The Pepel Railway and Port was refurbished by African Minerals Limited with loans provided by China Exim Bank and Standard Bank of South Africa. The rehabilitation of the former Marampa mining railway and port cost a staggering US$1.2 Billion. The project was done on a BOT (Build, Operate and Transfer) basis. After twenty years of operation, the assets were finally …

𝐁𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐚. 1. He is intelligent and smart J J Saffa has vast knowledge of many aspects of society and he is a public policy guru with deep knowledge of development issues. He understands governance processes and procedures and knows how to navigate his way within any system. 2. He is pragmatic and a problem solver. J J Saffa …

𝐁𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐚. The main opposition APC party have decided not to work with the new government that has emerged after the June 24 multi-tier elections results were announced by the ECSL. They have argued that, the elections were flawed and their outcomes unacceptable. Their defeated Presidential candidate, Dr Samura Kamara, has refused to concede defeat and congratulate President Dr …

𝐁𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐚. The June 24, 2023 Presidential and General elections have come and gone. The man, who was declared winner of the Presidential election by the Chief Electoral Commissioner/National Returning Officer, Mohamed Kenewui Konneh, has been sworn-in by the Chief Justice. The African Union and the ECOWAS Elections Observation Missions have all declared the elections to be peaceful, free, …

𝐁𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐚. In January 2006, Charles Francis Margai, formed the PMDC after he left the SLPP (Sierra Leone Peoples Party). In the 2007 run-off election between the SLPP candidate Solomon Ekuma Berewa and the APC’s Ernest Bai Koroma, Charles Francis Margai’s PMDC forged an alliance with the APC party which led partly to the defeat of Solomon Berewa. The …

𝐁𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐚. In February 2018, the SLPP Presidential hopeful, Brig. (Rtd) Julius Maada Bio, presented an ambitious manifesto for election to the Office of President. Human capital development through free quality education was highlighted in the SLPP 2018 Manifesto as Brig. (Rtd) Julius Maada Bio’s flagship project once he got elected to office. When he was elected as President …

𝐁𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐚. In February 2018, candidate Brig. (Rtd) Julius Maada Bio presented an ambitious Manifesto for election to the Office of President. Human capital development through Free Quality Education has been highlighted as the flagship project of Brig. (Rtd) Julius Maada Bio since his election in April 2018. Few days after his election in April 2018, the Economist, a …

𝗕𝘆 𝗦𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲 𝗙𝗼𝗳𝗮𝗻𝗮. Three days from today (3rd March) His Excellency President Brig. (Rtd) Julius Maada Bio will be commissioning the brand new Freetown International Airport at Lungi. This is a major accomplishment. With less than five years in office, President Bio has presided over the construction of a brand new international airport with state-of-the-art facilities and technology in Sierra …

𝐁𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐚. “A leopard never changes its spots”. An old African proverb says. The APC (All People’s Congress) yesterday concluded their National Delegates’ Conference in Makeni. As predicted, the twice defeated 2018 Presidential candidate, Dr. Samura Kamara, defeated seventeen other flag bearer aspirants to emerge as the party’s standard bearer for the June 24, 2023 Presidential election. The party …

𝐁𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐚. When the country desperately needed a strong, compassionate and credible leader in 2018, Brig. (Rtd) Julius Maada Bio appeared and took over the leadership of the country through the ballot box. He has been in power for almost five years now. As President, Brig. (Rtd) Julius Maada Bio has paid special attention to human capital development by …