Meet Micheala Deprince Sierra Leonean Ballerina Dancer

Micheala Deprince

Michaela DePrince was born in Sierra Leone in 1995 during the civil war. At age three, she lost both her parents and was sent to an orphanage where she was mistreated by staff who believed she was the “devil’s child” due to her pigmented skin (caused by vitiligo). She and her best friend were adopted by an American couple when they were four. In 2011 DePrince starred in the ballet documentary First Position, and she is now a professional ballerina with the Dutch National Ballet. She has just published her memoir.

You co-wrote your memoir with your mother [Elaine DePrince], who kept notes of all the traumatic memories you told her of Sierra Leone when you were growing up. How did you find reliving those experiences?

The first time I ever talked about my story, it was very difficult to recover… I’m so happy my mum was involved – she was smart to write it all down when I was little. If I’d had to relive everything for the book it would have been a lot harder.

Why did you write your memoir?

It was a therapeutic outlet and a way for me to reach out to other people. When I went to South Africa [to perform with the South African Ballet Theatre], I shared my story with a few high-school kids and realised it could really have an impact. It inspired me to think differently about myself – I always wanted to be a role model and to let people know that it’s OK to dream and to live for something.

You must be thrilled with the response the book has had.

I’ve had adults emailing me, kids emailing me… It means so much that my book helped them in some way. Laverne Cox, the actress in Orange Is the New Black, tweeted me saying how inspirational I was to her. Of course, you have to act really casual, even though I was thinking ‘Oh my God I love you so much!’ She’s a transgender person, and some people don’t support that, so she’s the inspiration – I feel like I haven’t really done anything.

Are you a fan of Orange Is the New Black?

I love that show. I love TV and movies – anything that can help me stop thinking about dancing for a bit, because it can really take over your mind. It’s mentally and physically exhausting.

You moved to Amsterdam in 2013 to join the Dutch National Ballet. I read that you’re learning Dutch…

Kind of – it’s very hard. I can count to 10, I know the alphabet, how to say hello and order coffee, and that’s about it. Right now I’m focusing more on dancing.

What are you working on at the moment?

Right now we’re working on Jewels. After that we’re going to be doing Swan Lake, Back to Bach, Cinderella, and travelling to St Petersburg, London, Hong Kong, and touring Holland – it’s a busy year. They’re giving me amazing opportunities hereWhat is the main difference between living in Europe and the US?

Europe is great, especially for dance. It’s a lot more accepting than the US – there I struggled with the fact that I was black and there weren’t a lot of black dancers at the studio with me. Although in the US, at least I could look up to [other black ballerinas] Misty Copeland or Lauren Anderson.

Is there any sign of the racial bias in ballet changing?

I’m hoping it is, but I don’t see it happening. There’s a dancer [Precious Adams] who was at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow – they told her to bleach her skin. She’s now doing very well at the English National Ballet, but often you look around, and there are no black dancers. Classical ballet is beautiful, but it’s very old..

What, in your opinion, needs to be done to change that?

When I was a child, I overheard one of my directors saying ‘we don’t put a lot of effort into the black girls, because they end up getting fat’. I want people [in ballet] to realise that not everybody is the same – you don’t know how our bodies are going to turn out.

Do you ever get bored answering questions about being a black ballerina?

No. There are practically no black people in ballet, so I need to speak out.

In your memoir, you and your sister Mia [DePrince’s best friend from the orphanage] talk about not feeling ready to return to Sierra Leone. Do you still feel like that?

There are little scars still, and those need to heal before I can go, so that I don’t have to worry that when I go back to the US or to Amsterdam I’ll have nightmares. You have to make sure that you’re 100% ready to deal with something that you’ve always been terrified of.

You wrote in the book ‘when I’m older I’d like to start a free arts school in Sierra Leone, and teach ballet there’.

That would be amazing – I’d like to use the money we earn from this book to open the school. It’ll have to be when I retire from dancing. The arts can change you as a person. Dancing helped me share my emotions and connect to my family, it helped me feel like I was special and not the “devil’s child”. Those kids won’t have the same opportunities I had, and I don’t think they deserve that.

Your parents have had 11 children, nine of whom they adopted. Would you ever consider adoption?

I’d love kids of my own, but if that’s not possible I’d definitely adopt. The fact that it’s becoming so hard to adopt kids from all over the world is so sad. I wouldn’t be alive today if I hadn’t been adopted. I met Angelina Jolie at Women in the World in 2013; she’s adopted so many kids and I think that’s wonderful – it’s horrible that people were so negative about it.

You’ve become a poster girl for many things: international adoption, black women in classical ballet, the American dream… Is that a lot of responsibility?

It is. Sometimes I think, what happens if I never become the dancer I’ve always wanted to be, and people are disappointed? But at the same time I like being a role model, and when I see that I’ve inspired young people to dance, especially young black dancers, that’s amazing for me.

UKaid/eHealth Africa hands over 117 alert system to Health Ministry

Deputy Health and Sanitation Minister Madam Madina Rahman has said that the 117 is symbolic to the emergency response and was a successful tool that contributes to curbing the Ebola Virus Disease outbreak in Sierra Leone.

Speaking during the handing over and re-launch of 117 health alert system by UKaid/eHealth Africa to the Ministry of Health and Sanitation at the Public Health National Emergency Operations Centre, Cockerill Barracks at Wilkinson Road in Freetown, Madam Madina Rahman described the event as another beginning for the Health Ministry.

Moving forward on the Ministry of Health and Sanitation priorities as a sustainable public health tool, the Deputy Minister informed her audience that the vision is to prevent public health threats and death while promoting the health of the people of Sierra Leone through the use of the 117 public health hotline.

Madam Rahman stated that the short to medium term goal is to use the 117 to strengthen the national disease and mortality surveillance system including surveillance of maternal and child deaths, suspicious infectious cases in communities and health facilities.

She reiterated that the 117 is now a robust surveillance system put in place for the reporting of public health events or threats by the general public including health workers for further investigation and action by the team of health officials.

The Deputy Minister disclosed that the implementation of the vision calls for cooperation and collaboration from the people to make it a success, and stated that contrary to public understanding that 117 is not an Ebola line, but a public health hotline now used to support the health sector’s priorities in promoting the health of the people.

She expressed gratitude to UK for the investments in the system over the past three years and their support of development, and thanked CDC Foundation and the World Bank for their ongoing support of the Ministry’s agenda in transitioning 117 into a sustainable long term tool.

British High Commissioner to Sierra Leone, Guy Warrington said the United Kingdom government committed a total of 427 million Pounds to ending the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone.

British High Commissioner to Sierra Leone, Guy Warrington

He said as part of a 13.7 million pounds package of support to the Ebola Response Consortium, the UK government has been supporting the 117, adding that with UK funding more than 300 dispatchers and operators were trained to take calls. He added that at the height of the Ebola crisis, they were receiving an average of 6,000 alerts of suspicious deaths and sickness per week, and dispatching these to district to ensure timely and coordinated action.

The Deputy Chief Medical Officer II and chairman for the ceremony, Dr. Amara Jambai underscored the importance of the 117, adding that it was critical during the Ebola outbreak for reporting suspected deaths.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer II, Dr. Amara Jambai

He said it was one of the most powerful community engagement tools during the time and showed them the commitment of the community towards helping the country fight the deadly disease.

Other highlights include statements by the Deputy Country Director, eHealth Africa, Dayo Spencer-Walters and Centre for Disease Control (CDC) representative, Dr. Reinhard Kaiser.

An official opening and conducted tour of the new 117 centre formed high point of the event

Save The Date For African Fashion Week In London (AFWL) 2017

Over 100 African fashion designers and exhibitors will feature at the 7th edition of Africa Fashion Week between Aug.11, 2017 and Aug.12, 2017 at the Grand hall of the Freemasons in London. Ronke Ademiluyi, founder, Africa Fashion Week Nigeria/London on Wednesday disclosed that the event would be an exhibition of the African fashion whose creations had become unique designs and brands. She said that the designers and exhibitors would be coming from Ghana, Togo, Kenya, South Africa, Congo, Tanzania, Mozambique, Senegal, Uganda and Cameroon.“Some Nigerian designers that will, also, be participating include: Signature Secret, Neopele, Lady Biba, Step Up, Sheila Black Style, House of Bo and Joela Bags.“The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), will lead a delegation of Nigeria’s best emerging designers that will also be accompanied by the Council’s catwalk show,” she said. Ademiluyi also said that 10,000 guests are expected to grace the two-day show at the Freemasons Hall in London to be entertained by 60 catwalk shows with daily exhibitions.

“This year’s show will hold in two days; with five shows, that will have 60 designers on the catwalk, along 40 exhibitors,” she said Ademiluyi said that the African show would be part of activities to promote African fashion before the international community.“Africa Fashion Week London, a sister event to the just concluded Africa Fashion Week Nigeria, is a celebration of African designs, talents and diverse ethnic fashions in the United Kingdom (UK).“It is going to be a celebration of African designs, talents and the diverse ethnic influences that contribute to the development of fashion industry in the UK.“Samson So boye, an established London-based fashion stylist and a creative director behind the brand `Afro chic’ who has worked as a freelance stylist for publications will be our head stylist for AFWL 2017 .

 She said that since the debut of the programme in 2011, it had been identifying and promoting new and emerging designers inspired by the rich culture of Africa and contemporary designs. The princess said that AFWL had become Europe’s largest event for African and African inspired fashion. Ademiluyi said that the show was conceived at promoting new and emerging designers that were inspired by the rich African culture incorporated into contemporary designs. She said that AFWL had become the platform through which designers boost their creativity in African fashion at international markets, as well as the nation’s tourism industry. Ademiluyi, founder of Africa Fashion Week London/Nigeria, said that Africans should appreciate what they had and make efforts to promote them to the rest of the world. The 2017 Africa Fashion Week, Nigeria organised in conjunction with the Lagos State Government, in April and June, showcased the nation’s iconic pride with the theme: “ Celebrating the vibrant Pulse of Africa”.

Royal Air Maroc (RAM) and Sierra Princess have joined forces to Help passengers traveling to Lungi Airport from Freetown.

Royal Air Maroc (RAM) and Sierra Princess have joined forces aid passengers traveling to Lungi Airport from Freetown. Now, when you buy an airline ticket with Royal Air Maroc, they will include a complimentary water taxi ticket with the Sierra Princess ferry.
In an interview with Musayeroh Barrie, the Country Director of Westminster, who owns Sierra Princess, said they started operations last December and they have been gradually developing the ferry service.
“Because of the quality of service we provide, the spacious area we operate at in the Government Wharf with a spacious car park, Royal Air Maroc thought it fit to partner with us for the next two months to see if we can continue the standard so that we can have a permanent relationship in the future.”
Barrie averred that the ferry is a 40-seater with enough space for luggage and to stretch your legs. She said all those who have travelled once with their boat have positive comments and they will always travel with them again.
“I know that it is difficult for Sierra Leoneans to come out of their comfort zone. Most of them have been travelling with other providers, but I urge you all to make a try and work with us for the first time so you can make your judgment.”
Miss Barrie said they will be bringing another ferry by end of July called Sierra Duchess. She said the coming of that boat is to strengthen their position as they want to start operating water taxis in the future.
An official at Royal Air Maroc, said, “Yes, they have an agreement with Sierra Princess and they hope it will be a positive one that they will continue for a long time.”

Lebanese community donates cleaning supplies

The Lebanese community, on Friday 23 June 2017, donated supplies to Operation Clean Freetown.
Handling over of cleaning equipment and food worth Le50 million at the YSC Complex at Wilkinson Road, Alie Colisee, Treasurer, Lebanese Community, said, “The donation is an effort by the community to improve on waste management in Freetown.”
“We are aware that the work is being done by community volunteers and we therefore sought the need that providing wheelbarrows, shovels, lake, head-pans will not be enough and we therefore consider in providing food for the volunteers.” Colisee added.
“If Sierra Leone is to be clean, health and safe, it has to be done by us and the community is in support of such drive.” Colisee stated.
The President’s Recovery Priorities representative, Yvonne Aki-Sawyer, said, “The objective of the initiative in reducing the risk of epidemics by improving solid waste management in the city.”
“We are targeting a Ward per day within the urban area,” Aki-Sawyer said. The intensive cleaning exercise will also target households to subscribe to the compulsory regular paid waste collection from youth groups within the community to ensure effective cleaning at all times.
Aki-Sawyer further commented the enforcement of bye-laws to achieve the objective of the initiative and encouraged Sierra Leoneans to keep their communities clean.

UNFPA supports midwives and helps mend health system

When World Health Organization (WHO) declared Sierra Leone Ebola-free over a year ago the country had already suffered over 3,900 deaths. Ebola killed over 200 health workers in Sierra Leone, including 56 midwives.
Fear and stigma plagued the healthcare system, especially reproductive health care. This left thousands of women and girls without maternal health and family planning services.
UNFPA and the Government of Sierra Leone are working to restore access to reproductive healthcare. “Before Ebola, we had limited midwives,” said Margaret Mannah-Macarthy, a UNFPA midwifery expert, “and now we have even fewer.” UNFPA is now supporting midwifery schools in Freetown and Makeni, which are expected to graduate 80 to 90 students, every year.Midwives from these schools will be able to provide a full range of services for pregnant women, from antenatal care and safe deliveries to postnatal care. They will also be trained to provide reproductive health services to the broader community, including neonatal care, family planning counseling, and diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted infections.
Some midwives are also eager to do community outreach. “I want to help communities to be less fearful about coming to the hospital,” said Jeneba Sia Bundo, a 29-year old midwifery student.At the National Midwifery School, one of the UNFPA-supported institutions, training will now exceed the rigorousness of the previous curriculum.“The Ebola virus highlighted some serious gaps and deficiencies in the curriculum that we teach the midwives,” Dr. Joan Shepherd, the school’s principal, told UNFPA

EDSA Commences Distribution of 5000 Meters

Electricity is probably one of the biggest major constraints Sierra Leone is facing, says Parminder Brar, World Bank Country Manager. “85% of Sierra Leone’s population does not have access to electricity,” Brar stated.
Improving the country’s energy sector is one of the foremost development objectives that government and international donors should be working to address. On Saturday, 24 June 2017, the Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) started the distribution of over 5,000 pre-paid metres. According to Mally Bangura, EDSA officer in charge of meter distribution, the distribution is to ensure functional, effective, national electricity distribution and supply.
Bangura further noted that 1,500 meters will be distributed in Lungi, Makeni, Bo and Kenema to increase access to electricity in rural communities. “Improving access and quality power supply in provincial districts,” Bangura said, “is critical in enhancing the country’s economic transformative drive.”
“Access to electricity is essential because electricity support economic activities create employments and currently the demand for energy in Sierra Leone increases, the distribution of metres is to combat the challenge of demand and also a way of connecting communities and creating a friendly environment for more investment and household use,” Bangura stated.

Sierra Leone and democratic accountability- A Must Read

Sierra Leone is one of the poorest countries in the world, public service provision is weak, and ethnicity is highly predictive of how people vote. The All People’s Congress wins seats in the North where Temnes predominate, while the Sierra Leone People’s Party wins seats in the South, the traditional homeland of Mendes.

Information is also scarce. In the rural areas where the study was conducted, 70% of the population had never been to school, 30% had no radio (TV and newspapers are extremely rare), just 3% knew how much money MPs are given to spend in their constituencies, and less than half could tell who was the incumbent. What’s more, there is no requirement for MPs to disclose how they spend the money they are given for their constituency so there is no information to fill out an MP report card.

Bringing electoral debates to rural voters

During the 2012 election, Search for Common Ground—an NGO with a local reputation for independent news coverage—organised debates between candidates for MPs in 14 constituencies. Candidates were asked about their priority for government spending, how they would spend their constituency funds, as well as their positions on topical policy issues. These debates were videotaped in the common national language, Krio, and a mobile cinema took the videos on a tour of local communities, often screening them on the external wall of a local school at night. Hundreds of people would crowd around and watch the debate screening, which was translated into local languages. In total, roughly 19,000 people watched the debates in the weeks before the election.

To evaluate the impact of the videotaped debates on voting, the mobile cinema visited 112 villages, randomly picked from a list of 224. People in all 224 villages were then surveyed on or just after election day.

The findings

1) Voter knowledge

Substantial impacts were found on voters’ knowledge about MP candidates and their policy positions thanks to the debates. People in the villages where debates had been screened were more likely to be able to name the candidates, know which one was more educated, who was the incumbent, and how much money MPs were given to spend. Knowledge of policy positions taken by candidates improved dramatically too: for example, 29% could name the first priority for spending by the SLPP candidate in debate areas, compared to 14% in the control villages.

2) Voter decision making

Voters were more likely to vote for someone who had the same policy priorities as they did. In addition, the candidate who was seen to have performed best in the debate got five percentage points more of the vote in debate villages than nondebate villages. Who performed better was determined by asking the audience at debate screenings as well as an independent panel of experts. There was striking agreement between the two groups about who was the best performer.

3) Voting patterns: Charisma or information

To understand what voters are responding to, another experiment was performed where some individuals were given only part of the information coming from the debates. In 40 large villages, individuals were randomly picked to watch the full debate on tablets. Others saw only the “getting to know you” introductory questions. This meant they could see which candidate had charisma but they learned nothing about their policies. A final group heard a “just the facts” summary of the debate. They did not hear the candidates themselves but learned about their policy positions and experience. In a survey at election time, all three groups knew more about the candidates’ qualities, such as their level of education, than the control group. Those who watched the debate on tablet or heard just the facts summary also knew more about the candidates’ policy positions. Only those who watched the debate, however, changed how they voted. Therefore, getting to know a candidate on its own and facts on their own are not enough, only the combination of the two changed voting patterns.

4) Informed voting and electoral accountability

Our results suggest that debates change the behaviour of politicians in office. Because the debates were held in 14 constituencies, randomly chosen from a list of 28, we could tell how participating in a debate changes performance. A survey team asked MPs how they spent the money given to them for their constituency, and then went to the constituency to find evidence of that spending. If the MP said they had paid school fees, the survey team asked the school principal how much of the fees had been paid. If the MP said they paid for road repairs, the community was questioned about how much was spent on the repairs and receipts requested. In treatment constituencies, evidence was found of two and a half times more money being spent than in control constituencies.

Don’t give up on democracy, improve it

When voters know little about the responsibilities and actions of elected officials it is not surprising that politicians under-deliver. But we should not give up on democracy. Instead we should find ways for voters to learn about their representatives. Debates appear to be an effective way for voters who may be illiterate and live in societies without freedom of information laws, to learn about politicians. Once voters are better informed, politicians may behave better.

source- Voxdev

When will Sierra Leone be able to feed itself?

When will Sierra Leone start feeding itself, is the question many in the country have been asking for decades, and successive governments have failed to provide the answer. Over 80% of basic foods consumed in Sierra Leone ae imported from abroad, costing hundreds of millions of dollars every year. And the cost keeps rising.

According to a recent World Food Programme report, majority of people in Sierra Leone are at a very high risk of starvation and malnutrition. This worrying report comes after ten years of president Koroma’s promise to ensure that no one goes to bed hungry.

The previous SLPP government was heavily criticised for failing to achieve its manifesto pledge on national food security. Today, the ruling APC government of president Koroma has proved to be no better.

source- Seirra Leone Telegraph 

The National Electoral Commission (NEC) has Embarked on five days meeting with stakeholders on New Boundaries

The National Electoral Commission (NEC) is visiting the districts for five days to discuss the new boundaries created by the Province Act Cap 60 of 2017, that was passed into law on the 13 March 2017.
The Director of External Relations and Media, Albert Massaquoi, said this is the second round of district stakeholders engagements on the Constituency and Ward boundary delimitation. “It is called second round because, earlier in July -August of last year, a validation of the Constituency and Wards was also done”.
This engagement was done based on the existing 14 electoral districts and four regions that have changed. “We are now talking about 16 electoral districts including Falaba and Karina districts and five regions including the North West and the other chiefdoms which are now added to the 149 chiefdoms”.
Massaquoi said, “The addition of these two districts means an addition of councillors, MPs, District Council Chairs and Mayors, so we are going to have Districts Council chairs for Falaba and Karene districts and Mayor for Port Loko.”
Stakeholders included: Paramount Chiefs, CSOs, Political Parties, women and youth groups and the media. The NEC Director of External Relations, said, “So far, there is mixed reactions, especially when NEC has done earlier engagements on the previous constituencies and ward boundary delimitation”.
There is mixed feelings since it has to do with new boundaries. “We still maintain the record of 132 seats but because of the rearrangement of some of the chiefdoms, Constituencies and Wards there is a concern. Some think it favours some while some think it does not favour them as they believed that it is against the wish they had earlier hoped for”.
Elections will be held nine months from now, in March 2018. Massaquoi said they will be ready.
Since the Instrument of Constituency and Boundary Limitation was kicked out of Parliament, Albert Massaquoi, said “We have met with the office of the Attorney General and a sub-committee was set up. We want to ensure that by the 7th of September, that is exactly six months to elections, we would have completed all work relating to elections”.
“By the end of June, we should have completed this engagement so by the 30th we would have completed the report and present it to the AG who will then table it in Parliament before their recess on the 13th July, so when it is approved it becomes a legal documents”.
BM/22/6/17
By Betty Milton
Friday June 23, 2017.

Check Out Zainab Sheriff Official Music video singles "Mamie Na Power" and "Naughty" ft Emmerson

Sacked Sierra Leone VP asks for $ 210 million and reinstatement

 

By Umaru Fofana

Lawyers for Samuel Sam-Sumana have completed filing their case at the ECOWAS Court in Abuja challenging his sacking in March 2015 as Vice President of Sierra Leone.  They are led by Ghanaian lawyer Dr. Raymond Akongburo ATUGUBA and prominent Nigerian lawyer Femi Falana

In a 25-page application, the lawyers are asking the Ecowas Court to order Sierra Leone to pay their client $ 210 million in damages and legal cost. They also want him reinstated as Vice President of Sierra Leone. 

They say his removal from office, the appointment of current Vice President Victor Bockarie Foh and the ruling by the Supreme Court upholding his dismissal should be declared “illegal, null and void”. 

In the detailed submission which catalogues the events leading to those dramatic events in March 2015 when he was first expelled from his ruling APC party and then sacked as VP, they argue that due process was not respected. 

 

The application says Sam-Sumana’s rights were violated including his personal safety and security, participation in government, and even his dignity. They also say Sierra Leone failed to provide an effective remedy accusing the country's Supreme Court, which justified the president's action to sack him, of denying him to "exhaustively present his case". 

Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Joseph Kamara says they've been notified about the matter by the registry of the Ecowas Court but that they are yet to receive the document hence cannot comment on it the substance of the matter. He however says that they are "willing and ready" to defend the action of the President any time, anywhere. 

Sam-Sumana was expelled from the ruling All People’s Congress party in March 2015 and accused of lying about his faith and educational qualification. he was also accused of anti-party activities.

He has been living out of Sierra Leone for exactly one year. 

This is the third time Sierra Leone has been brought before the ECOWAS Court under Ernest Bai Koroma’s presidency. 

Lebanese businessman, Mohamed Wanza sought redress over a questionable gunboat deal he went into with the NPRC junta. A former police officer Mohamed El-Tayyib Bah also challenged his dismissal from the force. Both men won by default after the government failed to represent itself. 

While the government obliged the outcome of Wanza’s ruling by paying for his gunboat, it is yet to do so in the case of the police officer for whom the court asked a financial compensation. 

Maseray Zelda Swarray is the crowned Miss International Africa in the Miss International 2016

 

Congratulations to our beautiful sister Maseray Zelda Swarray is the crowned Miss International Africa in the Miss International 2016  held in Tokyo, Japan. 👸🏾👸🏾👸🏾 🇸🇱🇸🇱🇸🇱

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#InspiringWomen #saloneonline #sierraleone #missinternational2016 #maserayzeldasawarray #ilovesalone #teamsalone 

 

Keystone Bank At The Sierra-Leone Business Awards

 

 

L-r Omobolanle Osotule, Head Marketing And Corporate Communications, Yvonne Isichei, Executive Director, Operations & Technology, Ime Okon, Md, Keystone Bank Sierra-leone, Samir Hassanyeh, Chairman, Keystone Bank Sierra-leone At The Sierra-leone Business Awards on Friday

UBA Sierra Leone Won three awards at Sierra Leone Business Awards.

 

 

UBA SL won three coveted awards for the ”Best Bank of the year 2016”, ”Best Brand Bank of the year 2016”, and ”Outstanding Business Leader of the year 2016” which went to the MD/CEO of UBA SL, Mr. Ndubuisi Ejiofor.
In the words of the Organizing Committee of the Sierra Leone Council of Chief Executives, Mr. Peter SaSellu, ”the following awards come in recognition of your company’s demonstrated support and commitment to good customer services, sound community stewardship, good corporate governance principles, innovative products, business excellence and socio-economic growth in Sierra Leone”.
The event was organized by the Sierra Leone Council of Chief Executives (SLCCE) in collaboration with the African Council of Chief Executives, Inc. (USA) and the Africa Media Corporation, Inc. (USA) at the newly-renovated Bintumani International Conference Center on the 21st October, 2016.

MD-UBA Receiving Award For Best Bank Of The Year

It was an exciting Friday evening as CEOs, business leaders, top government ministers, renowned lawyers, seasoned academics, parliamentarians, senior public servants, top police brass, and many other stakeholders gathered to celebrate and to be celebrated for their outstanding performance in their respective walks of life.
The MD/CEO of UBA SL, Mr. Ejiofor thanked the Sierra Leone Council of Chief Executives for organizing the maiden edition of the Sierra Leone Business and Leadership Awards. He informed the audience that ” at UBA the reward for hard work is more work, and that UBA Plc remains committed to be Africa’s Global Bank and a Pan-African bank.” He further assured the gathering of UBA Sierra Leone unflinching commitment to provide superior customer service to the people of Sierra Leone.

Over 1.5m Children Targeted for Free Polio Vaccination

 

By Ibrahim Tarawallie

Programme Manager of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation in the Ministry of Health and Sanitation yesterday revealed that over 1.5million children between 0 and 59 months would be targeted for free Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV).

Dr. Dennis Marke told a presser at the conference hall of the ministry that the fourth round of National Anti-Polio campaign would run from October 28 to 31, 2016 countrywide.

As part of efforts to prevent vaccine preventable, diseases and maintain polio eradication, the health ministry with support from the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and World Health Organisation (WHO) conducted three rounds of free polio vaccination in February, April and September this year.

According to Dr. Marke, the aim of the campaign was to ensure the reduction of morbidity and mortality of various life-saving interventions, adding that they were hoping to reach 95 percent of children under five across the country during the fourth round.

"Our focus is to reach as many children as possible with OPV and provide another opportunity for reaching missed children, as an effort aimed at complementing the routine immunisation," he said.

 

He explained that there would be various teams, comprising three health workers, who would visit around 30 to 40 households on a daily basis to administer the OPV.

He continued further that National Supervisors as well as Team Supervisors at district levels would ensure that those in the various teams do their work effectively and efficiently.

Dr. Marke also stated that during the course of the campaign, defaulter tracing would be carried out with routine vaccines administered to all children aged 0-23 months who have missed out on any other vaccines.

Also, UNICEF Specialist on Expanded Programme on Immunisation, Victor Sule, revealed that the last case of polio in Sierra Leone was reported in 2010 and that they hope to maintain such trend.

He said to ensure that the fourth round polio campaign was successful, they have procured 1.6million doses, costing US$250,000, adding that the essence of the free polio vaccination was to get rid of it.

Parliament is the sole authority to increase passport fee, Hon. Bashiru Sidikie

 

Member of Parliament for the country’s main opposition, the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), from Bo district, has said that Parliament is the sole authority to authorise increase in fees of the Sierra Leone Passport.

He made this statement on Tuesday, 25 October, at the Well of Parliament during the approval of presidential nominees.

“There is a deadline for the increase in passport fee and I am urging this honourable House to be proactive. The officials Ministry of Internal Affairs should come before Parliament to explain why they want to increase the fees and who gave them the mandate to do so,” said the lawmaker.

Hon. Sidikie recalled that cost of a Sierra Leone Passport had been increased from Le100,000 to Le500,000 last year, adding that the Immigration Department should not blame it on the devaluation of the Leones as against the United States dollar.

He said Members of Parliament would not accept any new increase in the fees of Sierra Leone Passport, adding that the Ministry of Internal Affairs or Immigration Department should not make any increment.

Another SLPP Member of Parliament, Hon. Paran Tarawally, in his contribution, noted that a news release was making the round about an imminent increase in fees of Sierra Leone Passport from Le500,000 to Le750,000.

“There is another release from the Immigration Department dissociating itself from the said release. However, Netpage is not the authorising institution to increase the fees of the passport,” he said.

Hon. Tarawally made it clear that no other body within or outside Sierra Leone has authority to increase passport fees except the House of Parliament.

He urged the Speaker and Members of Parliament that they should not approve an increment in the fees.

Meanwhile, a release from Netpage – a private company in charge of producing the passport – had stated that each passport will from 1st November cost Le750,000, equivalent to US$100.

“Netpage, the company that prints passports in Sierra Leone, has been producing e-passport at a loss as a result of continued devaluation of the Leone to the US Dollar. The company has been producing e-passport in order to provide continued services but with the removal of the subsidy by the Government since 2015, the price from 1st November 2016 will be Le750,000,” the release stated.

The release also stated that the cost of a biometric passport was pegged at US$100 and Le500,000 was considered the equivalent .

“In the event if the Leone appreciates and stabilises, the price will be adjusted accordingly,” concluded the Netpage release.

However, it seems some lawmakers are unhappy with the decision and have thus urged their colleagues to kick against it. It remains to be seen though whether those words will be match by solid action.