Sierra Leone Threshold - Constraints Analysis

MCC’s evidence-based approach to its investments begins with a mutual understanding of a country’s main growth challenges. During the first phase of the compact or threshold program development process, MCC and the selected partner country, jointly conduct a constraints-to-growth analysis (CA). This analysis identifies the constraints to private investment and entrepreneurship that are most binding to economic growth in the country. The results of this analysis enable the country, together with MCC, to select activities most likely to contribute to sustainable, poverty-reducing growth.

The Constraints Analysis Report for the Sierra Leone Threshold Program highlights the following binding constraints to economic growth:

1. The lack of adequate, reliable and affordable access to electricity supply to support the emergence and growth of a wide range of economic activities.
2. The poor conditions of secondary and feeder road networks, which provide access to productive agricultural regions of the country with high potentials to drive growth.
3. The lack of access to clean water and sanitation services, leading to high incidences of water-borne diseases, which have implications for labour productivity and household expenses. While water is not a problem in terms of its natural availability, collection, distribution and other problems have led to high financial cost of accessing safe water or long travel distances and times to access them.