By Foday Moriba Conteh

Land for Life Sierra Leone has reaffirmed its commitment to promoting responsible media engagement in land governance, food security and environmental sustainability through its Media Alliance Initiative. The renewed commitment was announced during the Land for Life Media Alliance Meeting held on Friday, 24th October 2025, at the CHASL Building on Kingharman Road in Freetown.

Speaking at the event, Jacob Wilson, Communications and M&E Officer at Land for Life, underscored the media’s crucial role in shaping public understanding, accountability and transparency around land rights, gender equality and responsible land investment. He explained that the Media Alliance serves as a collaborative platform for journalists, editors, bloggers and media institutions to promote accurate, inclusive and impactful reporting on land and food governance in Sierra Leone.

Since its inception in 2019, Land for Life has partnered with the media to strengthen responsible reporting on land issues. In 2021, it formalized the Media Alliance through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with 16 media outlets across Tonkolili, Port Loko, Pujehun and Kenema Districts. The initiative has since delivered specialized media training facilitated by veteran journalist Umaru Fofana, supported the production of radio programs amplifying community voices and promoted joint investigations into major land disputes such as Black Johnson and Sahn Malen.

Jacob Wilson explained that the Alliance’s key goals are to enhance transparency in land governance, raise awareness on land reforms, amplify marginalized voices and counter misinformation with factual, ethical reporting. Moving forward, Land for Life plans to expand its partnerships with organizations such as BBC Media Action and other international media networks to ensure sustainability, resource mobilization and continuous professional development for members.

He revealed that upcoming training programs will focus on investigative reporting, environmental journalism, carbon credit systems and gender-sensitive storytelling, alongside advanced fact-checking to curb misinformation. Jacob Wilson added that such trainings are essential to maintain professional standards and ensure journalists play constructive roles in promoting responsible governance.

Delivering the keynote address, Berns Komba Lebbie, National Coordinator of Land for Life Sierra Leone, emphasized the need for effective implementation of the Customary Land Rights Act and the National Land Commission Act, describing them as “historic reforms” designed to ensure peace, justice and inclusive development. He noted that those laws enacted in 2022 represent Sierra Leone’s strongest attempt yet to address inequalities in land ownership and management, particularly those that excluded women and youth.

Berns Komba Lebbie explained that Sierra Leone’s dual land tenure system Freehold in the Western Area and Customary Land Tenure in the provinces had long created inequality and fueled social tensions. The new laws harmonize those systems, introducing inclusive decision-making processes such as requiring 60% consent from family members before leasing family land. “The purpose of these reforms,” Lebbie stated, “is to ensure transparent and equitable management of land so every Sierra Leonean, especially women and youth, can benefit from its potential.”

He further revealed that Land for Life has produced simplified educational materials to help local communities understand the new laws, particularly the functions of Chiefdom Land Committees and Village Area Land Committees. He reminded participants that much of Sierra Leone’s past conflict stemmed from opaque and discriminatory land practices, and that fair land governance remains vital for long-term peace.

Berns Komba Lebbie urged journalists in the Media Alliance to champion public education on land rights, emphasizing that “the sustainability of reforms depends on how well people understand and use them.” He encouraged the media to report responsibly and continue engaging communities, policymakers and local authorities to ensure transparency and accountability.

Representing the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ), Financial Secretary, Mohamed Konneh, commended Land for Life for building a strong partnership with the media through the Alliance. Speaking on behalf of the SLAJ President, he described the initiative as “a timely and necessary intervention” that bridges journalists, Civil Society and land governance institutions.

“Land remains one of the most sensitive and contested issues in Sierra Leone,” Mohamed Konneh said. “As journalists, we have a duty to ensure that information about land, investment and governance is reported with accuracy, fairness and responsibility.” He reaffirmed SLAJ’s commitment to strengthening the capacity of journalists to report on complex governance issues, environmental protection and community rights.

Mohamed Konneh urged media practitioners to use their platforms to educate citizens, counter misinformation and highlight the voices of marginalized communities, particularly women and rural populations disproportionately affected by poor land governance. He concluded that the collaboration between SLAJ and Land for Life symbolizes a shared mission to advance peacebuilding, transparency and sustainable development through responsible journalism.

Adding a gender perspective, Mariama Bah, representing the Women in the Media Sierra Leone (WIMSAL) leadership, called for stronger collaboration between journalists and advocacy groups to amplify women’s voices in land reform processes. She stressed that land is not only an economic asset but a human rights and gender justice issue, central to women’s empowerment and livelihood.

“As women in the media, we see the Land for Life Media Alliance as an opportunity to use our voices and platforms to ensure that land governance reflects fairness, inclusivity and sustainability,” Mariama Bah said. She reaffirmed WIMSAL’s commitment to empowering female journalists to effectively report on land, environment and development issues, noting that informed reporting can influence policy and reshape public narratives.

Mariama Bah urged members of the Alliance to move beyond signing MoUs toward achieving tangible change, saying, “We must focus on transforming narratives and promoting accountability in land use and governance across Sierra Leone.”

Delivering remarks on behalf of WIMSAL President, Martha Kargbo, the Association’s Director of Communications commended Land for Life for fostering collaboration among journalists and for using the media as a tool for social justice and reform. She highlighted that while the 2022 land laws mark progress in advancing women’s rights, “laws alone are not enough, change depends on awareness, education and advocacy and this is where the media plays a vital role.”

Martha Kargbo explained that a gender-sensitive media landscape is key to ensuring those legal gains translate into real empowerment. Through its partnership with Land for Life, WIMSAL will mobilize journalists across Sierra Leone to tell stories that humanize women’s struggles, expose injustice and celebrate progress, helping to turn legislation into lived reality.

She concluded by urging all media actors under the Alliance to use their platforms responsibly to promote equity, transparency and justice in land governance. “Together,” she said, “we can build a future where every Sierra Leonean especially women not only knows their land rights but also has the freedom and opportunity to exercise them.”

Through its Media Alliance and signing of Memorandum of Understanding with various media houses present, Land for Life Sierra Leone continues to position the media as a central partner in promoting responsible governance and sustainable land management.