‼‼‼‼‼‼‼‼‼‼
*Ministry of Information and Civic Education’s Press Conference*
*Tuesday, 2nd September 2025*
*Key Highlights*
*By: Zacharia Jalloh, Ministry of Information and Civic Education*
The Ministry of Information and Civic Education hosted its weekly press conference on Tuesday, 2nd September 2025, providing the public with key updates on diplomacy, public sector reforms, anti-corruption measures, education, and civil society perspectives. The session featured several ministers, government officials, and civil society leaders who highlighted progress across different sectors. The following are the key highlights:
♦ *ECOWAS Delegation on Yenga Dispute*
Deputy Minister of Information and Civic Education, Bocakarie Abdel-Aziz Bawoh, informed the public about the high-level ECOWAS delegation that visited Sierra Leone on 26th August 2025 to assess the Sierra Leone-Guinea dispute over Yenga. Led by Dr. Odigie Brown, Program Officer for Mediation at ECOWAS, the delegation was tasked with conducting an impartial, independent, and inclusive assessment of the disputed territory. Deputy Minister Bawoh emphasized that Sierra Leone remains committed to diplomatic avenues in resolving the matter, stressing that the use of force would only worsen the situation. He further noted that the delegation engaged with key stakeholders as part of its fact-finding mission.
♦ *Strategic MoU with Columbia University*
Deputy Minister Bawoh also announced a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Government of Sierra Leone and Columbia University, one of the United States’ leading Ivy League institutions. The agreement, signed by the Minister of Information and Civic Education, Chernor Bah, and Dr. Thoai Ngo, Professor and Chair of Columbia’s Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health, establishes a transformative partnership. Formally announced on 27th August 2025, the MoU sets a strategic framework to anchor world-class research, training, and policy engagement in Sierra Leone.
♦ *Public Service Reforms and Digital Transformation*
The Minister of Public Administration and Political Affairs, Amara Kallon, outlined key reforms to revamp the public sector. He highlighted the establishment of the first-ever Public Service Policy and Act, designed to coordinate and strengthen the entire public service in Sierra Leone. The upcoming constitution, he noted, will include a new chapter dedicated to the Public Service, with the first Public Service Act expected to be finalized by the end of 2025.
Minister Kallon further disclosed the signing of an agreement with Humnce, a local IT firm, to develop a transformative digital Human Resource Hub. This hub will digitize staff attendance, performance appraisals, transfers, and promotions, replacing manual systems with a more efficient, transparent, and accountable structure.
In another major announcement, Minister Kallon revealed government’s plan to provide vehicles and housing for public servants. The Ministry signed an MoU with the Economic and Commercial Counseling Center of the Sierra Leone Embassy in Guangzhou, China (ECCE-G) to deliver low-cost housing and electric cars on loan to civil servants. He emphasized that this initiative reflects President Julius Maada Bio’s strong commitment to strengthening the public sector for effective service delivery.
Minister Kallon also disclosed that Sierra Leone will host over 700 Human Resource professionals and experts from across Africa and the Global South at the Bintumani Conference Center between 4th and 6th November 2025.
♦ *Anti-Corruption Commission Updates*
Patrick Sandi, Coordinator of Operations at the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), reaffirmed the Commission’s strong commitment to fighting corruption. He explained that the 2019 amendment to the 2008 Anti-Corruption Act granted the Commission broader powers, aligning its work with the government’s Medium-Term National Development Plan and the “Big Five Changers.”
Mr. Sandi revealed that the ACC has conducted more than 20 corruption risk assessments over the past seven years, resulting in 461 recommendations, of which 336, representing 73%, have been successfully implemented by MDAs. He further noted that the compliance rate for asset declarations is generally encouraging, with ongoing improvements being made to the portal in partnership with DSTI.
On investigations, he confirmed that the Minister of Social Welfare, Melrose Karminty, has been cleared of all allegations after a thorough investigation. However, he disclosed that the former Chairman of the National Commission of Persons with Disabilities, Dr. Vandy Konneh, remains under investigation, with updates to be provided in due course.
♦ *Advancing Free Quality School Education*
The National Program Coordinator of the Free Quality School Education (FQSE) Program, Augustine Moses Koroma, provided an overview of the five core commitments made under President Bio’s flagship program: payment of school fees for all pupils in government and government-assisted schools from pre-primary to senior secondary school, payment of public examination fees, provision of core textbooks, supply of teaching and learning materials, and expansion of school feeding. He confirmed that all five commitments have been successfully delivered since the program’s launch in 2018.
Mr. Koroma highlighted other transformative education policies, including the Radical Inclusion Policy, the School Catchment Policy, the Integrated Early Childhood Development Policy, and the School Feeding Policy. He shared remarkable progress since 2018: 3,000 schools approved, 12,000 teachers recruited, school enrollment rising from 37% to 85%, 94 containers of learning materials distributed, 538 primary schools built or renovated, 367 school expansions completed, primary education expenditure increased from 27% to 92%, retention rates rising to 129%, and salaries increased by 40%.
♦ *Civil Society Commends Female Enrollment*
Adding a civil society perspective, Mariama Khai Fornah, CEO and Founder of Moving Women for Sustainable Development Sierra Leone, praised the government for its achievements under the Free Quality Education program. She particularly commended the impact on girls’ education, noting that the construction of new schools, the Radical Inclusion Policy, and school feeding initiatives have all contributed to unprecedented levels of female enrollment and performance. According to her, more girls are in school today than ever before and are achieving better results in public examinations.
Leave a Reply