Invest Salone, with support from the UK Government and in collaboration with British International Investment (BII) through the Africa Resilience Investment Accelerator (ARIA), which is co-funded by FMO and Proparco, has launched a suite of resources aimed at helping Sierra Leonean businesses prepare for external investment.

The new resources comprise the Sierra Leone Investment Toolkit, an online Investment Readiness Scorecard and a Business Advisor Directory. Together, they are designed to help businesses assess their preparedness for investment, identify areas for improvement and connect with local professional service providers.

At the centre of the initiative is the anonymous online scorecard, which enables businesses to evaluate their progress toward investment readiness and receive guidance on priority areas for development. The accompanying toolkit provides practical information on topics such as governance, financial management, business strategy, operations and regulatory compliance, while the advisor directory offers a starting point for firms seeking specialist support.

The resources were developed following consultations with local small and medium-sized enterprises and draw on lessons from similar programmes implemented in other markets, adapted to Sierra Leone’s business environment.

“Every business is at a different stage of its investment journey, and understanding where you are is the first step towards becoming investment ready,” said Pooja Melwani of Invest Salone. “These resources help businesses assess their current position, identify gaps, and access practical guidance to strengthen their investment proposition.”

Alex Kucharski, Director of Market Creation at BII Plus, said the initiative reflects BII’s efforts to strengthen the conditions that enable businesses in frontier markets to attract capital.

“These three resources help businesses better understand whether they are ready for investment, identify which investors might be right for them, and showcase the local advisory ecosystem that can support them as they look to grow,” he said.