners, the introduction of this comprehensive digital system has enabled FCC’s property database to increase from circa 30,000 properties to almost 120,000 properties! This means that all property owners, not just a few, are able to make their contribution to our city’s running costs.
