Lecture delivered Monday Jan. 30th at the Pre. Lunching of Transformation and development Conference at Miatta Conference hall How do we structure all of this into our development strategy, as we march towards a transformative future? History, as we all know, is a sequence of major events. Depending on various circumstances, there are people who[...]

In a world where the great rich and powerful nations intimidate smaller and poorer ones into submission and servitude through the constant manipulation of the economic state of affairs to the latter’s advantage and even have the audacity of threatening to tie aid to a country’s passing legislations to recognise gay rights, you hardly need[...]

Its about a week now since Africa’s newest state, South Sudan came in from the cold.With all what the country had gone through in its pre-independence years, any analyst who thought it would have been plain sailing ought to have his head examined for the shortfalls. The hard bargaining time is now as even South[...]

So here we are at the weekly letter, and very glad I am too; but Heavens- how the days run so slow, don’t they? When I was in London I used to count the days and long for the end of the week, so of course time flies; now a-days when one has go to[...]

Yet, very often, it would appear to me that while we profess to be one people, Sierra Leone as a political entity has always been on trial; she has always been the scapegoat for many of our own failings. It is a wrong attitude and it reminds me of a particular incident, recorded fifty years[...]

Contemporary Sierra Leone and its march towards modernization in the age of twitter instant banking and other transactions. The Sierra Leonean writer Syl Cheney-Coker reflects on his country’s past, present and future, as we seek to transform ourselves, and the direction of our development. Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen: On occasions like this one, it[...]

Over the last decade, West Africa has made encouraging progress. Violent conflicts which had blighted the region for many years have been ended. There have been real advances in development, health and education. Economic growth is accelerating. Democratic practice, although still not the norm everywhere in the region, is taking root. But this progress is[...]

If you visit the Family Support Units of the Sierra Leone Police, spend an hour there and listen to the types of cases. Most of them are fighting and occasioning bodily harm. The bulk of the causes are simply what we call in Krio “Wam Aht”. We all agree that we were all born in[...]

In about seven month’s time, Somalia’s President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed will end his term of no return to State. Going is not the issue but what legacy he will leave behind that would be value-added to possible settling down of Somalia from the rot of several years. About that time too, the country’s parliament[...]

I am much divided in my mind as to whether I should keep to my promise of last week or devote this week’s letter to the voter’s registration exercise that started on Monday 23rd January. That fact that the long knife of the President was used this week should have encouraged me to keep my[...]