The Sierra Leone Road Safety Authority (SLRSA) on Thursday, May 15, 2026, convened a high-level stakeholders’ engagement in Port Loko City aimed at popularizing the African Road Safety Charter and strengthening nationwide awareness on road safety responsibilities.
Held at the Education Hall in Port Loko City, the engagement brought together key stakeholders from across the North-West Region as part of activities marking the 6th United Nations Global Road Safety Week under the theme: “Accelerating Road Safety Action Through the African Road Safety Charter.”
The engagement comes after Sierra Leone formally ratified the African Road Safety Charter in July 2025 and deposited the instrument of ratification at the African Union Commission in September 2025, making the country the 14th African Union member state to do so. The Charter serves as a continental legal and policy framework aimed at reducing road crashes, fatalities and injuries across Africa through stronger law enforcement, safer infrastructure, improved emergency response systems and enhanced coordination on road safety.
Welcoming participants, the Mayor of Port Loko City, Ali Badara Tarawallie, commended the leadership and Management of SLRSA for organizing what he described as a timely and educative engagement for the people of the North-West Region. He praised the visible transformation within the Authority and its commitment to improving accountability and service delivery nationwide.
Reflecting on his previous experience working with SLRSA, Mayor Ali Badara Tarawallie observed that considerable progress had been made over the years in strengthening road safety administration in Sierra Leone.
Delivering the Chairperson’s remarks, SLRSA’s Director of Human Resources and Administration, Mariama Masuba, stated that the engagement was organized to deepen public awareness of the African Road Safety Charter as part of activities commemorating Global Road Safety Week.
She explained that Sierra Leone deemed it necessary to observe the occasion in order to sensitize citizens on the importance of the Charter and the collective responsibility required to promote road safety nationwide.
Maraima Masuba outlined the core responsibilities of SLRSA, including the issuance of driver’s and vehicle licences, conducting vehicle fitness tests and ensuring safer roads across the country. She emphasized that road safety remains a shared responsibility that requires the active participation of all road users and institutions.
She further disclosed that one of the earliest initiatives undertaken by SLRSA Executive Director, James Bagie Bio, upon assuming office was to strengthen institutional collaboration between the Authority and the Sierra Leone Police in a bid to improve road safety enforcement across the country.
Speaking on behalf of Government, the Resident Minister for the North-West Region, Umaru Bon Wurie, underscored the importance of the engagement and applauded the leadership of Executive Director James Bagie Bio, describing him as one of Sierra Leone’s young leaders demonstrating exemplary and visionary leadership in public service.
The Resident Minister further noted that Sierra Leone’s driver’s licence continues to enjoy broad international recognition and acceptance, while encouraging the Authority to sustain its reform agenda and continue improving standards within the transport sector.
Also addressing the gathering, the Paramount Chief of Marampa Chiefdom, Bai Koblo Queen II, stressed that ensuring road safety is a collective national responsibility requiring the involvement of all citizens and institutions.
The Paramount Chief called on SLRSA to deploy more tow-trucks along major highways to promptly remove broken-down vehicles, noting that abandoned and stationary vehicles continue to contribute significantly to road crashes across Sierra Leone.
Delivering the keynote address, Executive Director of SLRSA, James Bagie Bio, reaffirmed the Authority’s mandate as the lead institution responsible for coordinating road safety activities in Sierra Leone.
He highlighted the significance of the African Road Safety Charter, describing it as a critical legal and policy instrument that provides African countries with a framework for improving road infrastructure, strengthening traffic law enforcement, promoting safer vehicles and enhancing emergency response systems.
According to James Bagie Bio, the Charter commits member states to reducing road traffic crashes and fatalities by 50 percent, emphasizing that nationwide stakeholder engagements remain essential in achieving that objective. He described the Port Loko engagement as part of broader efforts to popularize the Charter across Sierra Leone and foster collective ownership of road safety initiatives.
The Executive Director disclosed that one of his first official actions after assuming office was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with the Sierra Leone Police to strengthen collaboration in road safety enforcement and public awareness. He added that similar partnerships have also been established with institutions including the Sierra Leone Standards Bureau and the Sierra Leone Red Cross Society.
Providing updates on the country’s road safety situation, James Bagie Bio revealed that from January 2025 to date, Sierra Leone has recorded more than 2,000 road crashes, with over 68 percent involving commercial motorbikes.
He therefore urged riders and drivers to exercise greater caution on the roads while encouraging commercial bike riders and passengers to wear helmets consistently.
The SLRSA Executive Director further disclosed that the Authority has intensified enforcement actions against operators of unroadworthy heavy-duty vehicles, making it mandatory for such vehicles to undergo fitness tests before licensing or renewal.
He stressed that every road crash carries severe economic and social consequences, often leading to the loss of lives and livelihoods.
Concluding his remarks, James Bagie Bio called on traffic law enforcement officers in the North-West Region to closely monitor overloaded vehicles and reaffirmed the need for road safety awareness campaigns to extend beyond Freetown to every district across Sierra Leone. “Road safety is everybody’s business,” he emphasized.
