IPAM Sierra Leone Vice Chancellor Lectures Makeni Residents

September 26, 2019

By Alhaji Dauda

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Head of Campus at the Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM), University of Sierra Leone, Professor Samuel E. B. Nonie, has intimated a cross section of residents in Makeni about the progress the institution has made so far and the packages they have in store for them in order to make education more accessible and by extension develop their business administration skills.

He said prior to this time, IPAM had presence in different locations in Freetown including the Prince of Wales, St. Edwards Secondary Schools as well as some other institutions in the capital city furthering how today they are based in just one location at the new IPAM building.

He touched on the rapid transformation that is currently ongoing citing the recent establishment of a well-equipped medical centre that is manned by one medical Doctor and five nurses. He said before this new development they were challenged with addressing minor ailments afflicting students but reiterated that such is now a thing of the past.

The Professor disclosed that the issue of recurrence of examination malpractices has been well taken care of at IPAM further emphasising that IPAM is the first educational public institution in the country to establish, install a modern and advanced technological system that has close circuit cameras positioned in examination halls in order to curtail the menace of examination malpractices.

The Vice Chancellor praised the result-oriented lecturers and other members of staff also underscoring how they are so dedicated to ensure quality assurance is not only achieved but as well guaranteed in the field of academia.

Professor Nonie further revealed to the people of Makeni that IPAM is well placed to increase the number of programmes geared towards meeting customers’ satisfaction. “We want to produce students that will add value to the development and growth of the country,” he expressed determination.

Professor Nonie also disclosed that the recent mass failure in public exams is a big concern to IPAM noting how the occurrence of a problem in one area or one sector of the country is considered to be a problem for all.

He said they are introducing a new programme for those that passed most of the subjects they sat to at the WASSCE level but failed in Maths and English. “This programme is taking education to the people as we are poised to take education to your door steps which will become a strong pillar in our administration,” he added.

“As parents we need to help our children to have quality education in order for them to meaningfully contribute to the nation and IPAM will continue in that direction,” Professor Nonie asserted, adding how the aforementioned programme will not be just like a syndicate but will instead focus on areas where they have noticed that students encountered difficulties. “We will help to prepare these pupils for the WASSCE exams,” he stated.

The programme, according to him, will focus on those that have attempted the WASSCE and not those that have not yet attempted the exam. “We will treat this programme just as how we treat other major programmes and we will bring teachers from Freetown to help experienced and dedicated lecturers,” he assured.

He continued by stating: “We want to have our own actual building in Makeni and for now we have gone a long way with the architectural planning and the development of our own IPAM structure. We are calling on all stakeholders for their collective support,” the Professor appealed.

The Section Chief of Masorie Town, Pa Alimamy Osman Ntham, thanked the Vice Chancellor for thinking and working towards the development of such a model in the Northern region. “We will always be grateful to IPAM,” he expressed gratitude.

A senior resident, Abdul Rahman Sesay, maintained that this new stride is the biggest intervention IPAM has ventured into with a view to assist parents in the educational development of their children at a time when they are very displeased with the recent public-school examination results.

Director of Strategic Planning and Quality Assurance, University of Sierra Leone, Mr. David Gbao, revealed that it is not only in Sierra Leone but in Africa as a whole where most times quality services and products provide customer satisfaction which is why their office is there to support what the Professor is doing to ensure quality assurance with regards high value academic content which he said the University is delivering.

Margret Sheriff Bangura, Coordinator for IPAM in Makeni, assured the people of Makeni about their preparedness to deliver quality education during the next academic year.

Abigail Amanda Jusu, Administrative Assistant of Short Courses, on her part revealed that IPAM also caters for the working-class people offering them nice packages of tailored courses in order to empower them gain higher qualifications that will put them at vantage positions for promotions in their workplaces.

The Deputy VC was taken on a conducted tour to see the new facilities of IPAM in Makeni and later left for Kono where he had a similar engagement with key stakeholders.

Sierra Leone NCD Southern Region Concludes Roundtable Talks

September 26, 2019

By Jonathan Hindolo Kurabu

As part of planned events marking the celebrations of the International Day of Democracy across the country and the world at large, the Southern Regional Office of the National Commission for Democracy, NCD headed by the Regional Commissioner, Madam Mariam Samu has successfully concluded a democracy round table discussion in Bo.

The ceremony had in attendance stakeholders drawn from the Civil Society, Police, Kekeh Riders to name but a few.

Making a statement, the Southern Regional Commissioner, National Commission for Democracy, Madam Mariam Samu said the International Day for Democracy is a day set aside by the United Nations in 2007 to educate the public on the issue of democracy, to mobilize political will and resources to address the problems of democracy and to celebrate and reinforce achievements of humanity in this regard.

She disclosed that over the years, most states in the world are not paying attention to the state of Democracy, adding that the day serves as a wakeup call to nation States to critically look at their democracies in order to evaluate their successes and challenges.

Madam Mariam Samu averred that the democracy in Sierra Leone is still on its way to developing stressing that as a nation, they have fallen out of democracy for a long time tracing back the heydays of the one party system which overshadowed the tenets of democratic values.

In a national address, the Chairman, National Commission for Democracy, Dr. Abubakar H. Kargbo said the theme for this year’s day is participation adding that it affords them the opportunity to underscore that democracy is about people and that it is built on inclusion, equal treatment and participation and constitutes a fundamental building block for peace, sustainable development and Human Rights.

Dr. Abubakar H. Kargbo further said that civic space is shrinking worldwide at an alarming rate, civil society activists are finding it increasingly difficult to operate, Human Right Defenders and parliamentarians are under attack, women remain vastly underrepresented, journalists face interference and in some cases violence, hence the International Day for Democracy is an opportunity to urge all governments to respect their citizens’ rights to achieve substantive and meaningful participation in democracy.

Participants present had a lively interaction with the lead facilitator, Sheku Kamara alias BOGUS, a senior lecturer of the Political Science Department in Njala University who carefully narrated the present state of our democracy tracing the era of colonial rule to date.

In accordance with the Universal declaration of Human Rights, Article 21(3) the will of the people shall be the basis of authority of government.

Pres. Bio Pioneers Bigger Crop Yields in Sierra Leone

September 26, 2019

By Jonathan Hindolo Kurabu

Following the successful outcome of the DNA sequencing training on Njala Campus organized by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security in partnership with the Sierra Leone Agricultural Research Institute, SLARi, Njala University among others to name but a few, organizers of the said training have lauded the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, His Excellency Retired Brigadier Julius Maada Bio for his pioneering efforts in championing the issue of crop protection in the country.

One of the Organizers, who also doubles as a staff of the Sierra Leone Agricultural Research Institute, SLARi, Dr. Alusine Edward Samura underscored that the DNA Sequencing training is an initiative that was pioneered by President whom he said has manifested keen interest in crop protection, describing it as a novelty.

He said the initiative emanated from the fact that yields of crops especially cassava are declining and weeds, pest and diseases amount for about 50% of that loss. In order to raise the yield, he went on, there is need to raise the yield gap or to cover that huge gap, to mitigate on the pest, diseases or pathogens causing this problem stressing that there is need to also identify the correct causative agent that is disturbing their plants by getting the true type causative agent.

Dr. Samura affirmed that the DNA sequencing training is crucial for identification and diagnostic purposes which he said will help them to know the genome present in the ecosystem.

Being a researcher with over two decades experience, he buttressed that the DNA sequencer is the most précised level of diagnostic in the world and the precision he went on is quite high in terms of accuracy.

Head of Crop Protection, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Food Security, Raymonda Johnson said the technology is a portable tool which can be used for other purposes among which are; to detect the semen of alleged rapists, also knowing the biological parents of children, to know the DNA of animals in terms of cross breeding and can also be used for forensic purposes in criminal matters.

Vice Chancellor and Principal, Njala University, Professor Abdullah Mansaray said the technology will to colossal extent leverage and boost crop yields in the country and pledged his unflinching support towards the initiative.

Head of the International delegation from Oxford Nanopore Technologies from UK, Iain Macharen-Lee said the MinION MK1c is designed to enable rapid DNA sequencing in any environment with simple hardware and 4G connectivity.

Director General, Sierra Leone Research Institute, (SLARi), Dr. Mathew L.S. Gboku averred that the technology presents ground breaking opportunities for research with precision and accuracy.

Accordingly the MinION MKC1 has developed a method for passing DNA through a pore which protracts an electrical current and it can be interpreted as electrons of genetic code which can fetch the required answer in minutes. If it needs a lot of data, one that requires complex analysis, the system can be left running for couple of days. For forensic purposes, it requires a picture sample which can be simply prepared by isolating DNA from the sample, prepared and put on the DNA sequencer which can get the results within few minutes. Traditional DNA Sequencers cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in order to get it started.

NaCSA Sierra Leone Trains 34 Entrepreneurs

September 26, 2019

By John Fornah

In a bid to reduce youth unemployment in the country, the National Commission for Social Action (NaCSA) with support from GIZ under the Employment Promotional Programme (EPP III) organized a two-day capacity development training for thirty-four (34) beneficiaries of the Facility for Innovation (F4I) project from Kailahun, Kenema and Kono districts.

The primary goal of this project is to reduce the high rate of youth unemployment in the country. The programme is also designed to support employment opportunities for young people with innovative business ideas, with the view of improving on their skills, capabilities and businesses.

Beneficiaries from Kailahun and Kenema were trained in the Kenema District Council Hall in Kenema District whilst beneficiaries from Kono were trained in the Kono District Council Hall in Kono District.

Delivering the keynote address in the Kenema District Council Hall in Kenema District on Saturday, 21st September 2019 the chairperson described the participants as ‘unique’ and emphasised that they were selected based on their special and proven skills in their respective fields. He implored them to recognize their uniqueness and channel their energies towards establishing big businesses in the country.

Mr. Rashid Bah Senior Director of Programmes NaCSA, maintained that NaCSA and GIZ will continue to support them with a view that they would become outstanding suppliers in the future.

Also, delivering the keynote address in the Kono District Council Hall in Kono District, Dr. Susan Roberts, the Senior Director Quality Assurance and Programme Development NaCSA Dr. Susan Robert congratulated the beneficiaries for being selected among thousands.

She implored them to strive towards becoming employers rather than employees. She underscored that this project is in line with the President’s vision of improving on the Human Development Index in the country. She advised them to be diligent in their respective businesses and be very sensitive to the changing business environment.

In his address to the beneficiaries, the NaCSA Programme Manager for the GIZ funded Employment Promotional Programme (EPP III), Mr. Leonard Moseray registered his delight over the competence of the young people selected for the program. He admonished the beneficiaries to maintain the passion they have as a start-up capital for the beneficiaries have been provided by GIZ but managed by NaCSA.

The package he said includes procurement of the needed equipment and raw materials to actualise their dreams, as the objective of the project is to improve on the private sector youth employment with innovative ideas. He encouraged them to treat this opportunity with the utmost seriousness it deserves.

The program was climaxed with the presentation of the training manual on “Basic Business Management’.

Sierra Leone President Receives New Haven City Mayor’s Award

September 26, 2019

By Thaimu Thullah

His Excellency President Dr Julius Maada Bio has commemorated 180 years of Amistad Slave revolt, during slavery, in the New Haven City, Connecticut, where he was also decorated with the Mayor’s Key award for outstanding leadership.

The said revolution of many Africans on the Spanish slave ship, La Amistad on 2 July 1839, was led by Sengbe Pieh, a Sierra Leonean of the Mende people and had important political and legal repercussions in the American abolition movement.

While welcoming President Bio, Mayor Toni N. Harp said that the respective histories of New Haven and Sierra Leone had been interlaced for centuries, citing his outstanding contributions towards the restoration of democracy and the attainment of peace in Sierra Leone.

“From the time of the Amistad Revolt and prolonged legal struggle to the Ebola tragedy of just a few years ago, the people of our two jurisdictions have enjoyed friendship, camaraderie, and respect – and these things that bind us have only drawn us closer over time,” Mayor Harp said.

In a short statement, President Bio thanked Mayor Toni N. Harp and officials from New Haven’s Amistad Committee and the New Haven Sister Cities Committee for not only providing a home to Sengbe Pieh and others but also for their support to Sierra Leone during the Ebola outbreak.

He told the audience that New Haven and Sierra Leone had been brought together by history and added: “This is a great story and you are a great people. Just like you did for Sengbe Pieh and others, your city has been generous to us. You have always believed in the dignity of the human being”.

He assured that he was also going to strengthen the relationship between Sierra Leone and New Haven City.

Later the Mayor led the President and entourage outside the city hall to a sculpture which served as a memorial to the 1839 Amistad revolt and its leader, Sengbe Pieh for the bravery and courage to emancipate themselves from the bondage of slavery.

To further commemorate this year’s Amistad revolt, the President also laid a wreath at the gravesite in remembrance of those Amistad captives who survived the voyage but became gravely ill and could not return to Sierra Leone with their compatriots in September 1841. At the gravesite, he also dedicated a tree in honour of Sengbe Pieh and other slaves and all those who helped them to regain their freedom.

Over Escape of CPT Kamara’s Escape… 7 Military Officers Disciplined, 1 Exonerated in Sierra Leone

September 26, 2019

By Amin Kef Sesay

During a Press Conference held at the conference room of the Ministry of Defence on Tower Hill in Freetown on Thursday 26^th September 2019, Staff Officer Grade 2 of the Defence Public Relations/Information unit, Major Yayah Brima told journalists that disciplinary action has been taken against seven military officers for their role in the escape of Captain Patrick Kamara from the main custodial centre at Wilberforce Barracks on 21^st May 2019.

Reading a press release to the media, Major Brima recalled that the fugitive was standing trial at a Court Martial in respect of some missing ammunition together with some two other officers when he escaped. Whilst surprised at this act, the military then took swift action to determine how the captain could have escaped without detection.

During their investigations, 8 officers were detained for questioning by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and in the course of their investigations seven out of the eight were found to be culpable with the exception of RSLAF 18169779 Sergeant Tucker, who was exonerated for lack of any evidence to tie him to the crime. It was further disclosed that the CID report dated 12^th June 2019 was directed to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) for Legal advice.

The DPP’s legal advice dated 2^nd July directed the RSLAF to institute disciplinary action against the said officers with the exemption of Sergeant Tucker, who was set free.

The Ministry of Defence Press Release further stated that the 7 officers were given the following disciplinary actions:

RSLAF 18180047 Sergeant Sidia Turay, who is said to have facilitated the escape of Captain Kamara, was compulsorily discharged from the military,
Major TH Sandy (SL 1068), believed to have contributed in a large part to the escape of the captain, was recommended for compulsory retirement subject to the approval of the Defence Council,
Major SN Luseni (SL1172), who was also alleged to have contributed in a large part to the fugitive’s escape, was punished with two year forfeiture of seniority and posted out of the JPU,
RSLAF 18165090 Staff Sergeant William Kamara was demoted to the rank of Corporal and posted out of the JPU,
RSLAF 18182699 Lance Corporal Amara Kargbo was awarded 28 days imprisonment with hard labour and posted out of the JPU,
RSLAF 18182688 Lance Corporal Ishmail Simbo was also awarded 28 days imprisonment with hard labour and posted out of the JPU
Lance Corporal Tamba Tengbeh RSLAF 18182089 was exonerated for lack of evidence.

These are believed to have failed to adhere to Standard Operating Procedures at the Custodian Centre.

The press conference further dealt with other media related matters in which they debunked publications in the Salone Times newspaper about some missing Le100 million.

This, they maintained, is false and baseless, as the officer quoted by the paper to have produced statement of account to the Parliamentary Oversight Committee, was not in that meeting in the first place and no statement of account was presented to the committee, nor was he in any way connected with any financial transaction at the 34 hospital. They further requested that the paper do a retraction of the said publication.

Light was thrown on another matter raised by one Beneta Kargbo; a mother who gave birth to a kid and lost him shortly after delivery, but after 14 months accused 4 medical officers at the hospital of stealing her baby. According to the press release, the MOD explained that the lady came to the hospital in pain and after delivery, the baby developed a breathing problem and after several attempts at resuscitating him to no avail, a death certificate was then issued to the mother on her discharge from the hospital.

The MOD further stated that on legal opinion of the DPP, after thorough investigations, the mother was said not to have any case against the said officials and they were released.

Other issues included the establishment of a new brigade in Eastern Sierra Leone and recruitment of more female officers into the army and deployment of other female officers on peace keeping missions.

SDG 5, Women and Achieving the SDGs in Sierra Leone

September 26, 2019

=COMMENTARY=

By Amin Kef Sesay

Gender equality is a right. Fulfilling this right is the best chance we have in meeting some of the most pressing challenges of our time—from economic crisis and lack of health care, to climate change, violence against women and escalating conflicts.

Women are not only more affected by these problems, but also possess ideas and leadership to solve them. The gender discrimination still holding too many women back and holds our world back too.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by world leaders in 2015, embody a roadmap for progress that is sustainable and leaves no one behind.

Achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment is integral to each of the 17 goals. Only by ensuring the rights of women and girls across all the goals will we get to justice and inclusion, economies that work for all, and sustaining our shared environment now and for future generations.

Women and girls, everywhere, must have equal rights and opportunity, and be able to live free of violence and discrimination. Women’s equality and empowerment is one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, but also integral to all dimensions of inclusive and sustainable development. In short, all the SDGs depend on the achievement of Goal 5.

49 countries lack laws protecting women from domestic violence.

SGD 5 Targets:

An end to all forms of discrimination against women and girls everywhere

Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation.

Gender equality by 2030 requires urgent action to eliminate the many root causes of discrimination that still curtail women’s rights in private and public spheres. For example, discriminatory laws need to change and legislation adopted to proactively advance equality. Yet 49 countries still lack laws protecting women from domestic violence, while 39 bar equal inheritance rights for daughters and sons.

Eliminating gender-based violence is a priority, given that this is one of the most pervasive human rights violations in the world today. Based on data from 87 countries, 1 in 5 women and girls under the age of 50 will have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner within the last 12 months. Harmful practices, such as child marriage, steal the childhood of 15 million girls under age 18 every year.

Women do 2.6 times more unpaid care and domestic work than men. While families, societies and economies depend on this work, for women, it leads lower earnings and less time to engage in non-work activities. In addition to equal distribution of economic resources, which is not only a right, but accelerates development in multiple areas, there needs to be a fair balance of responsibility for unpaid care work between men and women.

Sexual and reproductive rights are critical in their own right. Shortfalls in these multiply other forms of discrimination, depriving women of education and decent work, for example. Yet only 52 per cent of women married or in a union freely make their own decisions about sexual relations, contraceptive use and health care.

While more women have entered political positions in recent years, including through the use of special quotas, they still hold a mere 23.7 per cent of parliamentary seats, far short of parity. The situation is not much better in the private sector, where women globally occupy less than a third of senior and middle management positions.

Urgent Need to Enact Gender Equality & Women’s Empowerment Policy in Sierra Leone

September 26, 2019

By Amin Kef Sesay

The Sierra Leone Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Bill, which if passed into law by the House of Parliament would require the government to draw up an accompanying policy which is yet to be passed.

On the legal basis for the GEWE Policy, the 1991 Constitution of Sierra Leone provides the foundation for the principles of gender equality. Article 15 states that:

“—— every person in Sierra Leone is entitled to the fundamental human rights and freedoms of the individual, that is to say, has the right, whatever his race, tribe, place of origin, political opinion, colour, creed or sex,——–”

Additionally, Article 8(2)(a, b and c) demands that:

(2) a. “ —– every citizen shall have equality of rights, obligations, and opportunities before the law, and the State shall ensure that every citizen has an equal right and access to all opportunities and benefits based on merit;”

“——the State shall recognise, maintain and enhance the sanctity of the human person and human dignity; “and
“——-the Government shall secure and maintain the independence, impartiality and integrity of courts of law and unfettered access thereto, and to this end shall ensure that the operation of the legal system promotes justice on the basis of equal opportunity, and that opportunities for securing justice are not denied any citizen by reason of economic or other disability.”

The above mentioned constitutional provisions compel the government of Sierra Leone to improve the status of women everywhere in the country, eradicate the injustices they have suffered in the past and continue to suffer and put measures in place for the implementation and promotion of social and economic justice for women, girls, men and boys.

According to the 2015 Population and Housing Census of Sierra Leone, women account for 50.8% of the country’s population. In spite of this, they remain significantly absent in decision-making and leadership positions in public and private spheres. Women also continue to experience gender-based violence including rape and other forms of sexual violence, wife beating and unequal access to production resources like land, financial services and education and training. For Sierra Leone’s strive for sustainable peace to be achieved, women have to be active and effective players in all spheres and their economic empowerment must go together with the country’s economic growth and development.

Under the APC Government headed by former President Ernest Bai Koroma, the former Deputy Minister of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs, Mustapha Bai Attila disclosed that the gender equality and women’s empowerment bill would be tabled in Parliament.

The former Deputy Gender Minister promised that the Government will ensure that the 30% quota for women in political and public spaces is enacted, stating that it is very important in the development of the country. He added that empowerment of women should not be limited to political appointment but also economically. The recommendations include governance- 30% quota; energy, infrastructure and transport, security and justice, education, training and ICT, agriculture, employment, private sector and industry, water, sanitation and health and land and property.

To push the process of tabling the bill forward, different women solidarity groups were assembled into technical committees to look into issues to be included in the gender equality and women’s empowerment bill, with the Ministry of Social Welfare together with the Advocacy Movement Network (AMNet) and the Human Rights Commission highlighting over ten recommendations.

The first Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) Policy was drafted in 2014, but was not presented to Cabinet before the exit of the previous Government. With the entrance of a new administration, emerging, national, regional and global issues and concerns, among others, necessitated a review of the policy before it can be presented to Parliament.

Key among them are the priorities of the Government which includes access to free and quality education, job creation, women and youth development and health care; the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) and mud slide of 2014 and 2017 respectively; increasing rate of gender-based violence (GBV) in the country, human trafficking and the quest for technological innovations.

The GEWE Policy as a lawful reference point for addressing gender inequalities by all stakeholders at national and community levels and family units throughout the country. The policy seeks to empower women to make choices at all sectors of the development paradigm and calls for equal access for women and men to opportunities across all areas of the economy.

Furthermore, it clarifies the roles and responsibilities of the institutions that comprise the Gender Management Structure. It also ensures that gender perspective is considered in national development plans, sectoral policies and strategies supported by monitoring and evaluation indicators that are designed to benchmark the performance of stakeholders on gender equality and equity. In addition, the policy emphasises the need for gender responsive budgeting in the public and in private sectors.

The GEWE Policy calls on the President of Sierra Leone to take full leadership for gender equality and women’s empowerment by outlining key steps that can be taken at the highest level of Government to ensure that the fundamental principles of gender equality and women’s empowerment cascade down to all facets of society right through to the local communities. The GEWE policy is designed to follow a multi-sectoral approach in implementation to ensure gender equality and women’s empowerment.

The priority areas of the GEWE policy for Sierra Leone are as follow:

Gender, education and training
Gender, rural development and social protection
Gender-based violence
Gender, decision-making and political leadership
Gender, health, cancer, sexual and reproductive health and HIV/AIDS
Gender, trade, employment and economic development
Gender, the environment and disaster management
Gender, media and access to information, communication technology and innovation
Gender, disabilities and other forms of social inequities
Gender, legal justice and human rights
Gender, Culture and Family
Gender, peace-building and conflict resolution
Gender responsive budgeting

The overall goal of the GEWE policy is to create a framework that promotes equal rights for women and men in Sierra Leone, as a precedent to legislation that ensures gender equality and women’s empowerment. The policy will ensure that gender equality is mainstreamed and promoted as a pertinent element to sustainable economic development. This will greatly depend on the meaningful and timely allocation of resources and the efficient use of those resources to create a society in which women and men have equal access to basic services and enjoy the same rights and opportunities in enabling environments.

The Government of Sierra Leone has also adopted National Policy Frameworks to promote gender mainstreaming that it is obligated to make good on, on moral grounds which include:

National Policy on Gender Mainstreaming (2000)
National Policy on the Advancement of Women (2000)
National Referral Protocol on Gender-Based Violence (2012)
National Action Plan on Gender-Based Violence (2012)
Sierra Leone National Action Plan for Full Implementation of United Nations Resolutions 1325 (2000) and 1820 (2008) (SILNAP), 2010-2014
Implementation Plan on the Sexual Offences Act 2015
The Child Rights Acts (2007)
Domestic Violence Act (2007)
Devolution of Estate Act (2007)
Registration of Customary Marriage and Divorce Act (2009)
Sexual Offences Act (2012)
The Agenda for Prosperity (2013-2018)
National Gender Strategic Plan: (2018-2023)

At the regional and international levels, Sierra Leone has adopted, signed and or ratified a number of key regional and international instruments, laws and agreements that conform to the principles of gender equality such as:

Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
(CEDAW – 1979)
General Recommendations of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women,
Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment(1984)
UN General Assembly, Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women(1993) (This declaration calls upon States to ‘take measures to ensure that law enforcement officers and public officials responsible for implementing policies to prevent, investigate and punish violence against women receive training to sensitize them to the needs of women’. (Article 4-i)
Beijing Platform for Action(1995)
UN General Assembly Resolution 52/86 on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Measures to Eliminate Violence against Women(1998)
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court – Includes acts of rape and other forms of sexual violence as “Crimes Against Humanity” when committed in a widespread or systematic manner, whether or not in times of armed conflict. (Article 7g)
UNGA, Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons especially Women and Children(2000/2004)
The Maputo Protocol (2003)
The Solemn Declaration on Gender equality in Africa adopted by A.U. Heads of State and Government in July 2004
UNSC Resolution 1820(2008) – Among others, this resolution calls on states to end impunity for sexual violence and ensure that all victims have equal protection under the law. (Art. 4)
UNSC Resolution 1888(2009)
UNSC Resolution 1325 (2000) on Women, peace and security, which among others stresses the importance of women’s equal participation and full involvement in all efforts to maintain/promote peace and security.
UNSC Resolution 1889 (2009) on Women, peace and security, which stipulates among others to Design of concrete strategies to support women and girl’s security needs, including through gender-responsive law enforcement. (Art. 10)
Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa(2003)
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Resolution on the Right to a Remedy and Reparation for Women and Girls Victims of Sexual Violence,(2007)
The AU Gender Policy predicated on a 50/50 gender parity principle.
The Maputo Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security, 2003
The Maputo Declaration on Gender Mainstreaming and Effective Participation of Women in the Africa Union, 2003
The Millennium Development Goals (2005-2015), which among others call for gender equality and the empowerment of women
Sustainable Development Goals 2016
ECOWAS Supplementary Act relating to equality of rights between women and men for sustainable development in ECOWAS region (2015)

Thus, given the immense contribution of women to governance and peace-building efforts, the call for the enactment of the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Policy, should be seen by the Government as part of the different instruments guaranteeing women’s peace and security in Sierra Leone.

The campaign to disseminate different instruments on women’s peace and security; capture and showcase women’s contribution to governance and peace building efforts was implemented by the Media Reform Coordinating Group (MRCG) and its constituents members WIMSAL (Women in the Media Sierra Leone) and IRN (Independent Radio Network) with support from UNDP (United Nations Development Programme).

Bollore Sierra Leone Gives Succor to the Physically Impaired

September 26, 2019

By Alim Jalloh

Bollore Transport and Logistics, which controls the Freetown Terminal at the Queen Elizabeth II on Wednesday 25th September 2019 demonstrated its humanitarian posture by donating food and non-food items as well as a 20,000 litre Milla water tank facility to the Milton Margai School for the Blind and the National School for the Deaf and Dumb at Wilkinson Road in Freetown.

The donation of such items brought smiles to the faces of the pupils and staff of both schools. Items that were donated included bags of rice, onions, bundles of zinc, chocolates and candy placed in packs for each and every pupil.

The two schools received the items by surprise, expressing how timely these gestures arrived to help salvage their constraints giving them happiness as they will help in addressing their pressing needs.

In his statement, Bollore’s Country Manager in Sierra Leone, Captain Fabianjanko Kokan, expressed his company’s position in serving humanity, which he said is part of their policy. He added that though the donation will help them overcome some of the hardship the pupils and by extension the institutions have been bedevilled with. ’This donation is just like a drop in the ocean. The schools need more and this is not a question of corporate social responsibility but that of serving humanity,’’ Kokan pointed out.

‘The schools need help,’ he said and further appealed to other entities to come to the aid of the two schools by addressing some of their needs. He recognized CTC and Milla Group as their partners and officially handed over the items.

Several speakers from the two schools expressed appreciation and praised the company for their humanitarian gesture. They offered special prayers for the company to gain higher height in their operations.

Speaking on behalf of the Milton Margai School for the Blind, Sallieu Turay, the Principal, said, Bollore’s visit to them was not by mistake but by God’s will. He said the Milton Margai School for the Blind has been in operation for 63 years and is the first blind institution in the country. The school, he said, has produced many personalities of which some have served as Ministers, Commissioners in different Ministries, Departments and Agencies. He expressed special thanks and appreciation on behalf of the school to the Management and staff of Bollore for what he described as a special gift from God.

Turay added that the bags of rice donated will be of great help to them, considering that the children are entitled to three square meals a day. ‘’Here we cook a bag of rice a day and if you calculate that within the year, it will amount to 365 bags of rice. This clearly tells you how appreciative we are for this donation. Also, if I tell you how grateful we are for the water tank, you won’t understand. With these 20,000 litres of water tank, our problem of water shortage has been finally addressed. Our children will no longer go out in search of where to fetch water.”

DNA Sequencing to Commence in Sierra Leone

September 26, 2019

By Jonathan Hindolo Kurabu

In the wake of the spiral and alarming hike in reported cases of rape and other despicable forms of sexual abuse meted out to girls below the age of 18 by mostly men who are old enough to be their fathers or grandfathers, there is need to clampdown on these alleged rapists.

Sadly though, the cumbersome processes in our Judiciary heightened by unnecessary court adjournments during the Preliminary investigation at the Magistrate Courts before committal to the High Court most often than not, leave the victims in agony.

Out of sheer ignorance, the victims most times destroy the evidence even before reporting the cases and often further worsened by some police officers who have shallow knowledge in evidence gathering and protection of incontrovertible evidence which could be classically admissible in the court of law.

Even against the backdrop of a State of Emergency slammed by His Excellency the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Retired Brigadier Julius Maada Bio months ago with a punishment of life imprisonment upon conviction; the situation remains far worse and seemingly unabated.

For lack of evidence, the alleged perpetrators are discharged and left to roam freely while their alleged victims suffer in silence. With strides made so far by President Bio, plans are now rife for Sierra Leone to commence DNA sequencing for rape and all forensic cases involving ritual murder, murder.

This was disclosed to a cross-section of dignitaries drawn from Njala University, SLARi, Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security, Environmental Protection Agency, Detective Officers from the Sierra Leone, Directorate of Science Technology and Innovation to name but a few.

Team Lead from Oxford Nanopore Technologies, Iain Macharen-Lee said the DNA sequencing can be used across a multitude of different fields. He underscored that the technology is a new way of reading DNA which he said is fundamentally different from previous technologies and furthered that the MinION Sequencer is a small device, portable and simple device which can be deployed anywhere and can be used by anybody with the requisite skills.

According to Iain Macharen-Le, the MinION MKC1 has developed a method for passing DNA through a pore which protracts an electrical current and it can be interpreted as electrons of genetic code which can fetch the required answer in minutes. For forensic purposes, it requires a picture sample which can be simply prepared by isolating DNA from the sample, prepared and put on the DNA sequencer which can get the results within few minutes. Using the third generation of DNA sequencing, perpetrators of rape and other crimes can be detected in minutes and will constitute the evidence in court for proceedings.

The MinION MKC1 DNA Sequencer was first handled by President Bio upon their first engagement in Sierra Leone. According to the Team Lead from Oxford Nanopore Technologies, President Julius Maada Bio is the Third President in the World and the First President in Africa to have had a feel and grip on this modern technology which he referred to as the third generation of DNA Sequencer.

The delegation was lured to come over to Sierra Leone by President Bio during his ‘TED TOK’ in Vancouver courtesy of the Dr. David Monina Senge, Chief Innovator and Director, Directorate of Science, Technology and Innovation, DSTI.

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