Sierra Leone’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, has assured Sierra Leonean students in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia of job opportunities upon completion of their courses and subsequent return home.
Professor David J. Francis was speaking during an interactive meeting with a cross section of Sierra Leonean nationals and students at the Sierra Leone Chancery in Riyadh on Thursday.
Professor Francis said as Sierra Leone’s Foreign Minister he was pleased to meet and interact with the staff of the Embassy and cross section of students and Sierra Leonean nationals.
“I am pleased to inform, especially the students here, that we are on the verge of completing the construction of a new Foreign Service Academy. The courses you are pursuing are beneficial to Sierra Leone and be rest assured that there are job opportunities for you in Sierra Leone upon your return,” Professor Francis assured.
The Foreign Minister reaffirmed President Julius Maada Bio’s commitment to Human Capital Development, especially the Free Quality Education, which he described as the flagship of the New Direction administration. He disclosed that, during his fruitful meetings with the authorities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, he made a request for increase in scholarships and that there was strong commitment from the Saudi authorities to increase scholarships to 50 per annum for 5 years.
The Minister also responded to requests made by the President of the Sierra Leone Students in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The President of the Union, Zachariah Barrie, had earlier, on behalf of students in the Kingdom, appealed to the Foreign Minister for the Government of Sierra Leone to provide them with allowances, wave off COVID-19 test fees for students travelling from or returning to Sierra Leone after their studies, shipment support of their property, and employment opportunities upon graduation.
Professor Francis instructed the Students Union President to liaise with the Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation through the Sierra Leone Embassy in Riyadh, for the issues to be addressed.
Professor Francis also commended the Sierra Leone Embassy especially the Ambassador, Dr. Ibrahim Jalloh adding that he was very proud of how the ambassador had cemented diplomatic ties with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is on the verge of opening its Embassy in Freetown under the New Direction Government for the first time in 42 years of Diplomatic Relations between the two countries. During my engagement with my counterpart, I presented Sierra Leone as a land of opportunities, more so in the areas of tourism, agriculture, mining, trade and investment.” Professor Francis concluded.
In his statement, Ambassador Dr. Ibrahim Jalloh thanked the Minister for attending the familiarization meeting organized by the Sierra Leone Embassy despite his busy schedule. He said Sierra Leone and Saudi Arabia had a bilateral relation spanning four decades and that Sierra Leone had benefited a lot from Saudi Arabia in the areas of education, health and infrastructural support.
Ambassador Jalloh informed the Minister that Sierra Leoneans in the Kingdom “are good ambassadors of Sierra Leone because of their good attitude and peacefulness, which the Saudi Authorities acclaim.”
Sierra Leone’s Permanent Representative to the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition (IMCTC) in Saudi Arabia, Colonel (retired) Simeon Nasiru Sheriff also spoke briefly about the Coalition, global security and Sierra Leone’s remarkable contributions in the IMCTC.
Earlier, President of the Sierra Leone National Union in the Kingdom, Abdulai Conteh, on behalf of the nationals in the Kingdom, welcomed the Minister of Foreign Affairs, describing his visit as timely.
He lauded the Human Capital Development drive of the New Direction government, especially towards the Free Quality Education, which he described as the bedrock of the country’s development.
Mr. Conteh also commended President Julius Maada Bio for appointing Dr. Ibrahim Jalloh -a renowned Islamic scholar who studied in the Kingdom- as Sierra Leone’s Ambassador in the Kingdom. He described Dr Jalloh’s appointment as “one of the best in Sierra Leone’s history because Dr. Jalloh is well known in Saudi Arabia and his vast knowledge in the Arabic language makes his job easier”
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