Top news from Sierra Leone

Police Officer remandedfor stealing Okada Bike

By Salifu Conteh.

In another development in the same court, Alie Sulaiman Turay, purportedly a Police Officer, was remanded for the alleged stealing of a Motor Bike TVS Star LX with Registration Number ANS 583 belonging to one Sheikh Mohamed A. B. Conteh.

The said property was in the custody of one Police Constable (PC) 15243 Kallon B. at the Operation Restore Sanitary, Central Police Station.

The accused was arraigned on a count of Larceny contrary to Section 2 of the Larceny Act 1916.

The Police Prosecutor Inspector Mabel M. Tarawalie alleged in the Particulars of Offence that the accused on Tuesday 4thJanuary 2022 at Operation Restore Sanitary, Central Police Station in Freetown stole one black TVS Star LX Motor Bike with Registration Nos. ANS 583 valuedat nine million, one hundred thousand Leones (Le 9,100,000) whilst in the custody of PC15243 Kallon B., property of Shekh Mohamed A.B. Conteh

The accused denied the allegation and the matter was adjourned to January 18th 2022.

He was unrepresented.

26 Judges for 1,013 Cases

Outlook

Countribloggers

Sierra Leone’s economy contracted by 2% as the COVID-19 pandemic led to slowdown in all sectors following global supply chain disruptions and lockdown measures. GDP per capita fell by 4% in 2020, reversing some of the recent gains in poverty reduction. Real GDP is expected to rebound by 4.2% in 2021, reflecting the easing of COVID-related restrictions as well as the implementation of the government’s fiscal response to the pandemic. On the demand side, growth will be driven by domestic demand (as external demand remains subdued), with private consumption and investment contributing the most.

Recent Developments

Headline inflation fell to 8.9% in March 2021, before rising sharply to 10.2% by end June, reflecting an increase in food and fuel prices. Food inflation reached 17.1% in June 2021, well above its pre-COVID-19 level of 9.9%. The current account deficit is expected to improve by 1 percentage point to 16.4% of GDP in 2021, reflecting higher export receipts from the mining sector. In 2021H1, total public expenditure reached 12.3% of GDP while total revenue collection totaled 6.9% of GDP. The overall budget deficit is projected to decline to 3.8% of GDP in 2021. Public debt is estimated to decline to 72.9% of GDP in 2021, although the risk of external and overall debt distress was assessed as high in June 2021.

Risks and Challenges

Sierra Leone’s medium-term outlook is subject to downside risks. COVID-19 risks reflect limited access to vaccines including slow pace of the vaccination program and a resurgence of the pandemic. The main domestic macroeconomic risks are continued high public debt and domestic payment of arrears, slower than expected revenues, and rapid growth in monetary aggregates, including the associated inflationary risks and financial sector weaknesses.

Political Context

Sierra Leone held general elections in 2018, the most closely contested in its political history with the opposition Sierra Leone People’s Party winning by 0.6% after a second vote. The new Government launched the Medium-Term National Development Plan (MTNDP - 2019-2023), which maps out immediate and long-term development goals and commitment to transform from a fragile state into a stable democracy. Tensed political rivalry especially between the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party and the main opposition All People’s Congress continues to characterize the complex nature of politics and this sometimes results to violent confrontations. The setting up of the Commissions of Inquiry to investigate the governance activities of the past administration, the annulment by the High Court of the election of 10 opposition MPs in 2019, and the trial of some senior opposition members for various offenses, added to the political tension. A Peace and National Cohesion Conference was convened in May 2019 to help foster national unity, and Parliament in December 2020 passed into law the Independent Commission for Peace and National Cohesion. The Government recently repealed the draconian Part 5 of the Public Order Act of 1965 that criminalized libel, while the President has also signed into law the abolition of the death penalty.

Development Challenges

Until the outbreak of Ebola in 2014, Sierra Leone was seeking to attain middle-income status by 2035, but the country still carries its post-conflict attributes of high youth unemployment, corruption, and weak governance. The country continues to face the daunting challenge of enhancing transparency in managing its natural resources and creating fiscal space for development. Problems of poor infrastructure and widespread rural and urban impoverishment persist despite remarkable strides and reforms.

You guys clearly knows that we ken always focus on building the country’s economy

Nor ever compere the SLPP to that of the failed APC

REIMAGINE SIERRA LEONE WITHOUT VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN NATIONAL POETRY AND ESSAY WRITING COMPETITION CONCLUDED

Fact from UNICEF ''No matter what form of violence a child is exposed to, her experience may lead to serious and lifelong consequences. Violence can result in physical injury, sexually transmitted infections, anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, unplanned pregnancy, and even death. Evidence also suggests that toxic stress associated with violence in early childhood can permanently impair brain development and damage other parts of the nervous system.

Long-term behavioral impacts on children include aggressive and anti-social behavior, substance abuse, risky sexual behaviour, and criminal behaviour.

Despite these grave physical and mental health consequences, the vast majority of child victims never seek or receive help to recover. What’s more, children who grow up with violence are more likely to re-enact it as young adults and caregivers themselves, creating a new generation of victims''.

In line with the above statement, the Future Leaders Initiative SL is committed to prohibiting violence, especially corporal punishment of children in all learning settings across Sierra Leone.

Not by words but by action; the Future Leaders Initiative SL, on the 26th of November, staged one-day national poetry and essay writing competition with the theme: ''Reimagine Sierra Leone Without Violence Against Children'' and it was successful. Children’’.

The motive of the event was to promote a broader knowledge on positive discipline practices, promote a broader knowledge on educational methods that serve as an alternative to corporal punishment against children, raises people’s awareness of the prohibition of all forms of violence against children in all learning settings and also the difference between Punishment and Discipline, raise awareness of the consequences of violence against children, advocate for a safer learning environment for all school children, and providing free alternatives to corporal punishment against children.

The event focused on issues like

I. Corporal Punishment

II. Child Sexual Abuse

III. Bullying

IV. Child maltreatment

V. Emotional Abuse

Please don’t forget to check us out!

Website: https://www.flisl.org

Facebook: Future Leaders Initiative SL

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/future-leaders-initiative-sl-9749ba194

Twitter: https://twitter.com/futureleadersi6

YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCg1m-PHN2QC6-NqLG2C94AA

Instagram: www.instagram.com/futureleadersinitiative

THE FUTURE OF SIERRA LEONE AND AFRICA BELONGS TO THE YOUNGER GENERATION

The riverbanks and pillars of our future are frail which means the future generation is at the ground of gambling. Those frail riverbanks can only be strengthened when the successors [Youth] are mentally, economically, emotionally, socially fixed, and fully empowered with a focused mindset and are given the lens to glance through the heart of the future. The tools are there, young people are willing to give all they have for a better tomorrow and that is BEAUTIFUL! Awfully a pity to notice that change has been hankering for the skin of its people but to no avail. It is only when a nation is ready to see through the borders of young people's potential then change will come at their doors.

The clouds are extremely clear for those who have the vision of

an eagle to make use of what is at their disposal [Youth] or else the future's

older self-will badly perish because of negligence, flimsy thinking from those

are responsible to think uprightly!

Over the years, young people across Sierra Leone have given up

on their struggles, their leaders, and their futures so they have dropped out

of school, engaged in heavy consumption of drugs and alcohol, arm robbery,

kidnapping, theft, sexual harassment, and the likes because that is where they

have shifted their minds.

Within the Sierra Leone context, young people [youth] are people

between the ages of 15-35.

They have practically made up 80% of the population but these

innovative, passionate and vibrant people are struggling to achieve their

goals. Now they are seen to be the victims of all sorts of violence and also

the perpetrators. Despite their ideas and power to change bad situations to

good, their dreams and aspirations are still in the drain.

When one imagines the capabilities these young people possess,

it could surprise you that 60% to 70% of them are living their lives

unemployed.

The country is said to have one of the highest numbers of

unemployed youth in West Africa.

According to the Sierra Leone Labour Force Survey, the

unemployment rate is higher among youth than those aged 35 and above. Sierra

Leone is known for its mineral resources but yet

still, there are few jobs for a population of 7,976,983.

A lack of skills and experience is cited as one of the main

reasons for the high youth unemployment rate. So true but how can they get

empowered without learning skills? How

can they stop stealing and all those bad things they do in the

night without giving them the platform to establish skills like tailoring,

graphic design, filmmaking, and many more?

The youth are encountering more hardship and unemployment than

ever before especially during this pandemic. They lack a sense of belonging in

their communities and the

country as a whole. The future often craves equality [for women

and girls] freedom, justice, and employment. When all these fail to be

delivered by the government, it causes youth to fly

across dangerous borders to find jobs, freedom, and justice even

if it costs them their lives.

Every country in the world is fully aware that young people

constitute a huge percentage of the population yet they remain marginalized,

neglected, and forgotten. The minds of the youth

are playing negatively and sometimes they find it very difficult

to control their burning emotions so they go wild like hungry lions.

Therefore, to ease their stress and please themselves, they join

bad groups, go to the ghettos or become involved in criminal offenses. If rural

migrants who have flown to the city expecting greener pastures do not find them

it can result in drainage of development and the country will have an

eco-system of gangs.

food prices sets a serious threat to food security in Sierra

Leone. This is another major problem for young people in Sierra Leone. There is

an adage that says a hungry man is an

angry creature. This is a huge call to action for the world to

support and invest in agriculture and the president to look into the issue of Price

Control.

Malnourished children have impaired immune systems that

predispose them to sickness and death. Nutrition is intimately interrelated

with communicable diseases such as HIV and

tuberculosis and it plays an important role in the etiology,

complications, and therapy of these diseases. Women who are malnourished are

more likely to face reproductive problems

that can lead to maternal and infant deaths. Improved nutrition

reduces the severity of some

diseases and minimizes the incidence of others.

Countless young farmers need financial, business skills, and

technical support to feed the country, as they are ready to farm.

Farmers in the upland country can produce what they eat but not

as much as they will sell.

They lack things like; simple farm tools [hoes, cutlass, rain

boots, rakes, shovels, wheelbarrows, and many more. They lack seeds like rice,

maize, onions, tomatoes, and pepper, and more. Even though they are ready to

farm they also need educations and skills on how to do it efficiently and

effectively.

Cope with climate change, soil erosion, and biodiversity loss

1. Satisfy consumers’ changing tastes and expectations

2. Meet rising demand for more food of higher quality

3. Invest in farm productivity

4. Adopt and learn new technologies

5. Stay resilient against global economic factors

6. Inspire young people to stay in rural areas and become future

farmers

Since the initiative of the United Nations Sustainable

Development Goals [SGDS], young people have been at the forefront in making

sure they join the forces of change by forming sustainable organizations with

sustainable ideas but they have not been receiving financial support from the

government neither from any large international organizations. If you ask me,

this has

hindered the smooth running of the SDGs in Sierra Leone.

Having served in the capacity of local peacebuilding,

facilitation, coordinating young people, advocacy, entrepreneurship, research,

and youth capacity building

Sierra Leone is a very peaceful country but the lack of love,

unity and gross selfishness among our leaders has brought about this epidemic

called violence among you people and such has eaten the minds of young people

today across Sierra Leone and Africa.

Until you have what is now referred to as ''Cabal'' then you are

ready to survive or if you have a better paid job.

The issue of child sexual abuse, emotional abuse, offline and online bullying and corporal punishment is on the increase like never before.

If we want to see a better future for Sierra Leone and Africa, we must reclaim our dignity and restore our self-prestige. The children are looking up to us, the future is not tomorrow, it is now. Therefore, if we want the Sierra Leone we all have been yearning for, the present must be taken care of very well by teaching the values of humanity to our children, both in schools, homes, where we are Kings and Queens, Prince and Princess, Presidents and the likes. Sierra Leone and Africa are ours if we do not make it, the world will help us in making it but we shall pay a heavy price, that prize we are going to pay will take us back to eras of endless and horrible slavery.

#FamiLee_Fame Is The Fastest Growing Musical Group In Sierra Leone. The Group Is Comprises Of Sahid Kin-Koma King Conteh With The Stage Name #King And Neckyan Sufian Tarawalie With The Stage Name #Swagg_Light.

#FamiLee Fame* Bonded Together At The Age Of 10 From Different Parents. The Group Was Originated In Freetown. Both Have Their Birthdays On The 13th 14th Of March Respectively

#King Attended The St Edwards Secondary School In Freetown And Later Applied For A Bachelor's Degree In Art At Fourah Bay College University Of Sierra Leone.

#Swagg_Light Attended The Sierra Leone Grammar School And Secured A Bachelor's Degree In Accounting And Finance..

*_‼️As Pres. Bio Assures of More Opportunities…._*

*_‼️Mines Ministry & NMA Launch 1st Geodata & Exhibition to Show Case Sierra Leone’s Mineral Resources_*

www.thecalabashnewspaper.com

*_By Amin Kef-Ranger_*

The 24th May 2021 will go down the annals of history as a watershed when the Ministry of Mines and Mineral Resources (MMMR) and the National Minerals Agency (NMA) held a Geodata Launch and an Exhibition Event at the Freetown International Conference Centre, Bintumani Hotel, Aberdeen to celebrate and showcase progress made in the country’s minerals sector.

The event provided an opportunity for investors, mining companies, banks and financial institutions, legal firms and various product/service providers to join Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies, Development Partners and other key stakeholders to share experiences and ideas on the investment opportunities and challenges in the mines and minerals sector.

In his keynote address, President Bio said: “I am not here to do a symbolic launch and walk away to my office. I am here to speak to friends, partners, and potential investors present and not present. I am here to share with you what we have done about the mining sector over the last three years.”

The President also stressed that he was at the event to listen very keenly to people’s thoughts, ideas, and experiences.

“I want to assure you that we will create even more opportunities to sit down and talk; to think together; to cooperate; to reach consensus; and to work together to further develop the extractives sector and make it even more viable for investors and their shareholders, the Government, communities, and the country as a whole.

“As I have always said, I want that relationship to be built on mutual trust with all parties being transparent, patient, and clear about pursuing a win-win outcome,” he concluded.

Gayle Martin, the outgoing World Bank Country Manager, commended the Government of Sierra Leone under the leadership of President Bio for the progress that led to the event of the launch of Geodata and Exhibition, saying that critical to the post-COVID-19 recovery was the extractive sector, which she said if managed well would transform Sierra Leone’s economy.

She also noted that the Geodata was financed by the World Bank because they knew it would help lift people out of poverty, saying that the data would not only support the mining sector but would also help other areas necessary for national development.

“Under the able leadership of President Bio, the Government has embarked on a growth strategy that focuses on economic diversification. Economic diversification does not mean moving away from extractives, but rather to optimise the growth in other sectors to protect the economy from negative shocks”, Gayle noted.

Minister of Mines and Mineral Resources, Musa Timothy Kabba, said that he was grateful to the President for the confidence reposed in him to serve in the Ministry, saying that they had taken huge steps by acquiring the geological data which would be critical for the optimisation of benefits from the minerals sector.

He further stated that the Geodata would serve a useful function in guiding Government’s decision relevant to the exploitation of mineral wealth, adding that they were critical in shaping Government’s strategy in transitioning from a first-come-first-serve system for the award of mineral right to a competitive bidding system.

“With this launch, Your Excellency, Sierra Leone has once again demonstrated, under your leadership, that it is a competitive destination in Africa for investment in the mines and minerals sector,” he noted.

The Director General of the National Mineral Agency (NMA), Julius Daniel Mattai, in his welcome address said despite challenges posed by the Coronavirus converging at the Bintumani Conference Centre clearly shows that the country is making steady progress in sanitising the minerals sector.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this Geodata launch and exhibition form a critical part of our Government’s agenda to rebuild confidence and attracting investment into the minerals sector of Sierra Leone’s economy. This maiden event provides a perfect setting for long-lasting and meaningful investment in this country and for its development,” he noted.

He also stated that Sierra Leone is endowed with abundant mineral wealth and natural resources but characterised by multidimensional poverty, but assured that the Ministry of Mines and Mineral Resources and his agency are working harder to see a turnaround and a much further inroad in terms of growth in the sectors with large investment potential.

The NMA Director General furthered that the event consists of three opportunities: first, the launch of the deliverables from the Nationwide Airborne Geophysical Survey (NAGS), the Enterprise Geoscientific Information System (EGIMS) and the National Minerals Agency Strategic Plan 2020-2025; second, promotional exhibitions; and, third, an exclusive Networking Cocktail Party.

He underscored that the event provides the perfect setting to see these three opportunities unfold for the first time in Sierra Leone.

Julius Daniel Mattai highlighted that so pivotal has mining been to the development of Sierra Leone, that it inevitably carries some of the worst of the legacy of the past.

He stated that in the same measure, the challenges of Geodata management and good governance and the opportunities of real transformation are enormous, especially in creating new opportunities for meaningful investment and inclusive growth.

These challenges and opportunities, according to him, form a critical part of the broader transformational agenda of Sierra Leone's mines and minerals sector in the twenty-first century; hence, the theme of the event is: “Leveraging Geodata Management Systems and Good Governance to Improve the Mines and Minerals Sector”.

He maintained that the role of the mines and minerals sector in the economic development of Sierra Leone is still a suspect and the sector is currently striving to make meaningful impact on the country’s overall economy.

“It is perhaps an inconvenient truth that Sierra Leone would be much further down the road in terms of growth of the mines and minerals sector had it taken a comprehensive stock of its mineral resource inventory earlier,” he intimated.

He added how Sierra Leone has serious mining investment potential, which if governed and exploited rationally, could contribute to inclusive and sustainable development.

The mining sector, he continued, is the crux of Government’s effort to revive the country’s economy through the attraction of investments with its proven associated benefits such as generation of critically needed foreign exchange, employment creation and transfer of technology and knowledge.

He said at a time of continued global economic and financial vulnerability due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government of Sierra Leone, under the astute and transformational leadership of HE Dr Julius Maada Bio, has yet again proven its commitment to making Sierra Leone’s mines and minerals sector as one of the key pillars of our national development agenda.

Julius informed the gathering that the lack of quality, complete, reliable and readily available Geodata has seriously affected and weakened the Government of Sierra Leone’s ability to assess the grade, quality, quantity, depth, orientation size, shape, etc of its mineral resources and ore reserves in the areas under exploration and exploitation.

He continued that it is for such a reason that the Government of Sierra Leone, through the Ministry of Mines and Minerals Resources and the National Minerals Agency, commissioned a high-resolution Nationwide Airborne Geophysical Survey (using magnetic and radiometric sensors) covering the entire country during 2019 and 2020.

The NMA Boss acknowledged that the Survey was fully funded by the World Bank through its Extractive Industries Technical Assistance Project 2 (EITAP 2).

“The Sierra Leone Nationwide Airborne Geophysical Survey is the highest resolution countrywide magnetic and radiometric survey ever conducted in Africa with 150 m line spacing and nominal flight height of 50m above ground level,” he noted stating that the unprecedented level of subsurface detail provides unique opportunities for mineral exploration in a country already well known for its mineral wealth, but with untapped potential for modern minerals essential for transition to a green and low-carbon future.

He said the deliverables form the Survey are also useful in water resources management, including hydrogeology and geohydrology; agriculture and agrogeology; environmental management; geotechnical and engineering works; and urban planning, all of which ultimately assist in societal development.

“The deliverables from the Survey now form a critical component of our geological and mineral resource inventory and will be globally available, for an affordable fee, to the public and investment communities from early June 2021 via a bespoke online Sierra Leone Geoscience Portal and from the NMA Head Office in Freetown,” he stated.

The NMA Boss stated that Geodata are very important and strategic national assets and they are costly to acquire and challenging to store, manage and secure over a long period of time.

“Hence, we must invest in the mines and minerals sector and motivate, inspire and empower our young men and women with the relevant knowledge, skills, professionalism, attitude and integrity to govern, manage and administer Geodata and its management systems,” he admonished.

*(C) The Calabash Newspaper*