By. Bampia James Bundu:

Strategic Communications Unit,

Ministry of Information and Communications

His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio has today 21st January 2021 inspected 410 tractors and their implement procured by the Government of Sierra Leone through the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Food Security.

The inspection was done at the ministry’s Mechanical Store at Kissy Dock Yard in the east end of Freetown.

In his brief address, President Bio said the intervention signified government’s seriousness about agriculture and the creation of a conducive environment for farmers to start engaging in mechanized farming.

“Gone are the days when farmers grumbled for tractors or other mechanical implement in order for them to do their work,” President Bio said, adding that government has taken the first step by providing the machines. “It is now left with us as Sierra Leoneans to use these machines effectively and efficiently to increase our yield over the next three years.”

President Bio called on farmers across the country to maintain confidence in the government and use the tractors judiciously.

The Acting Minister of Agriculture Forestry and Food Security, Dr. Abubakar Karim, disclosed that the 410 tractors and 2,410 Implement will be distributed across the country next week to ensure that they catch up with the 2021 planting season.