Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment her Department has made of development needs in Sierra Leone.

I have just returned from Sierra Leone where I saw first-hand the scale of the development challenges, and the essential leadership role that the UK is playing in tackling them. Our cross-HMG response to the 2014/15 Ebola crisis was instrumental in bringing the epidemic under control. Since then the UK has pledged £240 million to Sierra Leone’s two year post-Ebola recovery agenda, which is saving lives, ensuring children get a better education and laying the groundwork for increased economic development.