Sierra Leone Monitor

Freetown, 5 August 2026 – Five Sierra Leonean fishermen were rescued from drowning after their boat sank in rough seas off the Freetown coast on Tuesday, 4 August, thanks to the quick action of a Chinese fishing vessel. The local boat was overwhelmed by heavy rain and rough waves during severe weather. The fishermen, who [...]

Parliament of Sierra Leone on Tuesday 04 August 2026 debated and approved the Tenth Report of the Committee on Appointments and Public Service, Chaired by the Leader of Government Business, Hon. Mathew Sahr Nyuma, confirming seven Presidential nominees to various state positions. The following Presiddntail Nominees were approved by Parliamrnt: 1. Ms. Isata Marah – [...]

The Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) has presented an ex gratia payment of Le75,000 to the family of the late Bureh Ganso Koroma, a former Mighty Blackpool FC midfielder, fulfilling a key recommendation from an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death. The payment, announced in a press release dated 4 August 2026 and [...]

KFAED Headquarters, Kuwait City – Acting Director-General of Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED), Mr. Rashaid A. Al-Bader, has reaffirmed the Fund’s commitment to supporting the proposed construction of a Cancer Centre (Diagnostic, Radiotherapy and Nuclear Medicine/Imaging) to improve specialised healthcare delivery in Sierra Leone. He made this disclosure during a meeting held with [...]

Freetown, August 2026 – The Government of Sierra Leone, in partnership with the World Food Programme (WFP), has officially launched the 2026/27 Feed Salone Home-Grown School Feeding Year, with 1,000 metric tonnes of locally produced rice already procured to feed schoolchildren and boost the domestic agricultural sector. The launch ceremony took place in Kissy, eastern [...]

The All People’s Congress (APC) has formally written to Statistics Sierra Leone expressing deep concern over what it calls repeated exclusion from key activities tied to the ongoing 2026 Population and Housing Census. In a letter dated 1 August 2026 and signed by National Secretary General Lansana Dumbuya, the main opposition party questioned the transparency [...]

Freetown, August 4, 2026 — The Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Segepoh Solomon Thomas, on Tuesday raised a serious alarm over the sharp increase in financial fraud linked mainly to the Orange mobile network and demanded urgent action from the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Technology. Speaker Thomas told the House that scammers appear more [...]

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has indicted Francis Lavai, a volunteer attached to the National Medical Supplies Agency (NMSA) warehouses at Fawaz Compound, Ferry Junction, and Mansaray Step, Devil Hole, both in Freetown, for misappropriation of public property. Lavai faces one count of misappropriation of public property contrary to Section 36(1) of the Anti-Corruption Act No. [...]

Freetown, 4 August 2026 – The Ministry of Employment, Labour and Social Security has issued a strong public warning after a document purporting to be an official government notice began circulating widely. The fake notice, dated 3 August 2026 and bearing the Ministry’s letterhead and coat of arms, claimed that the governments of Iceland, Latvia, [...]

By Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr Sierra Leone’s Constitutional Amendment Bill will soon be voted on by parliamentarians. As I have previously written, the significance of this vote cannot be overstated. In my opinion, the two most important clauses in the Bill are in respect of the electoral system and the threshold for winning presidential elections. Public [...]

The Ministry of Employment, Labour and Social Security has announced new overseas employment opportunities for Sierra Leoneans seeking work in Europe. According to a public notice dated 3 August 2026, the Governments of Iceland, Latvia, Italy, Luxembourg, Greece, Finland, Sweden and Poland have requested skilled and unskilled workers from Sierra Leone through the Ministry. The [...]

State House, Freetown – Monday, 3 August 2026- Sierra Leone’s President Dr. Julius Maada Bio on Monday received His Excellency President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema of the Gabonese Republic at State House in Freetown for high-level bilateral talks. The two leaders agreed to deepen cooperation in natural resources, agriculture, maritime security, trade and democratic governance, [...]

Freetown, 4 August 2026 – The Independent Elections Complaint Board (IECB) of the All People’s Congress (APC) has announced the timetable for hearing petitions arising from the party’s Constituency Executive elections conducted on 25 July 2026. In a notice dated 3 August 2026 and signed by IECB Secretary Osman Soura Kamara Esq., the Board stated [...]

Freetown, 3 August 2026 — Heavy rainfall lasting six to seven hours in the early hours of Monday triggered widespread flash flooding, severe erosion and slope collapses across several communities in Freetown, the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) said in an update. The Agency said low-lying and hillside communities were particularly affected. Field officers were [...]

Freetown – The Sierra Leone Road Safety Authority (SLRSA) has announced strict new measures to decongest the Queen Elizabeth II Quay and improve the free movement of people and goods through the Port. In a public notice dated 31st July 2026, the Authority said the steps form part of the Government of Sierra Leone’s ongoing [...]

Freetown – Petrol and diesel prices have gone up across Sierra Leone with effect from Monday, 3 August 2026, the Ministry of Information and Civic Education has announced. Following a review of the petroleum pricing formula by the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Trade and Industry and Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs), the new pump [...]

Freetown — Speaker of Parliament Rt. Hon. Segepoh Solomon Thomas has ordered two Members of Parliament out of the Chamber for conduct deemed contrary to the rules of parliamentary proceedings during ongoing debates on the Constitution of Sierra Leone (Amendment) Bill, 2025. The MPs affected are Hon. Ibrahim Barrie of the opposition All People’s Congress [...]

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone – The Board of Directors of the Sierra Leone Bar Association (SLBA) has called an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) for Thursday, 6 August 2026, to deal with the governance crisis that followed the disruption of its Annual General Meeting. The AGM, set for 31 July to 1 August at the Freetown International [...]

Freetown, Sierra Leone – 3 August 2026 – The preliminary investigation into the alleged US$210,000 gold fraud case involving 45-year-old Admire Frances Bio Jalloh and 42-year-old Dauda Jalloh, alias Alhaji Dausy, was on Monday adjourned after the driver attached to the complainants testified and was cross-examined before Magistrate Mustapha Brima Jah of Pademba Road Magistrate [...]

Freetown — The leadership of the All People’s Congress (APC) has reaffirmed its full support for the party’s Members of Parliament as the House continues deliberations on the Constitution of Sierra Leone (Amendment) Bill, 2025. In a statement issued on Monday, 3 August 2026, the APC National Publicity Secretariat said the party’s leadership had gathered [...]

A devastating flood struck the Majay Town, Femi Turner community in Sierra Leone on Sunday night (around early February 2026), displacing several families and causing extensive damage to homes and property. Heavy rainfall triggered widespread flooding across the area. An eyewitness, Ibrahim Bangura, told AYV News that a fence collapsed during the storm and allegedly [...]

Freetown– Vice President Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh has described the Proportional Representation (PR) electoral system as one of the most widely accepted models worldwide, arguing that it promotes inclusive representation and ensures all segments of society have a voice in governance. Speaking on the merits of PR during recent government engagements with the opposition All [...]

The Sierra Leone Civil Aviation Authority (SLCAA) has strongly rejected social media reports claiming that a large quantity of illicit drugs was intercepted on a Brussels Airlines aircraft at Freetown International Airport (Lungi) on Thursday, 30 July 2026. In an official press release, the Authority described the circulating claims as “false and baseless.” It stated [...]

Freetown, August 2, 2026 – The Honourable Vice President Dr Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh this afternoon graciously received His Excellency Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, President of the Gabonese Republic, upon his arrival at Freetown International Airport (Lungi). President Oligui Nguema is in Sierra Leone for a three-day Official State Visit (2–4 August 2026) at the invitation [...]

Freetown — The Ministry of Tourism and Cultural Affairs has officially confirmed Jamaican dancehall star Busy Signal as the headliner for the second edition of the One Nation Reggae Festival, set for 25–30 November 2026. The announcement marks a major boost for the growing cultural event, which builds on the success of the inaugural festival [...]

Young Sierra Leonean graduates now have a strong chance to gain top-level regional work experience. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has opened applications for its 2027 Young Graduates Immersion Programme. This is a one-year, fully paid professional placement in ECOWAS institutions and agencies. The call was published on 31 July 2026. ECOWAS [...]

Freetown, August 1, 2026 – The third group of third-country nationals (TCNs) deported from the United States under the controversial Third Country National Agreement (TCNA) landed at Freetown International Airport on Friday, 31 July 2026. The arrival brings the total number of people received under the deal to 32. The latest contingent consisted of 10 [...]

A 41-year-old Sierra Leonean, Joseph Bockarie, has been arrested by the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA) at the Tienii Checkpoint in Grand Cape Mount County, Liberia. LDEA officers say they discovered 37 boxes of Tapentadol/Tramadol hidden inside a blue Mazda5 vehicle with Sierra Leone registration BAB-948. The seized drugs are valued at approximately LRD$925,000 (about [...]

The governance dispute rocking the Sierra Leone Bar Association (SLBA) has taken a new turn after presidential aspirant Martina Baindu Egbenda and her team issued a strongly worded statement, while the Association’s Board of Directors announced an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) to deal with the fallout from the disrupted Annual General Meeting (AGM). In a [...]

President Julius Maada Bio has visited the Torma Bum Rice Project in Bonthe District to assess progress under the Government’s flagship Feed Salone Initiative. During the visit on 31 July 2026, the President described the project as a significant milestone in Sierra Leone’s drive towards food security and sovereignty. He highlighted large-scale cultivation of rice [...]

By Sahr Morris Jr., Press Attaché & Eric Batilo J. Fomba Sierra Leone made history on Thursday with its first ever participation in Track Cycling at the Commonwealth Games, and UAE-based cyclist Ibrahim S. Jalloh put Africa on top in the Men’s 4000m Individual Pursuit. Jalloh clocked 5:10.00 in Heat 1, defeating Ghana’s Mohamed F. [...]

FREETOWN — The Parliament of Sierra Leone on Friday, 31 July 2026, intensely debated and passed into law the Supplementary Appropriation Act 2026, aimed at revising budget provisions for government services in the current financial year to support national development. Minister of Finance Sheku Fantamadi Bangura told lawmakers that the government remains committed to strengthening [...]

Freetown, Sierra Leone — The Sierra Leone Roads Authority (SLRA) has announced the immediate closure of the Old Railway Line Bridge at Brookfields, Freetown, effective Saturday, August 1, 2026. In a press release issued on Thursday, 30 July 2026, the authority said the decision follows a recent experts’ inspection that revealed significant deterioration of critical [...]

Accra, Ghana — Sierra Leone has etched its name into African table tennis history after 17-year-old Naomi Coker secured a bronze medal in the Under-19 Girls’ Singles at the 2026 ITTF Africa Youth Championships. Coker, competing in her debut for Sierra Leone, reached the semi-finals of the U19 Girls’ Singles event held at the Borteyman [...]

Freetown, Sierra Leone – 31 July 2026 Twenty-five brand-new Golden Dragon buses have been cleared from the Queen Elizabeth II Quay and moved to a bus terminal in Freetown, APC presidential aspirant Sheikh Alhaji Mohamed Omodu Kamara, popularly known as Jagaban, announced Friday. The fleet consists of 15 Golden Dragon XML6122J35Y units and 10 XML6722J18 [...]

By: ALIMAMY LAHAI KAMARA President Julius Maada Bio is set to receive his colleague President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema of the Republic of Gabon. His state visit is due on 2nd of August 2026. This marks a growing strength of the bilateral relation between the two countries. In December 2020, President Bio visited Gabon where [...]

Freetown, 31 July 2026 — Lawyers gathered for the Sierra Leone Bar Association’s (SLBA) long-delayed Annual General Meeting were ordered to return home on Friday after police blocked access to the Bintumani International Conference Centre (also known as the Freetown International Conference Centre) in Aberdeen and the event was called off. Assistant Inspector General Sylvester [...]

Dutch drug trafficker Jos Leijdekkers, better known as “Bolle Jos,” has been sentenced in absentia to 14 years in prison by a Belgian court for his leading role in the major Costa cocaine case — the heaviest sentence handed down on Thursday. Prosecutors had sought 15 years. The ruling adds to a string of convictions [...]

Nineteen Sierra Leonean nationals have been convicted and sentenced in The Gambia after admitting they unlawfully occupied a private compound in Brusubi, West Coast Region. The Lower West Coast Region Task Force arrested the group on Tuesday, 28 July 2026, following a tip-off from a member of the public about suspicious activities at an uncompleted [...]

Freetown, 31 July 2026 — The Office of the Clerk of Parliament has announced that the next sitting of the Parliament of Sierra Leone will take place today, Friday 31 July 2026, at 10:00 a.m. in the Chamber of Parliament. Lawmakers are scheduled to consider The Supplementary Act, 2026, which seeks to appropriate additional funds [...]

Koidu City, Kono District — High Court Judge Justice Santigie Sorie Bangura has sentenced Amos Aiah Daniel to a record 215 years in prison after convicting him of conspiracy, murder and wounding with intent in the rape and killing of a child. Daniel’s mother, Theresa Konomanyie, received 15 years for conspiracy but was cleared of [...]

Freetown, July 29, 2026 — The Chief Minister of Sierra Leone, Dr. David Moinina Sengeh, on Wednesday conducted an inspection of restoration works at the historic Old Fourah Bay College building in Cline Town. He was accompanied by the Minister and Deputy Minister of Higher and Technical Education, the Deputy Minister of Water Resources, and [...]

Glasgow, Scotland – Sierra Leone’s leading female boxer Josefien Betist has vowed to bounce back after a hard-fought split decision loss to England’s Lucy Kings-Wheatley in the women’s 60kg quarter-finals at the 2026 Commonwealth Games. The bout on Tuesday evening at the SEC Centre ended 3-2 on the judges’ scorecards in favour of the Acocks [...]

Freetown, 30 July 2026 — The Sierra Leone Police (SLP) has announced that applications for Police Clearance Certificates are now processed entirely online through the government’s WanGov digital platform. In a public notice issued today, the SLP said members of the public can apply from any location with internet access by visiting www.wan.gov.sl. The move [...]

Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) President Babadi Kamara has inspected the ongoing construction of a modern 435-seater pavilion at the SLFA Football Academy (also known as the Technical Centre) in Kingtom, Freetown. The visit reaffirmed his commitment to upgrading football facilities across the country. The pavilion is a personal initiative fully funded by Kamara [...]

The Minister of Planning and Economic Development, Madam Kenyeh Barlay, Statistician-General Andrew Bob Johnny, and UNFPA Country Representative Kunle Adeniyi on Tuesday led a high-level joint monitoring visit to the ongoing 2026 Mock Population and Housing Census household enumeration exercise in Hill Station, Freetown. Accompanied by senior government officials, UNFPA representatives and Statistics Sierra Leone [...]

Freetown, Sierra Leone – 29 July 2026 The University of Sierra Leone has announced that its online application portal for the 2026/2027 academic session will open on Monday, 3 August 2026. The portal will accept applications for undergraduate and postgraduate programmes tenable at Fourah Bay College (FBC), the Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM), [...]

Freetown, July 29, 2026 — Attorney General and Minister of Justice Alpha Sesay Esq. has described the Constitution of Sierra Leone (Amendment) Bill, 2025 as a landmark opportunity to embed gender equality in the country’s supreme law and permanently strengthen women’s political participation. Delivering a Ministerial Statement in Parliament on Tuesday, Sesay updated lawmakers and [...]

Former President Ernest Bai Koroma paid a courtesy call on Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the State House in Abuja on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, to thank Nigeria for its steadfast friendship, solidarity and support. The meeting took place just days after Koroma participated in the ECOWAS Mid-Year Statutory Meetings and the 69th Ordinary [...]

The Presidential Hajj Task Force has officially opened registration for Sierra Leoneans seeking to perform the 2027 Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, with the cost set at US$7,000 per pilgrim. According to the Task Force, prospective pilgrims have until Friday, October 30, 2026, to complete the registration process. Applicants are required to personally collect registration [...]