Freetown, 9th December 2025– Corruption continues to exact a heavy toll on Sierra Leone’s economy, undermining post-conflict recovery and long-term development, according to the Sierra Leone Governance and Corruption Diagnostic 2025 released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The report highlights that between 2016 and 2018, corruption drained an estimated 10.45 to 15.9 trillion old Leones (SLL), equivalent to USD 458 million to USD 698 million. This figure surpasses the country’s combined revenue of 8.8 trillion SLL over the same three-year period.
On average, Sierra Leone lost 12.7% of its GDP annually to corruption, a staggering figure that has critically hampered economic growth.
The IMF notes that Sierra Leone’s governance vulnerabilities are closely tied to the unequal distribution of benefits from gold and diamond extraction and trade. This economic inequality fueled frustration among marginalized groups and contributed to the outbreak of the civil war (1991–2002).
Although the government has since taken steps to strengthen its anti-corruption framework, corruption remains entrenched. The report warns that the impact is not only fiscal but structural:
It includes, reduced tax compliance which weakens domestic revenue mobilization. Undermined investor confidence which hampers foreign and local investment and higher perceived risks for lenders which is bound to push up borrowing costs not forgetting the rising debt levels that threaten fiscal sustainability.
The IMF stresses that corruption’s lethal effects extend beyond lost revenue. By eroding trust in institutions and destabilizing the financial system, corruption perpetuates economic instability and limits Sierra Leone’s ability to finance its own development.
Despite reforms, the report concludes that Sierra Leone must intensify efforts to close governance gaps, strengthen oversight in resource management, and enforce accountability measures if it is to break free from the cycle of corruption and economic vulnerability.
All good citizens hope that after posting such bad and disappointing headlines or short clip of information on social media, people will follow the link to get the full details. We are in 2025 and the past is still affecting us negatively. Bad news gets attention indeed. God bless you for you belated information about national development enemies works in the society.