By Mackie M. Jalloh
The Institute for Governance Reform (IGR) has exposed alarming revenue losses from the Wellington–Masiaka toll road, estimating that Sierra Leone has forfeited USD 171 million due to poorly negotiated contracts with the Chinese company China Railway Seventh Group (CRSG). The revelations underscore systemic flaws in public contract management and raise serious questions about accountability in the country’s infrastructure sector.
Speaking on Truth Media, IGR Executive Director Andrew Lavali condemned both past and current governments for repeatedly signing agreements that favor private investors at the expense of the public. “We deliberately sign bad agreements,” Lavali stated, highlighting the Wellington–Masiaka concession as a textbook case of how state contracts fail to deliver tangible benefits to citizens.
The 65-kilometre highway, constructed under a 27-year Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) concession, was initially signed under a previous administration and inherited by the current government. Despite generating approximately USD 21 million annually, records show that only about USD 1 million has been remitted to the National Revenue Authority since operations began. This glaring discrepancy points to a systematic siphoning of state resources, with CRSG accruing the vast majority of toll revenue while the Sierra Leonean public sees almost none of the financial benefits.
Lavali argued that the terms of the concession are clearly skewed in favor of CRSG, with the company effectively exploiting weak procurement oversight to secure a lucrative monopoly. “The contract structure is such that it entrenches revenue losses, and no political transition changes this reality,” he said. According to IGR’s analysis of over 3,400 state contracts signed between 2016 and 2023, agreements like this are emblematic of a broader problem: poorly negotiated deals that systematically undercut public interest.
The report criticizes CRSG not only for reaping outsized profits from public infrastructure but also for undermining the country’s fiscal capacity to invest in critical sectors such as healthcare, education, and road maintenance. By failing to remit fair shares of toll revenue, the company has directly contributed to funding gaps that hurt ordinary Sierra Leoneans.
In response, CRSG has dismissed the revenue loss estimates as “inaccurate,” claiming that all toll and traffic data are submitted to government authorities, including the Sierra Leone Roads Authority and Parliament. However, critics argue that the company has consistently benefited from opaque reporting structures and weak oversight, effectively prioritizing profit over accountability and national development.
The IGR report calls for urgent renegotiation of the Wellington–Masiaka concession, full public disclosure of toll revenue, and stricter monitoring of large infrastructure deals. Lavali warned that unless such reforms are implemented, Sierra Leone will continue to lose millions in potential revenue to foreign investors, perpetuating underfunding of essential public services and widening the gap between private profits and public welfare.
The findings have reignited national debate over how foreign firms operate in Sierra Leone, raising concerns that CRSG’s practices set a dangerous precedent for all future infrastructure concessions. “Revenue losses of this magnitude are unacceptable,” Lavali said, “and unless the government acts decisively, these contracts will continue to drain the nation’s resources while enriching private entities.”
The IGR’s report paints a stark picture: without accountability, transparency, and renegotiation, foreign companies like CRSG may continue to exploit Sierra Leone’s infrastructure, leaving citizens to bear the cost of poorly designed public-private partnerships.
