28/07/2026
The Africa Institute of Small-Scale Mining (AISSM) warmly commends Sierra Leone's Deputy Minister of Mines and Mineral Resources, Hon. Umaru Napoleon Koroma, MCIArb, for demonstrating exemplary leadership by investing his personal time and resources in agriculture while encouraging fellow Sierra Leoneans to embrace farming as a viable business. His decision to cultivate cucumbers, watermelons, corn, and peppers sends a powerful message that agriculture remains fundamental to national development, food security, and economic resilience. Leadership is most impactful when it is demonstrated through action, and Hon. Koroma has set an example worthy of emulation across Africa.
The monumental significance of agriculture to Africa's economic transformation cannot be overstated. In recent years, however, there have been growing and legitimate concerns that many young people, farmers, and investors are shifting their attention from agriculture to mining. Across parts of West Africa, particularly in the cocoa-growing regions, productive farmlands have increasingly been converted into mining sites, threatening agricultural productivity and long-term food security. While mining continues to play a vital role in economic development, Africa cannot afford to build its future by weakening another equally strategic sector. The continent's prosperity depends on achieving a sustainable balance where mining and agriculture complement, rather than compete with, one another.
Recognizing this challenge, the Africa Institute of Small-Scale Mining has developed the Miners in Agriculture Initiative, an innovative program designed to encourage miners to reinvest part of their mining proceeds into commercial agriculture. Through this initiative, AISSM will collaborate with miners by providing matching capital, technical support, and access to strategic markets, including facilitating offtake agreements to improve market access and strengthen the financial sustainability of agricultural ventures. Our objective is to demonstrate that mining revenues can become a catalyst for building thriving agribusinesses, creating jobs, strengthening rural economies, and safeguarding Africa's food security.
We once again commend Umaru Napoleon Koroma, MCIArb for his visionary leadership and call upon mining stakeholders, mining associations, governments, and private investors across Africa to follow his example. By encouraging mining sector stakeholders to become successful agribusiness entrepreneurs alongside their mining activities, we can build a more resilient economy, preserve our agricultural heritage, and ensure that Africa's abundant natural resources contribute not only to mineral wealth but also to sustainable food production and generational prosperity.
Credit: Salone Messenger
