EU & Govt Brace-Up

The European Union and the government of Sierra Leone have reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthening their partnership and pledge to continue to hold regular political dialogue on issues of common interest, and to follow up on the conclusions and agreements reached.

The 2023 annual Political Dialogue was held between the Government of the Republic of Sierra Leone and the European Union (EU), which was chaired by H.E. Rtd. Brigadier General Julius Maada Bio, President of the Republic of Sierra Leone.

This auspicious event took place at State House in Freetown, where issues of mutual interest were discussed and advanced.

The dialogue started with an exchange on the economic situation in Sierra Leone. As in previous years, Team Europe and representatives of European private sector companies operating in Sierra Leone had fruitful engagement with H.E. President Bio on the conditions for creating an enabling business environment.

The dialogue also included an exchange on the support of Team Europe (European Union and its Member States) to Sierra Leonean initiatives for the development of the country. The priorities of the ongoing cooperation between Team Europe and Sierra Leone will contribute to the implementation of the Government’s “Big 5” Priority National Development Agenda, mainly in the areas of food security, green economy, human capital development and governance.

With regard to the importance of multilateralism, both sides underlined their commitment to a rules-based world order within the framework of the United Nations. The Government of Sierra Leone gave an update on their priorities for their upcoming non-permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council 2024-2025. Both sides emphasized their commitment to universal respect for, and observance and protection of Human Rights and fundamental freedoms for all.

At the end of the dialogue, both the Government of Sierra Leone and the European Union reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthening the partnership between Sierra Leone and the European Union, including a shared pledge to continue to hold regular political dialogue on issues of common interest, and to follow up on the conclusions and agreements reached in the course of these dialogues.

Members of the Sierra Leonean delegation led by H.E. Dr. Julius Maada Bio, President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, who chaired the dialogue, were Hon. Vice Presidet Dr. Juldeh Jalloh, Chief Minister Dr. David Monina Sengeh, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Mr. Timothy Kabbah, Attorney General and Minister of Justice Mr. Mohamed Lamin Tarawallie, Minister of Planning and Economic Development Ms. Kenyeh Barlay, Minister of Environment Mr. Jiwoh Abdulai, Deputy Minister of Finance 1 Madam Jeneba Bangura, Financial Secretary Mr. Mathew Dingie and Development Secretary Mr. Peter Sam Kpakra.

The European Union was represented by the Ambassador of the European Union to Sierra Leone, H.E. Manuel Müller, the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Sierra Leone, H.E. Jens Kraus-Massé, the Ambassador of Ireland to Sierra Leone, H.E. Aidan Fitzpatrick, the Chargé d’Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of France, Mr. Romain Vuillaume, the Counsellor of the Embassy of Denmark, Ms. Trine Løber, and the Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of Italy, Mr. Giovanni Fidele,

European companies were represented by the General Manager of Brussels Airlines, Ms. Estelle Van Eeckhout, the Managing Director of Sierra Leone Brewery Limited, Mr. Laurent Bukasa and the CEO of Orange-Sonatel, Mr. Sékou Amadou Bah.