Other News

Details: 14 September 2022

Mohamed Farrah Sesay, an indigene of Bambukoro Village, Sengbeh Chiefdom, Koinadugu District was declared wanted by their traditionalist, Karifa Thonronka, following his disappearance from the Poro Bush.

Details: 12 September 2022

The United States Ambassador to Sierra Leone, David Reimer, has disclosed that about seventeen (17) trained Peace Corps Health Volunteers will commence their operation in the country after they have undergone ten (10) weeks pre-service training. He disclosed that the health volunteers would be officially sworn in on Friday 9th September, 2022 at the Peace Corps training facility in Kambia.

Details: 01 July 2022

The Assistant UN Secretary-General (ASG) and UN Women Deputy Executive Director, Ms. Asa Regner, have said the United Nation's Women's Office is committed to supporting Sierra Leone in achieving Agenda 2030.

Sierra Leone has made tremendous strides to achieve gender parity, the Gender Minister, Manty Tarwallie, said to the visiting #UNWomen team during a bilateral meeting at her office yesterday, June 30th, 2022. A Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Policy (GEWE) is in place, however, more needs to be done to support the passing of the GEWE bill which has been tabled in parliament.

ASG/DED Regner said there is a need to galvanize resources to meet the desired expectations of the Ministry of Gender. “I am here because we want to show that we are dedicated to Sierra Leone, and we want to find ways to work with you." In the last few hours we have seen constructive thinking around Sierra Leone and gender equality, "said Asa Regner

Ms. Asa Regner also said that there is a huge gap between policies and reality. “Most countries in the world have a gap between legislation and reality, and we’ve increasingly learned how to support the closing of that gap.”

ASG/DED Regner said that there are great lessons in Sierra Leone in the engagement of boys and men, as well as whole families, in the prevention, protection, and providing justice for sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). Sexuality Education is also an important tool for girls to know their rights, she concluded.

Regional Director of West and Central Africa of UN Women, Oulimata Sarr said she is very hopeful that the government of Sierra Leone will support “we know Sierra Leone is going to provide representation and resources to the women talked about in the GEWE Bill and we were very pleased to see how the bill is addressing issues of representation, the issue of economic empowerment, the issue of education of the girls,” she added that this is as a result of the commitment handwork and dedication of the Gender Minister.

At a meeting in Parliament with the Speaker, the #UNWomen team highlighted the GEWE Bill, which they described as all-encompassing for the attainment of Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment in Sierra Leone.

“We are very hopeful that the bill, that is set before us will be passed. "We will be increasing the representation to 44 women as the bill requires that for every 2 males there should be a female representation," the Speaker of Parliament responded.

In a meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Professor David Francis said Sierra Leone is a small country with free quality education. He said that 2% of the GDP is invested in free quality education, and that's translated into 2.5 million children going to school.

AGS/DED said when women's rights are upheld and put into practice, and when they hold political positions and other authority, we can really assess that the difference is more legitimate and long-lasting because it is much more inclusive.

#UNWomen RD I come from a country where clarity has been made since 2012. Since 2012, the parliament has had 50% local government and that's why we believe that Senegal will be seen as a source of inspiration.

Less than 20% of elected seats in Sierra Leone are held by women, who make up 52% of the country's overall population. In comparison to males, their representation, visibility, involvement, and voice in elected and appointed posts are still quite low. Inadequate progressive legislation that protects and promotes participation for women; high levels of illiteracy, deeply ingrained traditions and practices; political violence and retaliation, lack of economic independence; and lack of confidence to run for public office are a few of these obstacles.

Details: 22 August 2022

On August 20, 2022, Omarion Koroma, a prominent youth activist and community organizer, was arbitrarily arrested by Sierra Leonean police in Freetown.

Details: 30 June 2022

The Assistant Secretary-General (ASG) of the United Nations and Deputy Executive Director (DED) of UN Women Asa Regner and Regional Director for West and Central Africa (WCARO) of UN Women Oulimata Sarr arrived in Sierra Leone through Gendema on the south-eastern Liberia-Sierra Leone border today, 29 June 2022. The team aims to strengthen and re-affirm UN Women's support toward the advancement of gender equality and empowerment of women and girls with a view to furthering advocacy and partnership in line with the development agenda of Sierra Leone and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

Braving the difficulties of traveling by road in Africa, ASG/DED Asa Regner‘s decision to travel by road from Liberia to Sierra Leone is her selfless expression and indication of the length she can go in addressing issues affecting women’s equality and empowerment.

Upon arrival, ASG/DED Asa Regner and team were received by the UN Women Sierra Leone Head of Office, Setcheme Jeromnime Mongbo, and team and made a stopover in Bo City.

In Bo City, the Deputy Executive Director of UN Women, Asa Regner, & Regional Director of West and Central Africa of UN Women, Oulimata Sarr, visited the Commit and Act Organisation to collaborate on survivor case studies and treatment for victims of #SGBV as part of government structures to prevent imprisonable crimes in support of GEWE. The Program Manager, Edmond Joebodie Brandon, is grateful to receive support from UN Women during the COVID-19 outbreak. Healthcare, livelihood capacity, psycho-social care, and shelters are made available to teenage mothers and victims of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) despite the organization’s mobility and infrastructural challenges.

“UN Women is committed to strengthening its existing partnerships to improve the quality of, and access to, comprehensive essential services for survivors of violence in Sierra Leone” ASG/DED Asa Regner said.

ASG/DED Asa Regner will meet with the President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Brigadier (Retired) Dr. Julius Maada Bio, the Vice President Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh, the Speaker of Parliament Dr. Abass Bundu, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Ministry of Gender and Children's Affairs and Finance, members of the Female Parliamentary Caucus, and the Statistician-General of Statistics Sierra Leone. Additionally, she will meet with members of the Diplomatic Corps and Heads of the International Financial Institutions (IFI), development partners, civil society organizations, women, and youth groups in Sierra Leone. ASG/DED Asa Regner will also pay a courtesy call on the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Sierra Leone, Dr. Babatunde Ahonsi (Ph.D.), attend a special United Nations Country Team meeting and host a townhall-styled engagement with the UN Women team in the country.

She will give a keynote address at the 10th Africa Conference on Sexual Health and Rights 2022 (ACSHR 2022) with a focus on the Generation Equality Forum and the European Union-United Nations Spotlight Initiative.

Links to biographies:

Assistant Secretary General Asa Regner:

https://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/directorate/ded-policy-programme-civil-society-and-intergovernmental-support

Ms. Oulimata Sarr: https://africa.unwomen.org/en/about-us/regional-directorate/wcaro-regional-director

For more information, please contact:

Patience Ekeoba: UN Women Programme Coordination Specialist; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; Cellphone +23276042732
Faisal Lewally: Assistant Coordinator; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; Cellphone: +23299520730
Yeama Sarah Thompson: Commissioned Communications Consultant; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; Cellphone + 232 79107752

About UN-Women: UN Women is the United Nations entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. A global champion for women and girls, UN Women was established to accelerate progress on meeting their needs worldwide. UN Women supports UN Member States as they set global standards for achieving gender equality and works with governments and civil society to design laws, policies, programmes, and services needed to ensure that the standards are effectively implemented and truly benefit women and girls worldwide. It works globally to make the vision of the SDGs a reality for women and girls and stands behind women's equal participation in all aspects of life, focusing on four strategic priorities:

Details: 06 July 2022

The Sierra Leone Police have declared over one hundred individuals wanted in connection with alleged same-sex activities, including SHEKU KAMARA and MOHAMED KOROMA. Reports indicate that the two men were discovered engaging in homosexual acts in the Goderich Peninsula area, located in the west end of Freetown. MOHAMED KOROMA was reportedly beaten to death following the incident.

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