The Patriotic Advocacy Network (PAN) has launched the 2026 edition of its Leadership and Public Speaking Masterclass (LPMC), aimed at equipping young people with leadership, communication and public speaking skills to enable them to contribute meaningfully to national development. The launch was held on Wednesday, 19 August 2026, at PAN’s Head Office on Andrew Street in Freetown.
The 2026 LPMC is scheduled for 1–12 September 2026 at the FSSG Hall in Freetown and will expose participants to 20 modules, covering areas in leadership and public speaking.
Speaking at the launch, PAN Executive Director Paul Jonathan Koroma described the organization as a platform for youth empowerment that has implemented several programmes, including the Public Speaking Contest, Public Speaking for Girls, National Storytelling Festival and LPMC.
Koroma said PAN would implement all its flagship programmes during 2026, beginning with the LPMC, followed by Public Speaking for Girls and the National Storytelling Festival.
He said the Public Speaking for Girls initiative, introduced in 2021, provides girls with opportunities to express themselves, communicate their challenges and develop their talents in public speaking, music and spoken-word performance.
Koroma also announced plans for the seventh edition of the National Storytelling Festival, PAN’s oldest flagship programme, which was launched in 2016.
According to him, the festival provides young people with opportunities to showcase their creativity through storytelling, traditional dance, food and other cultural activities, while encouraging research into Sierra Leone’s history, traditions and cultural heritage.
He said PAN’s youth programmes are also designed to promote patriotism and civic consciousness. “It is important that young people know where they are coming from. The only way they can know where they are coming from is when they understand the history, culture and traditions of our beloved Sierra Leone,” Koroma said.
He maintained that young people should not be considered too inexperienced to take responsibility, noting that PAN itself was established by young people who were still in school.
“We are not too young to take responsibility. We are not too small to take up challenges, and we are not insignificant as young people when it comes to developing our nation,” he stated.
Convener of the LPMC, Ansumana Keita, said PAN is a civic movement established to identify societal problems, mobilize communities and develop solutions through grassroots participation.
Keita said youth empowerment remains central to PAN’s work because young people need the knowledge, awareness and skills required to understand and address societal challenges.
He disclosed that PAN’s youth network operates in more than 100 senior secondary schools across Sierra Leone, with branches in regional headquarters and a membership of more than 1,500 young people.
According to Keita, PAN introduced the LPMC in 2024 after identifying gaps in leadership and communication skills among young people aspiring to occupy leadership positions.
“We realized that a lot of young people want to lead, but something is missing actual leadership and proper communication,” he said.
Keita said the first edition trained and certified 100 young people, while the second edition trained and certified 150 participants.
He explained that PAN subsequently introduced the LPMC Talks as a final examination component, allowing participants to deliver five-minute presentations on selected topics and demonstrate the skills acquired during the programme.
He described the masterclass as an intensive and transformational programme targeting aspiring leaders, young entrepreneurs and professionals.
The 2026 edition will cover the foundations of leadership, problem-solving, critical thinking, emotional intelligence, ethical use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), work ethics and financial management.
Public speaking modules will include the fundamentals of public speaking, overcoming fear of public speaking, voice modulation, articulation, speech development, persuasive communication and vocabulary development.
Participants will also learn professional communication, including effective email writing and how to deliver concise “elevator pitches” when presenting ideas to potential sponsors or partners.
“Our point is clear. If you want to be a good leader, you do not need to be an orator or a powerful speaker, but you must be a communicator,” Keita said.
He stressed that effective communication is essential to leadership, noting that poor communication can undermine the work of otherwise capable individuals and teams.
Keita said the programme will run from 1–12 September, 2026 with intensive classes during the first week from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., followed by practical assignments and the final LPMC Talks examination. The certification ceremony is scheduled for Saturday, 12 September.
He said participants will pay Le1,000, while PAN will cover about 80 percent of the actual cost of the programme to make the training accessible to young people.
The fee will cover training in leadership and public speaking, electronic learning materials, certification for successful participants, customized LPMC materials and lunch during training sessions.
The programme will also introduce a mentorship component, with facilitators assigned to groups of participants for individualized guidance.
Keita said the 2026 LPMC would bring together facilitators with expertise in leadership, public speaking, finance, media, English, debate and other relevant areas.
He called for increased media collaboration to promote the importance of leadership and communication skills among young people.
Keita further disclosed that PAN would stage other flagship programmes throughout 2026, including its Public Speaking Contest in October and the National Storytelling Festival in December.
He encouraged young people to take advantage of PAN’s programmes, saying the organization remains committed to creating platforms that build confidence, leadership capacity and civic responsibility among the country’s youth.
