WASHINGTON — The two seed drill machines were meant to help an Ebola-hit region of Sierra Leone increase rice yields by giving farmers the tools to plant crops more efficiently. Along with other equipment, the agricultural machinery was purchased to help accelerate local food production and improve nutrition outcomes during a five-year, U.S.-funded project and beyond.
But the people of the rural area of Tonkolili never benefited from $500,000 in already purchased machinery after the U.S. Agency for International Development cut the program 10 months after it began. Unable to continue planned training for the community, implementing partner Catholic Relief Services gave one seed drill machine to an organization working in another part of Sierra Leone.
“The other one we were asked to leave with the community, and as far as I know, it’s still sitting in the corner of the field going rusty. It was a colossal waste of taxpayers’ money,” said Paul Emes, Sierra Leone country director for CRS. “It could have been easily used and maintained if we’d have time to train people.”