By Foday Moriba Conteh
The Government of Sierra Leone has announced significant progress in maternal and child healthcare during the first 100 days of its ambitious 300 Days of Activism campaign, recording major reductions in maternal and infant mortality while expanding access to essential health services across the country.
Speaking at the Ministry of Information and Civic Education’s Weekly Press Briefing on Tuesday, 9th June 2026, the Minister of Health, Dr. Austin Demby, disclosed that maternal mortality has declined by 31 percent, while infant mortality has reduced by 11 percent since the launch of the campaign.
The Minister also revealed that approximately 5,000 children who had never received routine immunization were identified and vaccinated during the first phase of the campaign. According to him, that represents a 55 percent increase in new childhood vaccinations and has reduced the number of zero-dose children by nearly half.
“We have about 9,000 children in this country who have never received a vaccine. Within the first 100 days, we identified 5,000 of those children and ensured they received their first dose,” Dr. Austin Demby said.
He attributed the achievements to strong collaboration among healthcare workers, traditional leaders, local authorities, communities, development partners, mothers and families across the country, noting that the success was driven by effective mobilization rather than additional financial resources.
Dr. Austin Demby reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to achieving three key objectives under the campaign: zero preventable maternal deaths, zero preventable child deaths and universal protection of children against vaccine-preventable diseases.
While acknowledging the encouraging results, he stressed that the next phase of the campaign would involve intensive action in communities across Sierra Leone to ensure that every mother and child receives essential healthcare services.
“The next 100 days will be days of action. We are going everywhere to ensure that every mother and every child receives the healthcare services they need,” he stated, calling on community leaders, journalists, Civil Society Organisations, development partners and citizens to support the initiative.
The Health Minister also highlighted major investments in healthcare infrastructure aimed at improving service delivery nationwide. He announced that 18 of Sierra Leone’s 20 major hospitals are now energy-independent through solar power systems developed in partnership with the Ministry of Energy.
Connaught Hospital now operates on a 1.2-megawatt solar energy system, while approximately 380 health facilities across the country have been equipped with solar power installations to ensure uninterrupted healthcare services.
He further disclosed that Government plans include the construction of a 300-bed hospital in Kerry Town, a modern cancer diagnosis and treatment centre and a large-scale oxygen production facility to strengthen healthcare services in the Western Area.
Speaking on broader healthcare reforms, Dr. Austin Demby emphasized that Sierra Leone is moving from disease-specific interventions to a people-centred healthcare system as part of its Universal Health Coverage agenda.
“Universal Health Coverage is fundamentally about people. We cannot continue to focus only on individual diseases because one person can suffer from several illnesses at the same time,” he said.
According to the Minister, Government is adopting a life-stage approach to healthcare delivery, covering pregnancy, infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood and old age. Significant investments are also being made in primary healthcare through the construction and rehabilitation of health facilities, recruitment of health workers and improved availability of medicines and medical equipment.
Dr. Austin Demby announced that Government is constructing new 100-bed hospitals in Karene, Pujehun and Moyamba to strengthen secondary healthcare services. He also highlighted investments in advanced medical technologies, including CT scanners, dialysis machines and ultrasound equipment.
Emergency healthcare services have also been enhanced through improved ambulance systems equipped with GPS tracking, oxygen support, trained personnel and essential medical supplies, all linked to the national 117 emergency hotline.
On human resource development, the Minister revealed that the annual number of doctors being trained has increased from about 30 to approximately 250, with plans to expand the figure to 300 annually. Similar investments, he said, are being made in the training of nurses and midwives to strengthen the country’s healthcare workforce.
Dr. Austin Demby stressed that the success of the reforms would ultimately be measured by tangible improvements in health outcomes, including reductions in maternal and infant mortality, lower teenage pregnancy rates, increased survival rates and better overall wellbeing for the people of Sierra Leone.
He concluded that early indicators demonstrate that the country’s health sector is moving in the right direction as investments in infrastructure, personnel and service delivery continue to produce positive results.
