Sierra Leone News

Manor River Union electricity grid soon to be completed

February 18, 2020 2

Austine Luseni: Sierra Leone Telegraph: 18 February 2020: Sierra Leone’s Minister of Energy, Alhaji Kanja Sesay led a high-level delegation of his ministry officials and the country’s electricity generation and distribution agencies on a nationwide tour of Transco Manor River electricity grid facilities that are being constructed across the country. [Read More]

Manor River Union electricity grid soon to be completed

February 18, 2020 2

Guma Valley Water Company needs $1 Billion to improve access to drinking water

February 18, 2020 2

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 18 February 2020: The Deputy Manager of Guma Valley Water Company (GVWC) Francis Lahai, told journalists in Freetown last Friday, that the company needs about one billion dollars to achieve its target of adequately supplying clean drinking water across the capital. Speaking from his Guma Headquarters in [Read More]

Public official charged with corruption is building three houses concurrently

February 18, 2020 3

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 18 February 2020: The first accused in the corruption trial involving three National Revenue Authority (NRA) officers in Sierra Leone – Abubakarr Sidikie Kamara, is now on the run. A news update tweeted this morning by the ACC boss – Francis Ben Kaifala, says that although Abubakarr [Read More]

Regional central bank governors discuss implementation of single currency in Freetown

February 16, 2020 5

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 16 February 2020: Last Thursday, 13th February, Central Bank Governors of the six West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) member countries and the Governor of the Central Bank of French Speaking West Africa (BCEAO), met in Freetown, Sierra Leone to discuss issues relating to the implementation of the [Read More]

Sierra Leone to achieve 90 percent self-sufficiency in rice by 2023 – says HCD Secretariat

February 16, 2020 14

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 16 February 2020: Last Friday, members of the new Human Capital Development (HCD) Secretariat met the country’s senior civil servants at State House, where they discussed specific targets in achieving the New Direction government’s Human Capital Development programme. (Photo above – Dr Patrick Kpana Muana). Welcoming the [Read More]

“Our confidence in the judiciary is at its lowest – we do not trust the judiciary” says APC

February 15, 2020 11

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 15 February 2020: Sierra Leone’s main opposition ALL People’s Congress Party (APC), has responded to the decision of the country’s Chief Justice to convene election petition hearings next Monday in the Appeals Court, involving ten of the opposition APC members of parliament whose seats were annulled by [Read More]

ACC charges three NRA officials to court for misappropriating over 5 Billion Leones

February 14, 2020 3

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 14 February 2020: Sierra Leone’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has this week, charged a second group of public officials to court for corruption, signifying the Commission’s resolve and determination to successfully investigate and prosecute those illegally making a living out of public funds. Today, the ACC said that [Read More]

Government of Sierra Leone struggling to pay salaries of public sector workers

February 14, 2020 11

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 14 February 2020: A statement published yesterday by Sierra Leone’s ministry of finance, speaks volumes about the government’s ability and claims that it is successfully balancing its finances, through what it calls ‘cash budgeting’ – meaning that it is paying its bills including staff costs with the [Read More]

Sierra Leone’s 2018 elections – supreme court petition hearings begin next Monday

February 13, 2020 5

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 13 February 2020: After almost two years since general elections were held in Sierra Leone which saw swathes of the then ruling APC constituency seats won at the elections, taken away from them after a court ruling in Freetown, a statement published by the judiciary yesterday says [Read More]

African Development Bank to approve $14 million for innovative farming in Sierra Leone

February 12, 2020 7

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 12 February 2020: Last Sunday, 9th February 2020, the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) – Dr Akinwumi Adesina, held talks with President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone on the margins of the AU Summit, taking place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where both leaders discussed [Read More]

Sierra Leone governance innovation team to speak at high-level conference in Ghana

February 12, 2020 1

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 12 February 2020: Next month, March 12, 2020, the Sierra Leone Governance Innovation Team will speak at a High-Level Conference on the promotion of good governance and fight against corruption, taking place in Accra, Ghana. The High-Level Conference is organized by the African Union Commission (AUC) and [Read More]

IMF is to approve $US 48 million Extended Credit Facility for The Gambia

February 12, 2020 0

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 12 February 2020: Yesterday, Tuesday, 11th February, 2020, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reported that its team, led by Jaroslaw Wieczorek, visited Banjul – capital of The Gambia on February 3 – 11 to take stock of the 2019 Staff Monitored Program (SMP) implementation, and agree with [Read More]

Sierra Leone Anti-Corruption Commission indicts local chief and former councillor for corruption

February 12, 2020 4

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 12 February 2020: Sierra Leone’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), has today, 10th February, 2020, charged the Town Chief of Kensay Community, Koidu City, Kono District – Chief Sahr Quee; and Ms. Sundu Yonga – who is the former local councillor of Kensay Community, on three counts of corruption [Read More]

Sierra Leone’s psychiatric hospital needs diaspora support to expand access

February 11, 2020 1

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 11 February 2020: An increasing number of young people in Sierra Leone are at greater risk of developing mental illness due to drug abuse, joblessness, alcoholism and general apathy. In a country with just one mental health hospital and one psychiatrist, the challenge for the government cannot [Read More]

Unequal distribution of textbooks in Sierra Leone – parliamentary education committee chair blasts

February 11, 2020 1

Kandeh Sesay: Sierra Leone Telegraph: 11 February 2020: Dominic Lavalie Tshombe MP, the Chairman of Basic Education and Senior Secondary Schools Committee in Sierra Leone’s Parliament, has expressed disappointment over the poor distribution of the Free Quality Education learning materials and books in the South and East of the country. [Read More]

Sierra Leone’s credit unions gradually Improving – experts observe

February 11, 2020 0

Kandeh Sesay: Sierra Leone Telegraph: 11 February 2020: Four coaches from the Irish League of Credit Unions Foundation (ILCUF) on Friday 31st January 2020 ended a two-weeks coaching program, culminating in a two-day training of twenty-four leaders and staff of Cooperative Credit Unions in Sierra Leone, at the Young Men’s [Read More]

Octea Mining may pay compensation to Kono community in Sierra Leone

February 10, 2020 5

Kandeh Sesay: Sierra Leone Telegraph: 10 February 2020: Octea Mining Company, operating its Kimberlite diamond mining in the eastern district of Kono, in Sierra Leone may pay huge damages in compensation, after failing to meet its corporate social responsibility to the local community, if the Movement of Affected Property Owners [Read More]

2019 was a bad year for Sierra Leone – annus horribilis

February 10, 2020 10

Dr. Kandeh Yumkella: Sierra Leone Telegraph: 10 February 2020: During my countrywide trip at the beginning of the year, I used the quiet walk through the woods to reflect on 2019. In an effort to understand ordinary people’s perspectives about their welfare and aspirations, I spoke with students, young professionals [Read More]

Dr Abdul Jalloh – the new face rebranding Sierra Leone’s mental health care

February 9, 2020 4

Abdul Malik Bangura: Sierra Leone Telegraph: 9 February 2020: Sierra Leone’s new Specialist Psychiatrist and Care Manager at the Sierra Leone Psychiatric Hospital, Dr Abdul Jalloh – who replaced Dr Nahim, has indeed proven to be the new face that is changing, pioneering and rebranding mental health care in the [Read More]

Sierra Leonean nurses and midwives return home with new skills to help revitalise health system

February 9, 2020 0

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 9 February 2020: Forty-seven nurses and midwives returned home to Sierra Leone end of January to take up jobs in hospitals and health centres across the country, after successfully completing a two-year diploma in Ghana. The return of these upskilled medical staff will boost Sierra Leone’s efforts [Read More]

29 people arriving in Freetown from China quarantined in Sierra Leone

February 9, 2020 3

Sierra Leone Telegraph: 9 February 2020: Twenty nine passengers who arrived in Sierra Leone through the Lungi International Airport from China on 3rd February, 2020, have been quarantined in an undisclosed holding facility in Freetown. (Photo above: Corona virus screening at Lungi Airport in Freetown) They are being kept under [Read More]