By Contact Tracer
His Excellency Ambassador Gibril Santigie Moseray Fadika, received a tumultuous applause from Sierra Leoneans in the diaspora and hailed as a โchampionโ in eradicating poverty in Sierra Leone, as he delivered a highly praised speech at the Global Achievement Awards and launch of โAll Works of Lifeโ (AWOL) Continental Europe, held at the prestigious Pullman Hotel, in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, on 2nd April 2016.
Ambassador Fadika has invested a lot of his money in businesses which placed a high priority on the welfare of poor people, and despite running large companies across Africa, he has also dedicated a lot of time to helping those less privileged in local communities across Sierra Leone. In a rousing speech to Sierra Leoneans from across the world, Ambassador Fadika said he is committed to championing the cause of eradicating extreme poverty and creating millions of jobs in Sierra Leone.
The Ambassador highlighted his aim to build a strong economy, support free education from primary to university and provide affordable health care in the country. Ambassador Fadika called on Sierra Leoneans in the diaspora to join President Ernest Bai Koroma and his government in moving the country forward, regardless of their backgrounds and political affiliations. He reaffirmed his belief that โโ we are born poor, but we must not die poor. Every Sierra Leonean has an important role to play in helping our poor people work their way out of povertyโโ.The Ambassador spoke about his humble background. โโ I was born in poverty and struggled to pay my school fees. Despite these difficulties growing up as a child in Sierra Leone, I never lost hope, but continued in my efforts to seek a better life. I graduated from university and took an interest in business. Today, I am proud of my achievements in the business sector and contributions to nation buildingโ โAmbassador Fadika lashed at his critics who questioned his leadership of African Minerals Ltd (AML) amid the Ebola crisis, as he highlighted the achievements of AML. โAs co-founder of AML, I am proud to say that AML contributed greatly in boosting Sierra Leoneโs economy. AML helped create employment opportunities for thousands of Sierra Leoneans.
Before the Ebola outbreak, AML was making remarkable progress. Unfortunately, the decline in iron ore price at the same time as the escalation of the Ebola crisis, forcing foreign investors to leave the country, affected the operation of AML. A World Bank study on the economic impact of the Ebola epidemic in 2014 highlighted the devastating effect of the Ebola crisis on the mining sector. Despite these challenges, I worked very hard to rescue the mining sector and brought in new investments.
The legacy of African Minerals Ltd continues. The jobs created by AML are being protected by Shandong Steel SL Ltd, the company that took over from AML. As the new Vice Chairman of Shandong Steel SL Ltd, I am confident that Sierra Leone will continue to benefit from the mining sector and Shandong Steel Ltd is here to help us build our economy and create more jobsโโ, he said. Ambassador Fadika is also the new Executive Director of Pan African Minerals Ltd, with a cumulative investment portfolio of over 3.1 billion United States dollars in Africa. With promising investments in iron ore, oil and gas and related resources in nine West African countries including Sierra Leone, Ambassador Fadika is said to have helped create thousands of jobs in the region.
The Ambassador introduced an extemporaneous paragraph into his prepared text. โAs I said at the Commonwealth Summit where I was recently appointed as Goodwill Ambassador for the Commonwealth Africa Initiative, I am not impressed by the limited jobs available to people in Sierra Leone,โ he said. โWe need the positive idealism, energy, passion and skills of everyone to eradicate poverty, create jobs and make Sierra Leone the kind of country we wantโ โAmbassador Fadikaโs speech was the inspirational high point of a spectacular welcome accorded to the Ambassador by Sierra Leoneans in the Diaspora.
The Chairperson of AWOL Global, Anthony Navo Jr referred to Ambassador Fadika as a โChampionโ in eradicating poverty and creating jobs in Sierra Leone, noting Ambassador Fadikaโs record of โcommitment to helping poor people, to creating jobs for thousands of Sierra Leoneans, to investing in education and health care, and to promoting social justice for all.โIsatu Clarkson, Chairlady of AWOL Global, said the reception here was โthe greatest I have had anywhere. Ambassador Fadika spoke in a way that connects everyone and he inspired us allโ Kweku Lisk, an internationally acclaimed Sierra Leonean lawyer said, Ambassador Fadikaโs high profile speech had a โโmeaningful impact on Sierra Leoneans in the diaspora and has inspired a lot of them to return back home and contribute to nation buildingโโ The former Chairperson of AWOL UK, Alfred ParkerJr praised Ambassador Fadikaโs speech. โThis is the sort of vision and dynamic leadership we need in Sierra Leone. The Ambassador is not just a business magnate, investor and philanthropist, butalso a good leaderโโ, said Parker. โWith that powerful speech and commitment to provide free education at primary and university level, affordable health care and free food for children in school, Ambassador Fadika boldly articulated the change that we want,โ said, Ajan Fofanah, a Sierra Leonean based in the United Kingdom who travelled to the Netherlands to attend the event. Ambassador Fadikaโs long term critic, Amara Kallon of the opposition Sierra Leone Peoples Party was at the event and said it was clear Ambassador Fadika โis very passionate about the development of Sierra Leone. He spoke very well and with great wisdom. I am very impressed in him and his commitment to eradicate poverty and create jobsโ.
The Chairperson of AWOL Continental Europe, Serrayba Kakay, on behalf of AWOL presented a Life Time Award to Ambassador Fadika, in recognition of the Ambassadorโs dynamic leadership and inspirational charitable work in supporting AWOL and promoting peace and development in Sierra Leone. It was an historic occasion. The event was attended by Sierra Leoneans from across the world and all walks of life. Ambassador Fadika was accorded a heartfelt and spectacular welcome and participants were in high sprint to see a youthful-looking smiling man. Several times, the people in the audience chanted โMoseray, Moseray, The Man Of The People!โ
