Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio on Thursday inaugurated the Sewa Grounds Market, a modern trading complex in central Freetown, pledging further support for small businesses and a pension scheme for informal workers.
Built by the National Social Security and Insurance Trust (NaSSIT) with pension funds, the market features 1,544 trading spaces, 76 lockup shops, 277 small shops, 170 district stalls, parking, water facilities, 176 toilets, a daycare centre, and fire and police posts. It is equipped with CCTV and round-the-clock security to protect traders and customers.
“This market is more than a safe and dignified space for our traders,” Bio said at the opening. “It will boost the productivity of small and medium enterprises, improve livelihoods and contribute significantly to the local economy of Freetown.”
Bio announced that rents for stalls, initially set at 12,000 new leones ($530), would be halved to 6,000 until the end of his term, describing the measure as a show of government support for small traders.
He also said the government was preparing a pension scheme for informal workers, including petty traders, motorbike riders and commercial drivers, with NaSSIT managing the process.
NaSSIT Director General Mohamed Fuaad Daboh praised contributors to the social security fund for making the project possible and promised to maintain the facility and build similar markets across the country.
The government says the market will reduce street trading and congestion in Freetown’s business district while giving vendors a secure and sanitary space to work.
By Sallu Turay
