Author: gleanernewspaper

Hon. Chernor Bah, Sierra Leone’s Minister of Information and Civic Education, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health on August 12, 2025, following Columbia’s official announcement on August 27. The agreement, signed on behalf of Columbia by Dr. Thoai Ngo, Professor and Chair of the Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health (PopFam), represents a significant, long-term collaboration aimed at strengthening research capacity, education, and policy development in Sierra Leone and the wider West African region. The MOU commits both institutions to a multifaceted cooperation program that will prioritise Sierra Leone in efforts…

A 12-member Assessment Mission from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) arrived in Freetown last week to investigate the long-standing dispute over the border village of Yenga, officials said. The delegation, which arrived on Monday, August 25, 2025, met with Sierra Leonean authorities before departing for the contested frontier community. On Tuesday, August 26, the ECOWAS team paid a courtesy visit to the Deputy Minister of Defence, Colonel Muana Brima Massaquoi (Retired). ECOWAS Resident Representative in Sierra Leone, Ambassador John Azumah, briefed Colonel Massaquoi on a fact-finding mission to gather information on the disputed border area between Sierra…

By Kemo Cham Nearly a decade after the deadly West African Ebola Epidemic was declared over, a study on the long term immunogenicity and experiences of survivors of the viral disease has commenced in Sierra Leone. Researchers from Sierra Leone, Japan and the United States are investigating the long-term immune system immunological memory and experiences of survivors and their close dependents by exploring how their life styles have evolved since the end of the epidemic. They will also examine the social and contextual factors influencing these changes. The researchers say the aim of the study is to understand host-pathogen immune…

Dr. Bangura delivers his declaration in the heart of the ruling SLPP stronghold. Speaking to a jam-packed, joyous crowd in Bo District on Friday, Dr. Ibrahim Bangura made it known that he would run for the All People’s Congress (APC) flagbearer position in the general elections of 2028. Party supporters from all over the southern provinces of Sierra Leone attended the rally, which was characterised by celebration, cultural displays, and an obvious display of support for his campaign. Dr. Bangura, who was the first to resurrect the APC student union at Fourah Bay College following the 1992 coup, spoke to supporters…

Finance Minister Sheku Ahmed Fantamahdi Bangura According to a senior mines expert who wished to remain anonymous, Kasafoni land is still embroiled in controversy after a government delegation headed by Finance Minister Sheku Ahmed Fantamahdi Bangura visited two districts and three chiefdoms to sign a lease agreement. The expert cautioned that recent government actions run the risk of escalating long-standing tensions and that the land is “encumbered.” The expert stated that the Sierra Leone Mines and Minerals Development and Management Corporation (SLMMDMC) and the Finance Ministry’s weekend interventions have made matters worse rather than better. “The moment issues start from…

Sierra Leone’s Chief Minister, Dr. David Moinina Sengeh, led a high-level delegation to the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9), using the international platform to reaffirm his government’s commitment to youth empowerment and inclusive governance. Dr. Sengeh told conference participants that the country’s development strategy goes beyond traditional management practices to intentionally unlock the potential of every citizen, with a focus on young people. Dr. Sengeh described the concept, which is similar to President Julius Maada Bio’s 2023 United Nations General Assembly call for “radical inclusion,” as a practical commitment to invest in every human being so…

By-William Morris “For youth who play such a large portion of the population (in Sierra Leone), they’re going to be the ones shaping the future,” said Jon Wogman, the foundation’s senior program manager for youth programs. “So the opportunity to engage them, hear their ideas, be able to see what they thought was really needed to address improvements … was a really incredible experience.” Foundation president Mashal Husain said the organization began running its Youth Institute in 1994 and today operates 20 annual sessions around America and in six foreign countries. It first launched in Africa last year with institutes…

The African Bar Association (AfBA) has publicly praised Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio for his leadership as chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) during a difficult regional period, and has pledged its support for efforts to strengthen engagement with the Alliance of Sahel States. In a formal letter to President Bio signed by AfBA President High Chief Ibrahim Eddie Mark, the association acknowledged the complexities of the challenges confronting ECOWAS as Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso—all currently under military rule—move forward with plans to exit the West African bloc and deepen cooperation within the AES.…

UNICEF and Statistics Sierra Leone (Stats SL) have completed a focused ten-day Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) Pretest and Training of Trainers (ToT) program in preparation for the nationwide rollout of the seventh Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS-7). The workshop, which took place from August 4 to 13, 2025, brought together 32 staff members from Stats SL’s Demographic Health & Social Statistics and Data Science Divisions for intensive training in digital survey methods and the complete set of MICS-7 questionnaires. The program aimed to improve national capacity for high-quality, standardised data collection. Participants were given hands-on experience with modern CAPI devices…

Dr. Alieu Kamara of Sierra Leone stands in front of a surgical bed outfitted with improvised bolsters and a foam headrest. He is the country’s first and only neurosurgeon. “We used to lose a lot of patients due to head injuries, spinal cord injuries, spine fractures and the like,” Kamara said. “There was nothing we could do for them.” That reality inspired him to pursue training in the field. By Sophia Li Morie Abibu, a 56-year-old father of three, lies on a hospital bed in the humid Sierra Leonean heat. He is paralysed from the neck down. After months of immobility,…