Author: gleanernewspaper
Sierra Leone’s Ambassador to Türkiye, HE Mohamed Hassan Kaisamba, has participated in the DEIK Business Diplomacy Conference and award ceremony and has engaged the new Turkish-Sierra Leone Business Chairman. DEIK is the Foreign Economic Relations Board of Türkiye and the main engine and symbol of the Turkish business community’s power in the international arena. Through the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA), Türkiye is providing development assistance to Sierra Leone in various domains. The Foreign Economic Relations Board of Türkiye has recently appointed Mr. Fatih ALTUNBAŞ as the new Chairman of Türkiye – Sierra Leone Business Council. During their engagement, Ambassador Mohamed…
Mohamed Gento Kamara The recently released 2022 Audit Report by the Audit Service Sierra Leone (ASSL) has raised allegations against the Gento Group of Companies, led by Chief Executive Officer, Mohamed Gento Kamara. The report suggests that the company, in charge of the Waterloo Township Contract signed with the Sierra Leone Roads Authority (SLRA) on behalf of the Government of Sierra Leone, received double payment for work completed. According to the audit findings, the contract, valued at $42,782,727, saw a payment of $39,676,314 made to the contractor, leaving a balance of $3,106,413. The crux of the allegation revolves around the claim that…
Inevitably, contempt breeds disgust. People gather as they wait for the arrival of the legal team representing South Africa’s case against Israel at the Court of Justice at Johannesburg International Airport, South Africa on January 14, 2024 [Alet Pretorius/Reuters] Anyone with a scintilla of awareness and sympathy for the horrors that Palestinians have endured for generations knows the abiding ache that churns inside of us like a dormant volcano ready to blow with righteous anger. So, we take to the streets, bridges and national malls in a necessary display of irenic solidarity and to point an accusatory finger at the hypocrites…
Netpage representative in Sierra Leone, Jamal Shallop, is said to owe the government of Sierra Leone US$429,627. The money is an outstanding royalty generated from the sale of e-passports produced in 2022. Auditors from the Audit Service Sierra Leone revealed that US$429,627 was not paid to the Government of Sierra Leone for e-passports produced in 2022, Contrary to Section 1 (1.4) of the contract change note No. SID1178.008 between the Government of Sierra Leone and the HID CID Limited, which states that from January to December 2022, an approved royalty payment of 8% per sale of each e-passport shall be…
Following a meticulous recruitment process by the Stats SL Council which he aced, Lansana Kpewolo Kanneh, who had been acting as Stats SL’s Ag. Deputy Statistician General since May 2023, has been appointed as the substantive Deputy Statistician General. Mr Kanneh who has served Stats SL for 13 years and counting, ascends to the post vacated by the current SG/CEO, which had been vacant since April 1, 2023. Until he is appointed Ag. Deputy Statistician General in June 2023, Mr Kanneh served as Director of Finance and Support Services, handling Finance, Administration, Human Resources and Procurement for 8 years. Mr…
As discussions on the increment of work permit fees for foreign workers/expatriate staff in Sierra Leone continue, the Minister of Employment, Labour and Social Security, Mr Mohamed Rahman Swaray, met with foreign business owners, two days after he met with International Non-Governmental Organizations operating in the country. The business owners had requested to meet with the Minister to appeal for a reduction of the stipulated work permit cost. It could be recalled that the Ministry recently sent out a public notification of the increment, which will subsequently affect foreign workers/expatriate staff and institutions employing foreign workers/expatriate staff in Sierra Leone. This, the…
According to findings by the Inter-Ministerial/Agency Committee during its robust field inspections on 19th January 2024, at the Guma site in Babadorie, Sugar Loaf, Banga Farm and No. 2, the rate of encroachments upon water catchments and deforestation are swiftly increasing, precisely in these communities within the Western Area Peninsula National Park (WAP-NP). The field monitoring exercise is to see the extent of encroachments and to plan a way to stop the encroachments and other illegal activities within WAP-NP. As a way to subside these unfortunate threats by encroachers, the Inter-Ministerial/Agency Committee is poised for defaulters to be investigated and…
The Parliament of Sierra Leone on Thursday, 18/01/2024 debated and passed into law, with some amendments, the Bill entitled “The National Monitoring and Evaluation Agency Act 2024”, for the development of Sierra Leone. The Bill seeks to make provision for the establishment of The National Monitoring and Evaluation Agency as a semi-autonomous body, with authority to ensure greater accountability and transparency in the disbursement and use of public funds, to provide for the promotion of efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of programs and Projects and to provide for other related matters. Presenting the Bill, the Chief Minister, Dr David Moinina Sengeh…
Sierra Leone Roads Safety Authority (SLRSA) conducted a strategic visit to Dr. Fatima Maada Bio, to discuss preparations for the upcoming visit of the United Nations Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety, Jean Todt. This initiative stems from the appointment of Her Excellency on the 3rd of November, 2023, when she was appointed to join the esteemed Special Friends of Road Safety in Africa. During the meeting, Dr Fatima Maada Bio emphasized the paramount importance of maintaining road safety at all times. Her commitment to this cause, not only aligns with Her recent appointment but also underscores the significance…
Minister of Employment, Labour, and Social Security, Mohamed Rahman Swaray, on 18th January 2024, engaged Chief Justice Nicholas Browne Marke and High Court Judges to address challenges of backlogs in the Industrial Court. The Minister was accompanied by senior staff of the Ministry, including the Permanent Secretary, Fatmata Mustapha. Part 3 section 34 of the existing Act, which is the Regulations of Wages and Industrial Relation Act number 18 of 1971, makes provision for the establishment of an Industrial Court charged with the responsibility to hear unresolved disputes relating to labour and employment. Minister Rado Swaray, in his submission, thanked…