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NCD Poised to Reintroduce Civic Education in Schools

By Foday Moriba Conteh

On the 9th November 2020, the National Commission for Democracy (NCD), with support from the Government of Sierra Leone commenced its Community Face to Face Discussions on Government Issues with All Walks of Life in the Western Rural and Urban District at the Rural Education Primary School, Kossoh Town in the Western Rural District.

The NCD Western Area Commissioner, Mr. Benjamin Macfoy commended the school administration for the opportunity to address the pupils and revealed that the Commission would provide a Flag Post and roll-up banner of the National Anthem and National Pledge for pupils and even teachers to be reading them regularly recalling that Civic Education was removed from the school curriculum 30 years ago for unexplained reasons and replaced with Social Studies.

He continued that the NCD wants to reintroduce Civic Education in the school curriculum for pupils to know their rights and responsibilities reiterating that the Commission wants Civic Education to be a stand-alone subject in the school curriculum.

Mr. Benjamin Macfoy also enlightened the pupils that with Civic Education they would respect and uphold the rule of law, appealed to them to treat the National Currency with respect and caution them to stand alert when the National Anthem is being song/played.

The Senior Programs Officer, NCD, Mr. David Williams disclosed that after the Flag Post would have been donated to the school, it would be used to hoist the National Flag during devotion and other functions and appealed to the pupils to respect their teachers, elders, those in authority as well as their colleagues, not to steal, pay taxes when they grow up for Government to undertake development projects and promised that the Commission would visit the school again to talk more to the pupils about Civic Education and their responsibilities and wished them good luck in their ongoing examinations.

The vote of thanks was rendered by one of the pupils who commended the NCD for the initiative and promised that they would be studious and disciplined.

The face to face engagements continue with Commercial Motorbike Riders and in Ayata Bases in the Hastings and other communities.

 

Quality Honey Produced by Sierra Leonean in Germany Captures the Market

Christopher O’Neil, a Sierra Leonean based in Germany

By Idrissa Hilton Gogra

Press Attaché to the Federal Republic of Germany

Christopher O’Neil, a Sierra Leonean based in Germany to the surprise of many people residing in Germany and beyond has made history as the first African to produce Honey Bee in Europe.

According to Christopher O’Neil during the corona virus lockdown in Germany, he noticed that he was putting more weight which he was not comfortable with.

“My first attempt was to stop drinking tea with sugar and I consider honey bee as an alternative,” he disclosed, adding that he went around his compound and he observed how the honey bees were moving around. He disclosed that he took up the challenge to produce the honey himself. He said that at first it was just for his consumption but now it has a huge market in Germany and beyond.

“I have sold my honey to Canada, Denmark, Sweden and the United Kingdom,” he narrated, adding that lots of people in Germany became interested in the honey that he is producing because of the quality and how it is produced. He said that he has never regretted starting something new furthering that his product now has wide acceptance not only in Germany but in the entire Europe.

Some of customers have described him as the perfectionist; this is as a result of the fact that the honey he produces, tastes nice.

The Sierra Leone Ambassador in Germany, Dr. M’Baimba Lamin Baryoh commended Mr. Christopher O’Neil for raising the Green; White and Blue flag high, adding that he is impressed with the way and manner the Germans and other nationals raise the value of the honey product that is produced by a Sierra Leonean national.  He called on Sierra Leoneans in the Diaspora to work on innovative ideas that will be of great help to all adding that by so doing we will be pushing forward the vision of His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio for direct foreign investment.

Ambassador Dr. M’Baimba Lamin Baryoh also appealed to Christopher O’Neil to start production in Sierra Leone so that Sierra Leoneans will start benefiting from their own local product, adding it is the vision of His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio’s New Direction Government.

Former GITEX Workers Paid Le 80 million in benefits via Legal Aid’s Intervention

By Theresa Kef Sesay

The Legal Aid Board has on Monday, 9 November 2020 paid out eighty million leones (Le80, 000,000) owed to 21 former casual workers of GITEX Company in terms of salary arrears and benefits.

This was achieved after a long drawn battle in the Industrial Court before settling for an out of court settlement and a then consent judgment in which GITEX (the Defendant) agreed to pay Le80 million Leones to the former workers of the company. The consent judgment was adopted by the Industrial Court on the 4th October 2020 hence serving as a regular judgment.

The Legal Aid Board was able to achieve this milestone after three years in the Industrial Court. It all started on 26 October 2017 when the Board received a complaint against GITEX from 15 of its employees accusing the company of refusing to pay backlog salaries and benefits. It emerged the employees had been casual workers for several years, some for 16 years.

The 15 affected employees at the meeting made it very clear that they were no longer interested in the job. Ibrahim Sesay a Machine Operator said he has had enough after working as a casual for fourteen years and was paid Le 29,000 (U$ 3.8) per day with no allowance.

Efforts at reaching a peaceful settlement was thwarted by the insistence on the part of  the two representatives of GITEX that they had not broken any labour laws and therefore do not owe the workers anything.

The Personnel Manager of GITEX, Sembu Sesay, in a lecture style manner stressed that casual workers are taken on a weekly basis depending on the work that is available. The Public Relations Officer for the company, Francis Konneh, said their policy on casual staff is informed by the advice they received from the Labour Office in the East. He added that the Labour Office had advised that the company can maintain staff as casuals as long as they are not made to work for six uninterrupted months without a break.

The Executive Director of the Legal Aid Board, Ms. Carlton-Hanciles on her part condemned the idea of maintaining workers as casuals for months and sometimes years which she noted is unacceptable and vowed to take the matter to court. “These people have worked diligently for you for several years, they do not deserve to be treated this way,” she said. “Considering the number of years they have served, the company is indebted to them in a big way.”

She also accused the company of designing a rogue system which deprives Government of revenue, deny workers the minimum wage and contribution to the National Social Security and Insurance Trust (NASSIT). She further noted that the system is designed in such a way that the workers are not entitled to Annual Leave, Sick Leave and Allowances.

Upon the collapse of the negotiation, the Board went ahead and brought a class action on behalf of former GITEX workers in the Industrial Court. The Board wants GITEX to pay salaries owed to the workers which must not be below the minimum wage of Le500, 000 (US$58) per month. Also, the salary must not be uniform because the workers had different skills and therefore served in different positions. Since they were no longer interested in working for the company, their benefits and entitlements must be paid in full. Moreover, NASSIT contribution should be paid for all the years they had worked for the company.

The Legal Aid Counsels, Ibrahim Thorlie and Kabbah Sei Coomber filed a writ and an appearance was entered for and on behalf of the defendants by Serry Kamal and Co. However, the law firm failed to file a defence for and on behalf of the defendant. As a result, the Legal Aid Counsels representing the plaintiffs entered a judgment in default of defence against the defendants on the 24 August 2018.

Legal Aid Counsels also proceeded to file an application for an order to issue a writ for execution of judgement for and on behalf of the plaintiffs. The said application was moved on 12 October 2018. The matter was adjourned for ruling.

The judgment in default of defence dated 24 August 2018 was set aside by mutual consent of the parties and the Honourable Justice Mohamed Sengu Koroma of the Court of Appeal at the time ordered on 29 November 2018 for the defendant to pay cost to the plaintiffs, and also for them to file their defence not later than 10 days from the date of the action, and for the plaintiffs to file their reply and close pleadings.

In compliance with the said order, Legal Aid Board Counsels representing the plaintiffs filed a reply to the defence of the defendant. At this point, both parties agreed to an out of court settlement which culminated in a consent judgment in September 2020 to which the GITEX agreed to pay eighty million Leones to its former workers.

Speaking to the clients before receiving their monies, the Executive Director of the Legal Aid Board, Ms. Fatmata Claire Carlton-Hanciles thanked them for their patience. “I knew from the outset that it was not going to be easy because our labour laws are against you; they leave you prone to abuse and exploitation by greedy and selfish employers,” she stressed, adding, “I knew what they did to you was a human rights abuse and was also unjust. We therefore decided to go to court as a last resort due to the lack of cooperation by GITEX.”

She encouraged the former workers to use the money wisely towards their personal development and also described this case as a victory for casual workers around the country which will lead to more class actions by the Board on behalf of thousands of workers who find themselves in a similar situation.

“This is a serious human rights abuse which we will fight in the courts with all the energy that we can muster,” Ms. Carlton-Hanciles said, adding, “We secured backlog salaries for 140 former workers of MSF Construction Company (MSF Engenharia) after they were abandoned by the foreign owners of company. We will do the same for others,” she affirmed.

Orange Money ‘Shoki Love’’ Continues to Make Subscribers Become Millionaires

By Foday Moriba Conteh

As Orange Money ‘Shoki Love’ weekly draws continue, Orange Money has on last Saturday 7th November 2020 dished out 69 Million Leones to 11 lucky winners  right across the country. It was the third edition of the ” Orange Money Shoki Love” promotion which was done live on TV (SLBC) and was hosted by Martha of Orange SL and Saio the Comedian. The third set of winners comprised four (4) male and Seven (7) female.

The eleven lucky  winners in the third edition  were Kadiatu  from Kenema who won Le3 million, Nora  a business woman from Regent Freetown winning Le 5 million, Mariatu a trader from Moyamba bagging Le18 million  from the “Orange Money Shoki Love Box”, Jatu from Bo won Le 4 million, Khadija Bah a student from Aberdeen won Le 4 million, Fatmata from Wilkinson road won Le1 million, Suliaman from Makeni won Le 5 million, Anthony from Kabala won Le 2 million, Alie a stone miner from Ogoo farm Goderich won Le 5 million, Hawanatu Koroma from Kailahun won Le 5 million whiles Lamin Conteh  the last lucky winner  from Mile 91 won Le 17 million  from the Orange Money Shoki Love Box .

Orange Money is one of the reliable services provided by Orange Sierra Leone with the aim of putting smile on the faces of their esteemed customers across the country.

The “Orange Money Shorki Love” promotion is part of the company’s end of year promotion that is offering 3 Billion Leones in the form of prizes including 5 Brand New Cars to be won also by customers.
Orange SL is one of the reliable telecommunication companies in the country that cares for its subscribers and is very determined to change the lives of its customers in order to give them improved standards of living. It is against such a backdrop that the company decided to launch such a promotion with the strong belief that it will be helpful during this COVID-19 period in the country.

Therefore subscribers are encouraged to grab the opportunity in order to do transactions using Orange Money which will qualify them to win the Le 3 Billion worth of prizes on a weekly basis including 5 cars to be won as a grand prize at the end of the promotion.

For subscribers to qualify for the draw in order to win these attractive prizes from the weekly draw, they must be registered with Orange Money and also do transactions using Orange Money by sending money, cashing in, paying for EDSA or DSTV, buy airtime or data bundles from 15th October to January 2020 which will put them at the advantageous position to get chances to win those attractive prizes.

Not Surprising That We Passed 13 MCC Growth Indicators But Failed In Fiscal Policy

By Amin Kef Sesay

It can be recalled that in a press release dated July 11, 2019, the World Bank commented that Sierra Leone’s macroeconomic situation remains challenging despite bold policy measures.

The Bank recommended that unlocking the bottlenecks to robust and sustained real growth through economic diversification and addressing pre-existing macroeconomic weaknesses will be crucial for building a resilient economy that promotes inclusive growth and reduces poverty.

According to the Bank’s measurement, growth was still low (3.7 percent), inflation and exchange rate depreciation are high (16.8 and 11.8 percent, respectively), the fiscal and current deficits are high (6.6 and 13.8 percent, respectively).

Furthermore, the Bank highlighted that increasing debt had resulted in the country being downgraded from moderate to high risk of debt distress.

However, the Bank expressed optimism that the medium-term outlook was promising, with growth expected to reach 5.2 percent by 2021, driven primarily by supply side factors, including favorable agricultural output, uptick in mining activities and strong performance of the services sector, the report notes.

Key risks to the growth outlook the Bank saw include a deterioration in Sierra Leone’s terms of trade; lower than anticipated FDI inflows and the effects on the exchange rate and prices; fiscal slippages including adverse debt dynamics; and financial sector weaknesses.

For the interest of our numerous readers across the globe, the World Bank Sierra Leone Economic Update (SLEU) is an annual publication that reports on and analyzes recent economic developments, reviews regional and global contexts and analyzes the implications for the country, and presents the medium-term outlook and prospects for the economy.

The 2019 Update focused on promoting inclusive growth and poverty reduction, namely ‘Financial Inclusion for Economic Growth and Development’. The target audience for the SLEU includes policy makers, business leaders, development partners and analysts interested in Sierra Leone’s economy.

Thus, Gayle Martin, the World Bank Country Manager for Sierra Leone saw that in 2019, “There is an urgent need for Sierra Leone to develop a comprehensive strategy for deepening the financial sector and this is required to ensure poverty reduction, job creation, investment and growth in the country”

According to him, “Whether Sierra Leone can promote sustained inclusive growth and reduce poverty depends on whether it can modify the structure of the economy to generate more and better-paid manufacturing and service jobs. That could be accomplished by facilitating creation by the private sector of formal manufacturing and services activities and increasing the productivity of the informal sector.”

We also failed in Financial Inclusion for which the special topic of the 2019 Update focused on deepening the financial sector for inclusive economic growth and development.

The report noted that usage of the financial system is low in Sierra Leone with only about 5 percent of adults using formal savings products and about 54 percent saving money within the past year.

Access to finance for enterprises is a significant barrier to growth of the private sector with 40 percent of firms indicating lack of credit as their biggest constraint.

In 2019, only 11 percent of Sierra Leoneans had mobile money accounts compared to 20.8 percent in Liberia, 38.9 in Ghana and 72.9 percent in Kenya.

Youssouf Kiendrebeogo, World Bank Senior Economist and one of the authors of the SLEU commented that, “The government plays a key role in developing the financial sector through promoting resilience and stability.

“One of the key functions that needs to be established is an effective supervision and regulatory regime for financial institutions to address market failures like anti-competitive behavior, market misconduct, information asymmetries, and systemic instability, which can negatively impact financial sector development, economic growth, and shared prosperity,”

Thus, in conclusion, the Bank advised that, to address existing macroeconomic weaknesses and enhance economic growth, the Sierra Leone Government should maintain the fiscal consolidation path, improve debt policy and management and intensify efforts to clear the large stock of arrears.

ECOWAS Parliament Deliberates on Food Security, Agriculture Production & COVID 19

By Abdul Malik Bangura

Monday 9th November 2020: Bissau: Action Against Hunger, the world expert on hunger and malnutrition with over 40 years operational experience confirmed ,during the World Food Day on Friday October 16th 2020, that over 7% of the world’s children under age five – approximately 47 million children in 2019 suffer from acute malnutrition. It further says that world hunger is projected to rise to an additional 132 million people this year as a result of the COVID 19 pandemic.

Population growth and urbanization; climate change and deterioration of environmental conditions; market dynamics and food supply; natural disasters, civil conflicts and food crises; gender inequalities; and most importantly poverty and inequality have all been identified by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations as determinants of food insecurity and malnutrition in particularly the West Africa region.

According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), hunger and malnutrition are worsening in parts of the West African continent because of the coronavirus pandemic, especially in low-income communities or those already stricken by continued conflict.

FAO called for robust measures by West Africa States to maintain four pillars such as food availability, access to food, stability and nutrition.

The basis of the robust measures been taken so far by members has led the regional Parliament of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) under the distinguished leadership of its Speaker, His Excellency Sidie Mohamed Tunis to convey a meeting of joint committees on Agriculture, Environment, Water Resources and Sustainable Development/ Industry and Private Sector/ Health/ Energy and Mines/ Social Affairs, Gender and Women Empowerment to discuss the most vital theme of “ECOWAS Food Security and Agriculture Production Program and the Fight Against COVID 19.”

The general objective of the meeting, which is scheduled to take place from Tuesday 10th to Saturday 14th November 2020, in Bissau, the capital city of Guinea Bissau is to enable the Joint Committee interact with the ECOWAS Commission and assess the status of COVID-19 pandemic, agricultural production and food insecurity in the ECOWAS region.

Also worthy to note is that this meeting of ECOWAS Parliament Members of Parliament (MPs) which is conveyed by the Speaker himself, comes exactly two (2) weeks after His Excellency Sidie Mohamed Tunis served as chair of a high level regional meeting with West and Central Africa Parliamentarians on mobilizing Parliamentarians and keeping nutrition as a priority during COVID 19. In that meeting, Speaker of ECOWAS Parliament called on regional law makers to prioritize advocacy on the protection of the right to food.

Meanwhile, according to research by the writer, the Right to Food has been accepted as a legally binding obligation by all West African States. According to the ECOWAS Revised Treaty in Article 25 says “Member States shall co-operate in the development of agriculture, forestry, livestock and fisheries in order to: a) ensure food security; b) increase production and productivity in agriculture, livestock, fisheries and forestry, and improve conditions of work and generate employment opportunities in rural areas; c) enhance agricultural production through processing locally, animal and plant products; and d) protect the prices of export commodities on the international market.”

In addition, this right has binding obligation on States that are parties to and have ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). It is also binding on ECOWAS States that have ratified human rights instruments relevant to the Right to Food, such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) of which Article 12 recognises the right of pregnant and lactating women to special protection with regard to nutrition; and Article 14 recognises the right of rural women’s access to land, water and services.

In addition, the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) Article 25 recognises the right to health, including nutrition; and Article 27 the right to an adequate standard of living, including nutrition. Also, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) Article 6 recognises the right to life and Article 7 the right to be free from inhumane and degrading treatment.

In the fight against COVID 19, the West Africa Health Organisation (WAHO), observed that there is 92.7% recovery rate of COVID 19 cases in West Africa. However, the measures adopted to curtail the spread of the virus in the region have caused more problems as experts are projecting an increasing rate of hunger and malnutrition in the region. Thus the need for various stakeholders in the region, including the ECOWAS Parliament to take-up measures to protect food security and agriculture production program during the fight against COVID 19.

 

During World Orphan Day Commemoration… Orphans Empowerment Society-SL Awards Stakeholders With Humanitarian Goodwill Award

By Foday Moriba Conteh

One of Sierra Leone’s leading Youth/Child led organizations in the country, the Orphans Empowerment Society Sierra Leone in collaboration with partners has on Monday 9th November, 2020 commemorated World Orphan Day 2020 with the theme: “Accelerating Protection Empowerment and Equal Opportunities for Orphans and Needy Children” which was followed by awarding of Sierra Leoneans ,in recognition of  their outstanding and excellence services towards orphans and  the less privileged in the country, with the Humanitarian Goodwill Award during an auspicious ceremony held New Brookfield Hotel in Freetown.

Some of the awardees includes former First Lady of the 3rd President of Sierra Leone Ahmed Tejan Kabbah, Isata Jabbie Kabbah, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hon. Solomon J. Jamiru, Executive Director of Programme for Children SL, Hon. Joseph Williams Lamin among others.

Speaking during the ceremony, the Country Coordinator for the Orphans Empowerment Society Sierra Leone, Amb Alie Conteh, said that tragically, millions of children all over the globe have become orphaned for many reasons: war, famine, displacement, disease or poverty, adding that to make sure that they are not forgotten, once a year a special day is dedicated to them: World Orphans Day, which falls on the second Monday of each November.

He furthered that this special day has been put in place in order to draw attention to the plight of the world’s orphans and so on that day, people are encouraged to actively participate in helping raise awareness, support and raise funds for motherless and fatherless children worldwide.

Giving a brief history of the World Orphans Day he revealed that the first people to officially care for orphaned children were the Romans, who opened the first orphanage in history in around 400 AD. Long before them, however, both Jewish and Athenian law required that orphans be supported until age 18. The great philosopher Plato once said, “Orphans should be placed under the care of public guardians”.

Amb. Alie Conteh said that World Orphans Day was created by the Stars Foundation to raise awareness about the number of children in this world who lack something most of us take for granted: parents and that the Orphan Empowerment Society wish was for this day to motivate people to do anything they can to help.

He noted that in 2017, various dignitaries and activists within  ORPHAN and less privileged communities made an appeal to the United Nations to officially observe  second Monday in November each year as World Orphans Day of which the initiative will be featured on all media and governmental representatives from around the world.

“With a desire to take care of the orphans left behind by war and a commitment to help bring an end to orphan poverty in Africa an integral part of the Orphan Empowerment Society agenda is to bring humanitarians and leaders from across AFRICA to participate as our organization is planning to take influential Ambassadors of Goodwill to  a Conference and Award ceremony as part of our Public Awareness and Advocacy work on behalf of orphans,” he stated.

Commenting on the award, Executive Director of Programmes for Children SL, Hon. Joseph Williams Lamin expressed appreciation to the Orphans Empowerment Society Sierra Leone for recognizing his efforts towards his contributions to Orphans and less privileged.

He described the moment as much bigger than him, adding that in December, 2014 he sat with 52 Orphans at Kalia Village, Kakua Chiefdom Bo District as a way to show solidarity to them.

He disclosed that the number of orphans and abandoned children  in the country and the world as a whole is increasing day by day due to natural or man-made causes and that while it is not possible to prevent children from becoming orphans and vulnerable, so much can be done to reduce factors causing orphan hood, adding that there are 310,000 Orphans in the Sierra Leone.

He called on organizations to support orphans and the less privileged children as such  is a national concern, furthering that it is time to ensure that no child is left behind as every child matters regardless of his or her status.

He further revealed that it was on this premise that His Excellency President Maada Bio launched the Free Quality Education in order to support these children, adding that to allow efficient and extensive work on orphans, it is essential that all related government and non-government institutions should support these children as orphans are barely able to maintain decent standards of living, leaving them exposed to risks and dangers.

Such children can easily fall into the clutches of criminal gangs in exchange for basic needs such as shelter and food or to satisfy emotional needs, he stated.

Sierra Leone’s Resolution to Regulate Global Arms Trade Adopted by UN

By Mohamed Sheriff
Information Attaché
Geneva, Switzerland

On the 6th November, 2020 the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted a resolution submitted by Sierra Leone’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to Switzerland, Dr. Lansana Gberie, as President of the 7th Conference of States Parties (CSP7) of the Arms Trade Treaty to regulate the international trade and movement of conventional weapons.

The resolution was adopted with 150 votes in favour and only one state voting against in New York.

Remarkably, 87 countries signed formally as co-sponsors of the resolution after its submission to the UN. The co-sponsors included China, Switzerland, the UK, France, Costa Rica, Peru, Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa.

The ATT is the key instrument for regulating the global arms trade, covering the production, movement and stockpiling of weapons, as well as human rights issues that are salient in armed conflict.

This year’s resolution, which built upon the previous year’s, focused on Ambassador Gberie’s chosen theme for his presidency “Strengthening Efforts to Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons and Ensure Efficient Stockpile Management.”

Dr. Gberie, who previously worked as Coordinator of the United Nations Panel of Experts, monitoring the arms embargo on Liberia, reasoned that more often than not, weapons legally acquired by States end up being used by forces that they were not meant for, including rebel armies and criminal elements.

Illicit transfers and diversions from official stockpiles have become major issues in conventional arms regulation in many countries in Africa, particularly in the Sahel, and elsewhere. As global anxiety about international security continues to grow, this theme has gained great resonance.

His Excellency President Dr. Julius Maada Bio, a specialist in Peace Studies, has made promoting global peace and security one of the centerpieces of his administration.

Prior to the adoption of the resolution, Ambassador Gberie and his Geneva-based team held several consultations in Geneva and New York to ensure meaningful discussions on various aspects of the Treaty, particularly on the new languages introduced by CSP7, and to garner as much of a consensus document as possible. Sierra Leone’s Permanent Representative to the UN in New York, Ambassador Dr. Alie Kabba and his team, particularly the Defence Attaché, Col. Albert Jusu, played a critical role in steering the resolution through Committee stage to its adoption.

Sierra Leone, which emerged from a brutal civil war that was fuelled by small arms and light weapons, in the early 2000s after going through a widely praised disarmament process, considers that it is particularly important to further increase the international momentum for the eradication of illicit trade in small arms and light weapons and for effective stockpile management. Following the adoption of its draft resolution, CSP7 Presidency intends to intensify its diplomatic efforts to properly regulate the international trade in conventional arms, particularly small arms and light weapons, in the period ahead.

The vote is a confirmation of the strong support Member States have for the chosen theme of Ambassador Gberie’ Presidency.

RSLAF Maritime Wing takes Control of Four Donated Patrol Boats

By Theresa Kef Sesay

The Maritime Wing of the Sierra Leone Defence has taken control of four patrol boats that were donated by the Government of South Korea on the 9th November 2020.

The four boats were commissioned into service during a ceremony held at naval headquarters at White Man’s Bay in Freetown on the 22nd October, 2020. The commissioning was attended by President Julius Maada Bio, Defence Force Chiefs and the South Korean Ambassador.

Chief of Defence Staff General, Sullay Ibrahim-Sesay, said the new boats will boost the operational reach and capabilities of the Maritime Wing. He said presently, the Wing is hamstrung by the lack of proper training, financial resources and platforms.

He said the South Korean donation was delivered in time as the navy is struggling to secure its 200 km Exclusive Economic Zone against maritime crimes such as piracy, sea robbery and illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

“The rule of law is being undermined and this gift of patrol boats will leverage the flexibility of our forces in delivering the two main objectives of protecting national security and supporting development,” Ibrahim-Sesay said.

President Maada-Bio said the country will continue to explore areas of bilateral cooperation in defence with South Korea in terms of the Korea Africa Framework of Cooperation 2017-2021.

He said Sierra Leone loses an estimated $26 million annually to maritime crimes that plunder and threaten the viability of the country’s blue economy.

“There are threats to national security, food security, economic development and daily livelihoods of people in fishing communities. Small nations like ours cannot afford the loss and yet the costs are mounting daily,” he said.

While handing over the patrol craft, representative of the South Korean Ambassador, Kim Sung Nyeon, said, “Korea is proud to deliver four speedboats to Sierra Leone. It is our hope that today’s contribution will not only help Sierra Leone’s effort to build up its maritime capabilities, but it will also make our friendship grow stronger.”

Currently, Sierra Leone has a small navy that includes one Shanghai Class vessel, one Swiftcraft patrol boat, one landing utility boat and several in-shore patrol vessels and harbour.

Members of Parliament Engaged by Public Sector Reform Unit on Salary Harmonization

By Foday Moriba Conteh

Members of Parliament were engaged on the 9th November, 2020 by the Public Sector Reform Unit (PSRU) on the establishment of the Wages and Compensation Commission.

The event which was held at Committee Room One, Parliament Building in Freetown, attracted several Members of Parliament including its Leadership consisting of the Rt. Hon. Speaker of Parliament, Dr. Abass Chernor Bundu, Deputy Speaker , Leader of Government Business, Leader of the Opposition, Leader of C4C and the Clerk of Parliament.

In his welcome address, the Clerk of Parliament, Hon. Paran Umar Tarawally expressed appreciation to the organizers for their determination and commitment to bring such an important programme to their doorstep. He concluded by wishing the organizers successful deliberations.

In his statement, the Speaker of Parliament said it is very disheartening for someone who is working and having the same qualification with another person without earning the same salary and benefits. He used the occasion to ask that workers be remunerated relative to their qualification and experience.

The Speaker also informed his audience that he is part of the Salaries and Pensions Committee that determines the salaries of appointees and expressed hope that a successful outcome of the consultative process will end the disparities in terms of salaries and wages in the country.

Giving a background statement on the Wages and Compensation Commission (WCC), the Director of PSRU, Georgiana Kamara said the huge disparities in salaries of both public and civil servants has warranted the Government of Sierra Leone to set up the said Commission with a view of getting the legal backing aimed at the harmonization of wages and salaries in the country.

Making a PowerPoint presentation on the Wages and Compensation Commission, Consultant, Mr. George Smith-Graham highlighted the importance of the WCC and also briefed MPs on the procedure, in light of several consultative meetings geared towards harmonizing the existential disparities in wages and salaries in the country.

Speaking on the objectives of the Consultancy, he talked about the scope, guiding principles, methodology, overview of key issues and concepts, laws and policies on salary administration in Sierra Leone, constitutional provisions, administrative instructions and institutional arrangements for salaries and pensions in Sierra Leone.

At the end of the programme, the Clerk of Parliament thanked the Consultant for what he described as a “positive work done”, and appealed that the documents be presented to MPs in order for them to have an in-depth knowledge into the issues raised, so as to put them at vantage positions to come up with a better policy and take legislative actions.

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