By Amin Kef Sesay
At this material time when the main focus of the Government is seriously dedicated towards the dogged fight against the spread of the corona virus nothing could be so welcoming than to know that a trusted partner in development, Africell, is supporting and complementing those efforts.
In the wake of the outbreak of the corona virus, Africell stands tall as a telecommunications company that went into action by being at the forefront to sensitize the populace about the virus and the preventive measures that should be strictly adhered to in order to avoid coming in contact with it.
Taking into cognisance the fact that it is highly significant to be constantly educating people about how the virus is having a heavy toll on human life as well as national economies, sensitizing people about the “dos” and “don’ts” could not come at any other appropriate time than now. In that direction the company has been doing extremely well.
Demonstrating its willingness to throw its weight to the fight against one of the deadly viruses that has plagued mankind, Africell Mobile Company on the 30th March 2020 signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the University of Sierra Leone which encompassed the provision of mobile connectivity to staff and students of the learning institution in order to enable them gain access and use the University of Sierra Leone web portal in a reliable and cost-effective way. Through such a means students and other users could use the web portal to make payments to the University of Sierra Leone administrative accounts using Afrimoney.
Not stopping there the company went the extra-mile to offer free SMS services to mobile devices through which all SIM cards were installed with a Toll Free Short Code 5505 for the University.
With those laudable gestures, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Sierra Leone, Foday Sahr, expressed appreciation stating that the move was not only timely but will serve as an accelerator for plans that the entity has to move smoothly into the digital age.
On the 3rd April 2020, the Africell-Family, led by the company’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Joe Abass Bangura and supported by the telecommunications entity’s Media Manager, John Konteh, donated to the Government of Sierra Leone through the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) 350 KaiOs smartphones with Close User Group (CUG) SIM Cards.
Present during the presentation were the Interim Coordinator of the COVID- 19 Response Team, Retired Brigadier Kellie Hassan Conteh and the Deputy Minister of Information and Communications, Mamadi Gobeh Kamara both of whom expressed gratitude for the speedy and timely response to their request for assistance in attempts made to combat the spread of the corona virus.
During the occasion, Africell’s Joe Abass Bangura reiterated that Africell is committed to the people of Sierra Leone in joining the fight against COVID-19 and also implored everyone to adhere to all the safety practices.
The Africell team also made a stop at Constituency 128 and donated Veronica Buckets and cartons of hand-washing soaps to the Member of Parliament meant for use by the constituents in the community.
The company made it possible also for subscribers to transfer money for FREE To & From their Sierra Leone Commercial Bank accounts and AfriMoney Wallet.
Still within the context of trying to combat the spread of COVID-19 in the country, the Africell-Family presented 20 KaiOs phones to the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ) and the Independent Radio Network as a boost to support the two entities in their strides to disseminate messages relating to the corona virus fight. The presentation was done by the company’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Joe Abass Bangura and was assisted by the Media Relations Manager, John Konteh.
Expressing gratitude were the President of SLAJ, Ahmed Sahid Nasralla and the Station Manager of Radio Democracy, Asmaa James both describing Africell as a dependable partner that is always ready to step in with much needed support at the right time. It is worthy to note that the phones came in with complimentary voice and data packages which helped greatly to augment and ramp up coordination and responses during the SLAJ/IRN Corona updates broadcast.
The donations were greatly applauded by the Government of Sierra Leone especially at a time when it was greatly needed in the fight against the corona virus.
Management of Africell also made series of donations to the health sector especially in improving service delivery and the wellbeing of all Sierra Leoneans.
Despite the current economic situation in the country, Africell Mobile Company has been supporting the less privileged in society with food items.
During this holy month of Ramadan, Africell Mobile Company has been showing magnanimity to its lucky subscribers in the ‘Ramadan na you ose Promotion’ wherein many subscribers have won attractive prizes. Judging from all these kind gestures that the Management of Africell has offered and is still offering, in some cases, it could be concluded that the Africell Mobile Company is one that cares and is always ready to stand by the side of Sierra Leoneans during good and bad times.
