Freetown, 2nd October, 2026 – The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development (MoPED) has disclosed that significant data gaps are hampering efforts to accurately assess progress under Sierra Leone’s Medium-Term National Development Plan (MTNDP) 2024-2030.
The revelation emerged during bilateral budget discussions between MoPED and the Ministry of Finance ahead of the preparation of the 2027 Financial Year budget.
Speaking on the status of the national development plan, Deputy Director of Monitoring and Evaluation at MoPED, Daniel Brima, acknowledged that while progress has been made in implementing key government priorities, the absence of reliable data remains a major challenge.
“As of 2025, we are talking about 50 percent missing data. Therefore, we cannot accurately determine where we stand as a country in terms of achieving our development targets,” Brima said.
He explained that the ministry has embarked on a nationwide exercise to collect information from Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to establish a clearer picture of progress under the development agenda.
The MTNDP serves as the government’s seven-year strategic roadmap, focusing on critical areas including food security, human capital development and job creation. The plan also prioritises implementing the government’s flagship Big Five Game Changers programme.
Despite the data challenges, Brima said the government has introduced a digital platform to strengthen monitoring and reporting of development outcomes.
According to him, the online portal provides access to information relating to the Big Five Game Changers and is expected to improve the collection and management of development data across government institutions.
“Beyond the manual tracking process, we now have a national digital tool where relevant information can be uploaded and monitored,” he stated.
The ministry hopes that ongoing data collection efforts, combined with the use of the online platform, will help close existing information gaps and provide a more accurate assessment of the country’s progress towards achieving the goals outlined in the MTNDP 2024-2030.
