Sierra Leone’s Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, UAE, Rashid Sesay, has inaugurated the new Sierra Leone Nationals Association (SLeNA) executive at a ceremony held in Dubai.
Delivering his keynote address, the Sierra Leone Envoy said that he was always honoured and excited to meet and engage with his nationals, describing it as a core pillar of his work as Sierra Leone’s principal representative in the UAE. He mentioned that the event was special because it would usher in a new executive to steer the activities of the Sierra Leone Community for the next two years. He also thanked the erstwhile executive for their hard work, adding that their service had helped to bring sanity within the Community.
He encouraged the new executive to use the next two years to complete all internal arrangements to make SLeNA more effective and inclusive as a body within the UAE that would represent the interest of all Sierra Leoneans while also calling on them to embark on membership drive and keep the Community active through organising events.
“I welcome you all to the leadership fold and wish you good luck as you serve the Community. We are here to recognise you as the only body responsible for serving Sierra Leoneans here in the UAE and to support your work. We want to see SLeNA moving forward strongly. Congratulations to the executive, and we wish you good luck. Our doors are open at any time to support you all,” he assured.
Ambassador Sesay also addressed the meeting on the recent activities of the Embassy, including his last-week visit to Sierra Leoneans held in detention. He also advised his nationals about the need to be law-abiding residents and to protect the image and reputation of Sierra Leone.
Delivering the vote of thanks, the Chairman of SLeNA, Mohamed Gibrilla, thanked Ambassador Sesay and the Embassy for their efforts in bringing Sierra Leoneans together and for their continued support to the Community. He assured that his team would work diligently to deliver for everyone while also thanking his fellow nationals for attending the event, saying that that was a show of unity and solidarity.
