Deputy Minister of Energy visits Sierra Leone Chancery in Riyadh

The Deputy Minister of Energy I of Sierra Leone, Dr Abdul Rahim Jalloh, paid a courtesy visit to the country’s Chancery in Riyadh, where he met with the Ambassador and staff of the diplomatic mission, Ambassador Mohamed Barrie.
Dr Jalloh and his delegation were welcomed by Ambassador Barrie, on behalf of the Mission’s staff, who thanked them for taking time out of their busy schedule to visit the Chancery. He said the delegation’s visit was the first official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia by a delegation under Dr Jalloh’s portfolio.
On behalf of his team, Dr Jalloh also thanked Ambassador Barrie, Deputy Ambassador Abdul Aziz Turay and the Embassy staff for the warm welcome and hospitality accorded to the delegation since arrival in Riyadh on Friday night.
The delegation is in the Saudi capital for a five-day working visit where it is attending the 25th WPC Energy Congress, Dr Jalloh said. The Congress was held on the theme of ‘Pathways to Energy Future for All’. He described the delegation’s participation as lively and productive.
On Monday, 12 October 2026, the Deputy Minister said the delegation signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The agreement is expected to help Sierra Leone bolster its energy sector by promoting cooperation and investment from the Saudi Arabian Government and its private sector, he added.
The areas covered by the MoU include clean cooking, electricity generation and distribution, renewable energy, technical capacity building and support to rural electrification. These priorities align with the Government’s energy transition agenda and can help expand access to energy across the country, said Dr Jalloh.
He said the delegation’s participation in the Congress reflected President Dr Julius Maada Bio’s commitment to tackling the energy crisis in Sierra Leone, which he said has been a long-standing challenge since independence. Dr Jalloh said the President is focused on laying a strong foundation and setting the right ground rules to tackle persistent problems in the energy sector for the rest of his presidency.
“The focus of President Bio for the rest of his presidency is to set a solid foundation with clear ground rules to address the challenges in the energy sector in Sierra Leone,” Dr Jalloh stressed.
The Deputy Minister also appealed to Embassy staff to keep working as a team for Sierra Leone’s benefit and stressed the importance of coordinated efforts in support of the country’s priorities abroad.
To conclude, Ambassador Barrie thanked Dr Jalloh and the delegation for visiting the Chancery. He congratulated them on their successful participation in the Congress and reaffirmed the Embassy’s commitment to supporting strategic alliances that can help develop Sierra Leone’s energy sector.
At the close of the meeting, Ambassador Barrie presented Dr Jalloh with a copy of the Embassy’s fifth edition newsletter titled: “Sierra Leone Diplomatic Mission Advances Ties with Saudi Arabia.”
Dr Jalloh was accompanied by Ing. Chernor Sulaiman Jalloh, Technical Director of the Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) and Mr Abdulai Conteh, Senior Environmental Specialist at the Ministry of Energy.
Counsellor Victor Mohamed Kamara opened the proceedings, and Counsellor Mamodu Bai Sesay gave the vote of thanks.