Sierra Leone, under the leadership of President Julius Maada Bio, is gearing up to host a ground-breaking ECOWAS Conference on the Peace and Security Aspect of Autonomous Weapons Systems. Scheduled to take place in Freetown from April 17th and 18th, 2024, this conference, a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the Centre for Accountability …

Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, has disclosed that former President of Sierra Leone, Ernest Bai Koroma, is expected to return to Sierra Leone within three months after completing medical treatment in Abuja. Ambassador Tuggar made this revelation during a gathering with members of the Diplomatic Correspondents Association of Nigeria (DICAN) in Abuja. Addressing concerns about Koroma’s presence …

Mr. Mohamed Kenewui Konneh, Chairman of the Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone, and Justice Abdulai Bangurah JSC, Chairman of the Political Parties Regulatory Commission, participated in the 2024 Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB) Meeting in South Korea. The gathering also brought together Executive Board members of A-WEB to discuss and approve various issues. ECSL and PPRC jointly hold membership …

The democratic fortitude of the West Africa sub-region is being tested again as Senegal, one of the few countries that has never experienced a military coup, goes to polls on March 24, 2024. The Senegal elections come when the region is submerged in uncharted political waters, with four member states under military rule and elections-mandated  governments struggling to come to …

This morning (yesterday), I received the newly appointed World Bank Country Director for Sierra Leone, Ghana and Liberia, Mr Robert Taliercio O’Brien, at the State Lodge in Freetown. We discussed my Government’s efforts towards improving the macroeconomic fundamentals of the country and our concerted efforts towards alleviating poverty, in line with United Nations SDG Goal 1, which seeks to eradicate …

𝐁𝐲 𝐉𝐚𝐧𝐞 𝐁. 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐲. The Minister of State in the Office of the Vice President, Madam Manty Tarawalli has been nominated for the 2024 Women Changing The World Awards under the category Global Impact. The Women Changing the World Awards is organized by Sarah – Duchess of York, Dr. Tererai Trent, Peace Mitchell, and Katy Garner. They seek to recognize …

The two leading political parties in the country, the governing Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) and the main opposition All People’s Congress (APC) will sooner rather than later, elect their Presidential candidates for crucial general elections in 2028. In the All People’s Congress (APC), there are six front runners for the post of flag bearer. The six front runners are …

𝐁𝐲 𝐒𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐟𝐚𝐧𝐚. Ahmad Tejan Kabbah was the first Northerner to lead the SLPP to general elections victory in 1996. Kabbah’s father was a Mandingo from Kambia district and his mother hailed from Morbai, in the Kailahun district, Eastern Province. Kabbah’s running mate in 1996 was Dr. Albert Joe Demby from the Southern Region. Dr. Demby served as Vice President …

Understanding the challenges of his people, creating timely and appropriate solutions brought him into politics and close working relationship with leaders locally and internationally. His friendship with Brigadier Julius Maada Bio goes back to when he was Chairman of the NPRC. As a youth, being instrumental in the SLPP victory brought him closer to President Kabbah. During the struggle in …

One good thing that President Julius Maada Bio did for the SLPP is to fight with ferocity and force to bring the party back to power in 2018. In 1996, as military head of state, Brig. Julius Maada Bio presided over the return to civilian rule after multi-party elections were held across the country. After the Chairman of INEC (Interim …