Home Blog Page 833

HRCSL Briefs the Press on Current Universal Periodic Review Position

By Foday Moriba Conteh

During a well-attended Press Conference held at the Human Rights Commission Sierra Leone Conference Hall on Tower Hill in Freetown, the institution on the 26th October 26, 2021, briefed pressmen on the current status of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process.

The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a unique process which involves a periodic review of the human rights records of all 193 UN Member States. The UPR is a significant innovation of the Human Rights Council which is based on equal treatment for all countries.

In her address, the Chairperson of Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone, Patricia Narsu Ndanema said that the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) was established by the General Assembly Resolution 60/251 on the 15th of March 2006, stating that the same resolution also created the Human Right Council (HRC) which replaced the Human Rights Commission (Commission), stating that the HRC has amongst its functions to review the human rights records of all which includes civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of all 192 member States of the United Nations. This is done in a bid to raise standards on human rights, to which states are accountable every four years.

She maintained that the Commission has consistently produced its own shadow reports and presented same to the Human Rights Council in Geneva, subsequent to the adoption of the Government’s 3rdCycle recommendations at the 48 Session of the Human Rights Council (HRC), furthering that the HRCSL held several regional consultations with Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDA) Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), traditional leaders and other partners on the UPR processes and subsequently followed up and drew the attention of Government on the implementation of recommendations proffered during the 2nd cycle UPR by the State and that it also submitted its Shadow Report following these regional consultations.

“As at 1stOctober 2021, Sierra Leone has been reviewed thrice. The first being in May 2011, the second in January 2016. This year, Sierra Leone went through the 3rdCycle review which was concluded on the 1stOctober 2021 in Geneva, following the adoption of the 3rd Cycle recommendations.

She revealed how the Human Rights Commission also participated and called on Government to treat the recommendations accepted with the utmost seriousness they deserve for the development of the country.

Underscoring some of the recommendations that the Government accepted, which includes the 27 – 45 which highlighted its commitment to support the work of the Human Rights Commission in the protection and promotion of human rights as proffered by 13 countries at the UPR and also its commitment to continue the constitutional review process being one of its voluntary pledges, the Recommendations 1-10 on the abolition of the death penalty (already done), the Recommendation 14-15 on the ratification of the convention on migrant workers and their families, the Recommendation 107-115 noted Government’s acceptance of Freedom of Expression.

This has also been realized following the repeal of Part of the Public Order Act of 1965 etc.
Patricia Narsu Ndanema maintained that although Government noted recommendations 11, 12 13 and 174 to 179 which are meant to improve on the situation of women and girls and address acts of violence such as female genital mutilation, the Government’s attention was drawn to the noted recommendations during the adoption session of the UPR
by the Chairperson to ensure it doesn’t relent in its commitment to the protection of the rights of women and girls which it has over the years progressively realised.

“The Commission also continues to draw the attention of the Government to its voluntary pledges it made to the UPR which includes the review of the provisions applicable to children under the age of 14 in the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2019, the Sentencing Guidelines for Sexual Penetration Cases and related instruments to bring it into line with the Child Rights Act 2007 and international standards on child rights and to implement the decision of Cabinet approving the recommendations made by the Committee on the Justice Cowan Constitutional Review Report and the 2018Government White Paper, and to finalize the Constitutional Review Process.

The Chairperson concluded by calling on the Government to fulfil its commitments made at the UPR adoption process.

Pastor Mambu Unveils 65 Christian Books Authored by Him

By Foday Moriba Conteh

The renowned Pastor Francis A.M. Mambu of Faith Healing Bible Church Sierra Leone has on Saturday, 40th October, 2021, launched 65 Christian books or literature he wrote at the main Conference Hall of the new Freetown City Council.

Chairman of the grand occasion, Reuben Short, described the Reverend Pastor Mambu as an erudite Man of God who has patiently responded to his calling of serving humanity irrespective of region.

“He has portrayed a selfless sacrificial furtherance of his Godly calling since the inception of his ministry to date,” he informed, continuing that, Rev. Mambu has been a noted figure within the Christian family at home and abroad, and that, his strides in the Christian Kingdom work has made him being among the most celebrated clergymen in Sierra Leone.

Guest Speaker, Professor Dr. Daniel E. B. Chayton said the Man of God has over 300 effective churches within and without the country in his more than 40 years experience in Christian missionary services.

“This the first clergyman to contribute to food subsistence and security in Sierra Leone with outstanding leadership,” he disclosed, adding that, the noted testimonies that have been associated with his Ministry gives evidences of the destruction of the works of darkness. “This has earned his Ministry a reputation not only in this nation, but outside the country’s borders,” he said.

Rev. Francis A.M. Mambu while addressing the gathering expressed his heartfelt gratitude for the distinguished personalities and others for their attendance. “I acknowledged the grace of God given me to do this works, not I as Paul the Apostle said, but the grace of God that is in me, which made the writing, publication and the launching of the books possible,” he noted while praising his wife and daughter and his mission team.

He promised that, he will continue writing as the grace of God permits him. “I have passion and desire not only to contribute to transforming lives at present but also the generation to come,” he said.

Further, he said people on planet earth are in groups of different behaviours, so one has to reach there in their different choices.

“Those who love reading can best be reached with books,” he said.

First launcher of the books fair, Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Sengapor Thomas said the event is extraordinary in the educational calendar of the country. “I have no doubt that the publication of these will surely contribute positively in the quality of education of the country as the books speak in different perspectives of building individuals and communities for better lives,” he noted while hinting that, Pastor Mambu is a Sierra Leonean focused Man of God. “One can share experience of great men through books and we stand in pole position to benefit from the good works of the Man of God through his books,” he said.

Second Launcher, the Leader of the Main Opposition in Parliament, Chernor Ramadan Bah said, Rev. Mambu is an icon in the Christian world not only in the country but out of its borders. “Sierra Leone is a nation whose religious tolerance has spoken of its good image abroad. Therefore we politicians of this country are proud of this because it will greatly contribute to peace and tranquillity,” he said, adding that, the publication and launching of the books will surely compel the passion of writing not only among clergymen but scholars in general.

SEND Sierra Leone Launches More Than A Woman Project

By Foday Moriba Conteh

As part of their efforts to strengthen women’s participation in Politics and Governance (Phase II), SEND Sierra Leone, with support from Irish Aid, has on Tuesday 2nd November, 2021 launched the More Than A Woman (MTAW) Project during a well attended and auspicious event held at Mattru Jong, Bonthe District, Southern Province of Sierra Leone.

In his address, the Country Director of SEND Sierra Leone, Joseph Ayamga, disclosed that the entity or Non-Governmental Organization started its programme activities in Bonthe District in February 2019. He continued to intimate that their first-ever intervention in the District was with the Promotion of a Nutrition-Sensitive WASH Self-
Supply Project in the Sherbro Island which was funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and Deutsche Welthungerhilfe.

He noted that SEND Sierra Leone is very happy to launch the Project as part of their continued intervention in Bonthe District of which he said the first project is the ‘More Than a Woman: Strengthening Women’s Participation in Politics and Governance (Phase II) with funds from the Government of Ireland through the Irish Embassy in Sierra Leone with SEND as the implementing partner. Both projects will be implemented in Bonthe, Kailahun, Kenema, and Kono districts and promote advocacy activities at the national level.

He stated that the implementation started from June 2021 to July 2024 with a budget of 1,650,000 Euros and at that time targeting six existing female Members of Parliaments, 30 female Councillors, 34,180 rural women network members and their Executives, five local radio stations including the Nyapui Radio Station in Kenema, support for 500 women aspirants for the 2023 elections, 506 VSLA groups and 250 political parties leaders. “For all actions, we expect to reach 1,900,000 persons in the targeted districts,” she expressed hope.

Manager of the More Than A Woman Project , Brima Mansaray, said it is supported by the Embassy of Ireland  in Sierra Leone and is expected to last for three years from June 2021-July 2024 with a total budget of Euro1,650,000 equivalent to (Le18,950,000), adding that their intervention areas include Kenema, Kono, Kailahun and Bonthe District.  It was stated the Project will be implementing actions that contribute to the SDG Goals 5 and 16, and the Sierra Leone National Development Plan of 2019-2023 (SLNDP).

Highlighting the project results, he said that it will increase national-level advocacy and networking on women’s participation in decision-making, governance and politics and enhances SEND’s capacity for effective and result-oriented programme delivery.

He concluded by stating that the project will benefit 1,833,305 people from Kailahun, Kenema, Kono, Bonthe and Freetown.

The Programme Advisor-Governance, Department of Foreign Affairs Irish Aid, Josephus Ellie, noted that the Government of Ireland through its Embassy in Freetown has been working with SEND-SL since 2017, mainly in Kailahun, Kono and Kenema, stating that the particular phase provide the opportunity to increase the impact of their work in promoting women’s political participation and continuing strengthening SEND-SL’s technical, financial and managerial capacities.

“This is why the project we are launching today is very important. As has been presented, it will continue to strengthen women’s voices, knowledge, capacity and network, support their economic empowerment, increase national level advocacy and policy engagements, particularly with the Female Parliamentary Caucus and continue to strengthen the organizational capacity of SEND Sierra Leone for effective and efficient delivery,” he pointed out with pride.

In his keynote address, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development, Jonathan Titus-Williams (Rev.Dr.) described the launch of the project as showcasing the commitment of their development partners and the confidence they have in the New Direction Government led by His Excellency the President Brigadier (retired) Dr Julius Maada Bio.

On behalf of the Government and People of Sierra Leone, he
applauded SEND Sierra Leone and those funding the project.

The Deputy Minister encouraged the beneficiaries to take ownership of the projects maintaining  that SEND Sierra Leone only won the bid to implement the project stressing that, however, it belongs to them and therefore they must own it, adding that Government at the local level including the line MDAs & Councils other development partners-NGOs, CSOs, CBOs and other Private sector-local businesses, contractors, companies must come on board when they engage and interact with the projects during their implementation furthering that SEND-Sierra Leone should ensure everybody is on the table to know who is doing what, where and at what time during the lifespan of the project.

“Let me commend SEND Sierra Leone for enduring the rigors of conceiving the project idea and translating that into a bankable project that we all have gathered for and that when the whole world is enduring the economic constraints of COVID-19 and donors are holding back, SEND Sierra Leone has succeeded to bring something for our vulnerable people,” he concluded.

Sierra Leone gets First Cocoa Factory

By Shoshana Kedem

The first of its kind facility allows the country to process cocoa for the first time in a boost for local farmers and a win for Africa’s manufacturing capacity

Sierra Leone opened its first cocoa processing factory in a bid to bring profits from the country’s crucial industry and improve the lives of thousands of local farmers.

The new factory’s machinery, nestled in the Eastern Kenema Village, juddered to life last week in a ceremony attended by President Julius Maada Bio, who said it was a “giant step” for the country and economy.

With the capacity to process up to 4,000 tonnes of cocoa beans per year – around a quarter of the country’s annual output – Sierra Leone’s cocoa industry joins the ranks of the world’s largest cocoa producers, Côte D’Ivoire and Ghana, who have been crushing, roasting and grinding cocoa beans into unsweetened cocoa liquor or cocoa mass, used to manufacture chocolate, for years.

Côte D’Ivoire, which got its first industrial scale chocolate factory in 2015, today produces two million tonnes of cocoa a year, equivalent to more than 40% of the world’s market.

The new facility, built by Capitol Foods Limited, will export its semi-finished product to major cocoa produce buyers and chocolatiers in Europe for 20% more than it sold its unprocessed cocoa beans, says factory owner Hamza Hashim, CEO of Capitol Foods Limited.

While the opening represents a small victory in the continent’s fight to profit from its natural resources instead of exporting raw materials to industrialised nations, the processing plant is also about helping local cocoa farmers release the potential of their land, crops and skills, Hashim says.

“It’s more about the impact on farmers, and how it will change their lives,” he says.

President Julius Maada Bio and Hamza Hashem inspect the finished product at Capitol Food’s Factory in Kenema.

Built as part of a $2.9m project backed by $600,000 from the Sierra Leone Agribusiness Development Fund, (SLAD) and designed to help cocoa farmers extract more value from their hard labour, the impact of the project is two-fold.

Firstly it aims to improve the crop quality and yields of some 2,800 farmers it sources its beans from by supporting farmers with better cocoa seedlings, organic crop certification, agricultural training and loans to scale their operations. Secondly, the project will help farmers secure a higher price than their produce in the global cocoa marketplace, he says.

Sweet dreams

The project may help to reinvigorate the country’s floundering cocoa industry as it recovers from the long-term impact of a ten-year civil war. Though the guns fell silent in 2002, the neglect of cocoa estates during the war has left production and output below pre-war rates.

Sierra Leone exported $33.2m in cocoa beans in 2019, making it the 17th largest cocoa bean exporter in the world, according to the OEC trade data site. Elsewhere in West Africa, Cote d’Ivoire exports $3.84bn a year, Ghana $1.61bn, and Nigeria $715m.

Cocoa beans are the country’s fifth biggest export, with the bulk of their cocoa ($31.8m) destined for the Netherlands, Belgium, the United States, Italy and Malaysia.

The next steps will be manufacturing chocolate in the country for the first time, Hashim says.

“We have plans to upgrade the factory to produce chocolate, butter, and powder within 2022, and are looking to expand our export markets to North America and the Middle East.

LCocoa crisis

The region’s heavyweight cocoa producers are also locked in an ongoing battle with big chocolate companies who they accuse of denying farmers a dignified existence by trying to avoid a newly introduced minimum price of $400 per tonne for cocoa.

The premium was introduced in July 2020 by Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, who produce more than 60% of the world’s cocoa, in a bid to curb farmer poverty.

A report published by the VOICE network, which advocates reforming the cocoa sector to improve working conditions, says that the bulk cocoa market holds producers in a cycle of poverty, with less than 10% of farmers in Ghana on or above the living income line.

The ongoing price feud has triggered an intense and complex wrangling between chocolate giants and West African governments that is playing out “like a Netflix series, as opposed to a Hollywood film with an ending”, says Antonie Fountain, the managing director of the VOICE Network.

“But clearly in the end without higher prices, cocoa will never be sustainable, so we’re going to have to find a way out of it somehow. The fact that the Ivorians and the Ghanaians are coming together to get higher prices for the farmers are a good first step. But it needs to go further.”

At COP26… Over 100 Countries Pledge to End & Reverse Deforestation by 2030

By Amin Kef Sesay

On Tuesday 2 November 2021 Nations including Brazil, Russia, Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo will sign the historic pledge, which is the first major deal to come from the summit.

More than 100 leaders representing 85% of the world’s forests will commit to stopping and reversing deforestation by 2030 in a “significant breakthrough” on the road to tackling the climate crisis.

Countries including Brazil, Russia, Canada, Colombia, Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo will sign the pledge on Tuesday, which is backed by £14bn ($19.2bn) in public and private funding.

Environment Secretary George Eustice hailed the pledge as a “major step forward” and informed that the deforestation deal offered greater hope of the two-week COP26 summit ending in wider action by nations.

Previously, Prime Minister Boris Johnson and other cabinet ministers had been downbeat about the chances of the Glasgow conference ending with substantial action.

But speaking on the second day of COP26, Mr Eustice said: “I think it’s a really encouraging sign that this early on… actually many of those countries have come forward and said ‘we’re up for doing this’.”

“This is a really significant breakthrough,” he added.

The prime minister has been hoping the summit would deliver on priority areas he sees as “coal, cash, cars and trees,” so this pledge will tick the trees box.

But the Government host has set the conference’s aim to “keep 1.5 degrees alive” and there is still a long way to go on a deal to make the necessary emissions cuts.

Announcing the “landmark agreement” on forests at COP26 on Tuesday, Johnson will say: “These great teeming ecosystems… are the lungs of our planet [and] … essential to our very survival.

“With today’s unprecedented pledges, we will have a chance to end humanity’s long history as nature’s conqueror, and instead become its custodian.”

Forests play an essential role in fighting the climate crisis, absorbing vast amounts of planet-heating carbon dioxide from the air, and provide food, jobs and homes.

But campaigners say they are being lost at an alarming rate of one football pitch every two seconds through activities such as commodities, agriculture, urbanization, wildfire and forestry.

Highlights from the opening of the summit:

The new money behind the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use will help restore degraded land, tackle wildfires and support the rights of indigenous communities.

Many welcomed the acknowledgement of indigenous peoples as crucial guardians of forests.

Tuntiak Katan, coordinator of the Global Alliance of Territorial Communities, representing communities from the rainforests of Africa, Latin America and Indonesia, said the announcement raised the visibility of indigenous peoples and local communities as a climate solution to an “unprecedented level”.

Roberto Waack, Brazilian business leader and biologist and a Chatham House visiting fellow, called the deal a “significant milestone”.

“Today we celebrate – tomorrow we will start pressing for the deal to be delivered,” he said.

CEOs from more than 30 financial institutions will also promise to stop investing in activities linked to deforestation.

The last similar pledge, the New York Declaration on Forests, signed in 2014, promised to halve tropical deforestation and restore 150 million hectares of land by 2020.

However, most countries did not follow through, and since then tropical primary forest loss has generally increased, according to a progress report published in October.

To harness the potential of forests to help the world meet the Paris temperature goal, dramatic shifts in food production, agriculture and land use will be needed.

This is the first major announcement unveiled at the UN climate talks, which aim to “keep alive” the Paris Agreement target of limiting warming to 1.5C. Another is expected soon on cutting methane, a climate-heating gas.

On day one of the talks, global voices warned that failure would mean a “death sentence” for many vulnerable countries.

World leaders delivered statements on their own plans to meet the Paris Agreement.

President Biden said in his speech on Monday that those “responsible for much of the deforestation and all of the problems we have so far” have “overwhelming obligations” to the poorer nations that account for few of the emissions yet are paying a price as the planet has grown hotter.

India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, said his country would aim to stop adding greenhouse gases to the atmosphere by 2070 – two decades after the US and the UK – and at least 10 years later than China.

The full list of signatories to the Glasgow Leaders Declaration on Forest and Land Use (as of 1 November 2021) are:

Albania, Andorra, Angola, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cote D’Ivoire, Cyprus, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, European Union, Ecuador, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea Bissau, Guyana, Honduras, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Malta, Mauritius, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Congo, Romania, Russia, Saint Lucia, Samoa, San Marino, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Sweden, Tanzania, Togo, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Ukraine, Uruguay, United Kingdom, United States of America, Vanuatu, Vietnam, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Tourism Minister Showcases Sierra Leone’s Touristic Potentials at World Travel Market in the UK

By Amin Kef Sesay

Dr. Memunatu Pratt, Minister of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, has enhanced Sierra Leone’s position at the International Travel and Tourism Conference (ITTC) within the World Travel Market Platform in the United Kingdom (UK). The theme for this year’s conference is: “Re-Energizing Regional Destinations through Branding and Investments to Boost Tourist Arrivals”.

The Minister is in the UK together with top officials of the hospitality industry to participate in this year’s World Travel Market, where they would showcase Sierra Leone’s tourism potentials. The trade fair would present business opportunities for tourist destinations to position their products to potential visitors.

Minister Pratt will engage ministers from other destinations, where she would showcase Sierra Leone’s “Explore Freedom” as an emerging destination.

Speaking at the ITTC, Dr. Pratt intimated that the Commonwealth should bent itself into the current situation in the world in order to make themselves relevant, adding that there is also need for the UK to expand and consolidate its  international support using the ITTC platform to explore same.

Marketing Sierra Leone at the World Travel Market, Minister Pratt positioned Sierra Leone as a resilient country with enormous potentials that is ready for business. She showcased the country’s new rebranding logo with the phrase “explore freedom” which has replaced the previously used “sierraously surprising”. She said “explore freedom” depicts ecotourism, peace, culture and everything that represents Sierra Leone.

Five Professors Appointed by Njala University’s Appointment & Promotions Committee

By Ralph Sesay

During a meeting convened on the 21st October 2021 of a Special Appointments and Promotions Committee, which was chaired by the Acting Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Professor Andrew Baimba, an endorsement of the report of various external assessors both within and across the sub-region was done and conferment of  Professorial degrees on five outstanding academics at Njala University was agreed upon.

Professor Aiah Randolph Lebbie current Head of the Biological Sciences at the School of Environmental Sciences, Njala Campus was promoted to Full Professor.

He is the Principal Investigator for the Ecological Surveillance and Capacity building for Viral Hemorrhagic Fever Viruses Project in Sierra Leone and he is also accredited with the discovery of a near-extinct plant species which was named after him; Lebbiea Grandiflora. It is described as the first new African genus of Podostemaceae published for 30 years.

He joined Njala University as an RTA in October 1989 did his Ph.D. in forestry with a specialization in forests and wildlife ecology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison USA and was appointed Associate Professor in September 2018.

Professor Adyln Omojowo Johnson the current and only female Dean of the School of Education was also promoted to full Professor. She joined Njala University as a Lecturer One in 2009 and rose through the ranks as Senior Lecturer, Ph.D., and Associate Professor in 2018.

She is accredited with several publications including the development of Educational Policies in Post-Independent Sierra Leone and several others.

Professor Adyln Johnson is Chairman of the Njala University Affiliation Committee and a strategic member for the review of the Education Sector Plan 2014-2018 Mid-term Review.

Dr. Phillip Kanu, Principal, Milton Margai Technical University and Dr. Saidu Charley of the Institute of Language and Cultural Studies, School of Education, and Dr. Roland Suluku of the Animal Science Department, School of Agriculture, and Food Sciences were also promoted to Associate Professors.

Professor Philip Kanu was appointed Associate Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Food Technology, Nutrition and Consumer Studies, School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, Njala University on the 1st November 2012.

Professor Kanu is also a Senior Principal Lecturer of the then Milton Margai College of Education and holds a Doctorate Degree from Jiangnan University, Wuxi P.R. China and a Masters of Science in Agricultural Education from Njala University.

Professor Saidu Charley joined Njala University as a Temporary Teaching Assistant in November 1996 and was later appointed lecture II in July 2005.

Dr. Roland Suluku is the Head of the Animal Science Department, School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, Njala University, and One Health Coordinator in Sierra Leone. He recently graduated with a Doctoral Degree in the 2020/2021 Congregation ceremony after his highly acclaimed thesis on Dog Ownership and Management.

Acting Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Professor Andrew Baimba congratulated the new Professors and welcomed them to the Professorial Community.

He admonished them to behave as Professors since according to him Professors are very important in the community and their services are continuously needed to contribute to academia and nation-building.

India Includes Sierra Leone to Benefit from its Duty Free Tariff Preference (DFTP) Scheme

By Amin Kef Sesay

In a bid to continue to take the bilateral relationship between Sierra Leone and India to a higher pedestal to be mutually beneficial to both nations, the latter expressed delight in announcing the inclusion of Sierra Leone as a beneficiary country under its Duty-Free Tariff Preference (DFTP) Scheme. A Gazette Notification to that effect has been issued by India’s Ministry of Finance on the 22nd October 2021.

The DFTP Scheme, which is available to Least Developed Countries (LDCs), provides duty-free market access on about 98.2% of India’s tariff lines.

According to the High Commissioner of India to Sierra Leone, Rakesh Arora, the decision to provide Duty-Free Quota Free (DFQF) access for LDCs was an outcome of the WTO Hong Kong Ministerial meeting held in 2005. Under that WTO decision, India became the first developing country to extend the facility to LDCs in the year 2008.

Rakesh Arora further elaborated that the Scheme was announced to give support to the LDCs in their trade initiatives. At present, there are 37 LDCs who are included in the list of beneficiaries by India. Sierra Leone is the latest edition.

Over Claim of Patient’s Untimely Death… Management of Shuman Hospital Discredits Unfounded Allegation

By Amin Kef Sesay

In a Public Statement, issued on the 31st October 2021by the Shuman Hospital in Freetown, relating to the death of one Frederica lfeoma Oruche who was admitted at the said hospital during which time a Turbinectomy Surgery was performed but ended up passing away, With the aim of addressing the aforementioned allegation, Management of the said hospital attempted to put the records straight.

It must be reiterated that setting the records straight by the Management of Shuman Hospital was preceded by an allegation that Frederica lfeoma Oruche did not die naturally stressing that her death is quite questionable.

According to the Management of Shuman Hospital, Frederica lfeoma Oruche, went to the surgery room on the 18th October 2021 at 12 pm, and during the operation it was noticed that she has congenital malformation in the nasal area, leading it to be a very complicated surgery due to the internal bleeding.

The Management furthered how their doctors tried their best to resuscitate her and successfully woke her up until a sudden change that happened to her condition until oxygen was no longer reaching her respiratory system.

It continued that after 3 hours of intense surgery, the cause of death was discovered to be Pulmonary Embolism, caused by the blockage of the Pulmonary arteries that facilitate blood going to the lungs.

“This is a very critical medical condition that leads to 90% of death of patients with said condition,” one of the Doctors intimated.

Management stated further that theirs is a hospital that prides itself in its intense care for its patients maintaining how they will always be working to serve humanity further assuring that they are doing their best to ensure that they get to the bottom of the said allegation. At that juncture Management expressed its deepest condolences to the Oruche family.

This medium was informed by Management that as a hospital built by and for the community of Sierra Leone for over 10 years, with a reputation that precedes itself as being one of the best in the country, Shuman Hospital has always gone above and beyond to serve its patients with high technical and medical care!

Based on what was said over 70 surgeries are performed in a month that take place in their facilities with very high success rate when the cases are dependent on their professional medical care team and service.

Management continued that as a matter of fact, during the Corona virus (COVID- 19) worldwide pandemic, Shuman Hospital did its best to stand for the community, kept its doors open (safely) and ensured respiratory machines that were in scarcity at the peak of the pandemic, were available for  patients in desperate need of them.

“We have a track record regarding the continuous effort and professionalism towards our patients,” it was underscored.

They said having said that  the incident that occurred recently followed by the allegations against the hospital and one of their Doctors came to them as a shock adding how the hospital and their staff condemn any actions of violence toward their patients or any human.

It was argued that they have all the trust that the hospital did its best to help the deceased and as far as her condition is concerned, there were no signs of neck fracture and any severe physical assault from the time she entered their facility until she was deceased and left the premises of Shuman Hospital.

“We are working with the Police investigators and providing them with all the medical reports needed to understand why said allegations were made,” Management assured.

NP-SL Ltd is Highly Steadfast to Enhancing Customer Care & Satisfaction  

By Amin Kef Sesay

Since the establishment of National Petroleum – Sierra Leone (NP-SL) several years ago, it has been contributing towards job creation and poverty reduction, especially as it is virtually impossible for Governments across the world to provide job opportunities for all their citizens.

The National Petroleum Sierra Leone Limited (NP-SL Ltd) is indeed one successful indigenous company which most of the citizens can boast of, especially when consideration is given to the fact that this entity has stood the test of time, weathering challenges that may have led to its downfall.

For such a commendable feat to be achieved during a long period of time means that the company has been blessed with capable shareholders and managerial team that have been providing the requisite ideas and initiatives that continue to take NP from one high level to another.

Providing it’s esteemed and cherished customers, right across the country, with rapt and efficient attention by always ensuring that their needs are well satisfied which with all amount of certainty is identified as one of the secrets behind the successes of the company.

The NP Management is very keen on prioritizing customer care, which is why it is keen to know about their reactions as well as to listen to various concerns raised and always be in a position to address them.

Having amassed the strength and seeing the need to expand appropriately, NP-SL thought it fit to open branches in Guinea, Liberia, Ivory Coast and The Gambia and all of them are functioning extremely well to the utmost satisfaction of governments plus its ever growing customers.

When cognizance is taken of the fact that Governments need revenue to finance development projects; it is important to find the sources of generating such.

NP, as a company, is one of the biggest taxpayers to the government. Its management always makes it a point of duty to timely pay taxes and despite battling with existing and unforeseeable challenges, there has never been an instance when it has been coerced to do so.

Many have praised NP for making available cookers popularly known as NP Gas, which is safe for cooking purposes. These NP Gas cookers are sold at reasonable prices and could be procured in all their filling stations as well as from authorized dealers. At a time like this when it has been recognized that it is advisable, for health reasons, to avoid using firewood or charcoal for cooking purposes the best option could be NP Gas, which is hygienic, clean and quick.

Talking about effective implementation of Local Content Policy, NP-SL stands tall, as it is truly the only 100% indigenous company that employs 100% Sierra Leoneans as workers. The company gives preference to employing Sierra Leoneans, which is a clear indication that it adheres to the country’s Local Content Policy, as utilizing local talents makes it possible for indigenes to acquire useful knowledge and skills through various training programs.

It is important to know that the company deals with individuals and various entities, always ensuring that its various petroleum products are available and are sold at affordable prices. There is a good business strategy in place whereby entities or customers are permitted to use chits to secure fuel and pay later. Such is very advantageous, more so, when those entities do not always have cash at hand to be purchasing petroleum products from time to time. This symbiotic relationship with its customers has been paying huge dividends, making NP very endearing to all and sundry.

With regards recognition, the regulatory institution of the different petroleum companies in the country; the Petroleum Directorate, has lauded NP in recent time for its efficient service delivery in its areas of operation.

There could be no doubt to authoritatively state that NP-SL Ltd. is doing exceptionally well in all the countries it is functioning and indeed there are prospects for further expansion.

It therefore came as no big surprise why, on the 6th July 2019, NP-SL was awarded “Best Company of the Year” during the National Business Award 2018/2019 held at the prestigious Bintumani Hotel.

Without mincing the truth, NP stands tall within the business landscape in and out of the country, growing stronger and stronger by the day.

1...832833834...1,372Page 833 of 1,372