News

By Mohamed Jaward Nyallay

The charity, ActionAid Sierra Leone, has launched its budget for the 2020 working year. The budget, which has a total expenditure of Le11 billion, will be invested in the implementation of the organization’s five-year work plan, officials said.

The revelation was made at a public disclosure of ActionAid’s annual programs on Wednesday, which officials said was part of the culture of openness it had been practicing for over a decade.

By Mohamed Jaward Nyallay

Mercury International, the betting company, has signed a Le 5 billion project with the architectural firm Ideas Limited for the construction of an all-female school in Port Loko District.

The two companies signed the deal in a press conference on Wednesday, where officials said the construction project which would start later this month was expected to be completed before the new academic year in September.

By Mohamed Jaward Nyallay

The betting company, Mercury International, has launched a new campaign against underage gambling. The campaign will also advocate for responsible gambling, officials of the company said.

The campaign dubbed “Stay in Control” was launched at a press conference on Wednesday at the company’s branch office at Bathurst Street in Freetown.

Managing Director of Mercury International, Martin Michael, said at the occasion that Mercury International took responsible gambling “very seriously.”

By Kemo Cham
A Nigerian Professor of Law accused of faking his academic record has been cleared by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), after about eight months of rigorous investigation.
Prof. Emmanuel Femi Gbenga Ajayi was detained in July 2019 by the ACC which said it was acting on a report from anonymous sources who accused him of faking his academic documents to acquire jobs in two Sierra Leone-based universities – University of Makeni and Njala University.

By Francis H. Murray

Subscribers of three of the mobile operators in Sierra Leone have expressed disappointment over the withdrawal of promotional services, which have been blamed on new regulations by the National Telecommunications Commission (NATCOM).

Customers of Africell, Orange and Q Cell say the reaction of the mobile network providers to NATCOM’s move has had a direct impact on their social wellbeing, especially during the prevailing unfavorable economic situation.

By Hajaratu Kalokoh

Sierra Leone’s Mohamed Sidie Tunis has taken over as Speaker of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) Parliament, after he was formally elected on Monday.

The election held at the Mahatma Gandhi International Conference Center in Niamey, capital of Niger, came at the end of the tenure of Moustapha Cisse' Lo of Senegalese in 2019. 

Tunis’ tenure is expected to end in 2024, when Togo is expected to take over the rotating leadership of the regional parliament.

By Prince J Musa in Kenema

The Sierra Leone Extractive Industries and Transparency Initiative (SLEITI) last week ended a two-day retreat designed to look at emerging challenges within the mining sector.

The retreat brought together industry stakeholders, including the mining companies and government agencies.