In the course of his visit to Kenya on the International Day of the UN Peacekeepers, on 29thMay, 2022, His Excellency the President, Dr. Julius Maada Bio gave special tributes to theKenyan military personnel who lost their lives whilst serving in the United NationsPeacekeeping Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL). Prominent among these peacekeeperswere: Late Corporal Jeremiah Obuya, Late Corporal Evans Kamande, late Private RobertWanyama and Late Private Khamis Yunis. PresidentBio offered a special prayer to the fallen soldiers by saying: “May Allah subhanahu wa ta-alagrant them forgiveness and eternal peace. May their souls and the souls of all the faithfuldeparted, through the mercy of God, Rest In Peace.”
The President continued on that note by saying: “On behalf of the nation ofSierra Leone, we eulogize their names with deep gratitude. We thank their families with great appreciation. We thank the nation ofKenya for offering the lives of those heroes for the sake of peace in Sierra Leone”. In another development, President Bio said: “Iam particularly pleased, as President of Sierra Leone, to be able to travel to Kenya and formally say ‘thank you’ to the commanders,officers, men and women of KENBATT contingents deployed to Sierra Leone”Also, President Bio expressed deep gratitude to the President and people of the Republicof Kenya for their great contributions in attaining the broader vision of the AU Agenda2063, adding that that agenda was working towards ‘an integrated, prosperous, andpeaceful Africa driven by its own citizens, representing a dynamic force in theinternational arena’.
On that note President Bio also said: “We can only make greatprogress towards the Sustainable Development Goals in a peaceful world wheremultilateralism, international cooperation, and international partnerships underlie ourevery effort. The contributions, voices, and views of 1.2 billion Africans must beconsidered in all such international dialogue.It is in that regard that we are pursuing the reform of the United Nations based on the African Common Position,” heconcluded. Reflecting on the history of the civil war in Sierra Leone, President Bio has always ensured his full participation in notonly joining other heads of states to commemorate the event but had also made sure that the Sierra Leonean arm forces participateas well in the UN peacekeeping programs across Africa.
In conclusion, President Bio being a past military officer himselfandsomebody that believes in peace, acknowledged the essence of global participation of the country’s armed forces to protectcivilians, to actively prevent conflict, to reduce violence, to strengthen securityand to empower national authorities to assume these responsibilities.THE INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR UN PEACEKEEPERS6BUSINESS FORUMIn a bid to market Sierra Leone to potential foreign investors, the Chief Minister ofthe Republic of Sierra Leone, Mr. Jacob Jusu Saffa, on Tuesday 31st May, 2022successfully presided over a Business Forum that constituted a number of eagerforeign investors ready to tap into Sierra Leone’s huge resources for wholesomeinvestment.
The Chief Minister in the midst of Kenyan Government officials, privateinvestors and other international organizations, presented key issues touching onthe very question of: Why invest in Sierra Leone?In his presentations, the Chief Minister, highlighted a range of reasons forinvestment opportunities from the country being a peaceful and democratic nationwith ideal atmosphere for international investment, to having an investor-mindedgovernment, to the strategic access to market via three hours flight to Nigeria, six hours to the United Kingdom andeleven hours to China respectively.
The Chief Minister also touched on Sierra Leone having a huge tourismpotential with rich heritage and culture; abundant arable land and favourable climate for farming; an eageryouthful population ready to work and fiscal and non-fiscal incentives for thorough investments. In a similar vein,the Minister of Trade, Dr. Edward Hinga Sandy, also highlighted all sectors for investment ranging frommanufacturing, agribusiness, technology and the mining sectors. All these presentations were well received bythose in the audience. The Minister of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, Dr. Memunatu B. Pratt, in her presentation,visibly brought out key steps that President Bio had taken to ensure that Sierra Leone becomes an ideal place forinvestment.
Key among them were these: repatriation of capital and profits guaranteed; constitutional protection against expropriation; investment guarantee agains noncommercialrisks; one-stop shop facilitation; periodicpresidential round tables with private sectors; digitization ofgovernment services; facilitative industrial zone program;political and macroeconomic stability; high labour productivity:a large pool of youthful, trainable and literate workforce; etc. TheTourism Minister concluded that Sierra Leone stands tall notonly within the sub-region of West Africa and the whole of Africabut also globally, as the best place for investments across allsectors.7
