News

By Crispina Cummings

The Parliamentary Oversight Committee on Lands, Country Planning and Environment together with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), last week went on a tour of factories and other agencies to check their compliance with their Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports submitted to the EPA for licenses when they started business in the country.

Some of the factories visited included Dangote Cement, Sierra Leone Ports Authority, LEOCEM, MILLA GROUP, RAINBOW Paints, Best Food Company and VICTORY Company.

Young adults of the United Methodist Church have been told to remember their creator before the evil days come. The admonition was made by the Rev. S. M. Williams at last Sunday’s Western Area thanksgiving service in Hastings.

He advised the youth to be God-pleasers rather than men pleasers and to be themselves rather than trying to be like others because even Siamese twins, he said, could behave differently.

By Aminata Phidelia Allie

Human Resource managers from over 50 financial and economic institutions across the country have, in a 2-day conference, hung heads together to advocate for a decent work environment for workers.

Supported by the Sierra Leone Employers’ Federation and the International Labour Organization, the managers’ conference was held last week at the British Council in Freetown.

The southern Sierra Leone city of Bo last week celebrated the 39th anniversary of the founding of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

This year’s celebrations started with a radio discussion meant to raise awareness around the activities of the group in the country and the sub region.

Keynote speaker John Sumailah, who is also the development secretary at the ministry of finance and economic development, said the occasion in Bo was to further the dreams of the founding fathers of the group and foster economic integration among member states.

By Septimus Senessie

Sixty participants including women leaders, traditional authorities, civil society groups, judiciary and journalists over the weekend underwent training in women’s rights to property, land and access to justice.

The training was the second phase of the UNDP-funded project in Kono, Port Loko and Bombali districts and Western Area on the topic: “Women’s Rights to Property, making right a reality,” implemented by COOPI International.

By Septimus Senessie in Kono.

Fiama Chiefdom in Kono District has officially inaugurated 62 village headmen, town and section chiefs at their chiefdom headquarter town of Njegbwema.

It followed a highly-contested election for sub-chiefs in the chiefdom.

Sia Abu Nanoh won as town chief of Bandasuma after she had first won a petition against her by one of her brothers with Fiama now boasting of having two female town chiefs for the first time despite customs and traditions which frown on women becoming chiefs.

By Crispina Cummings

Opposition MP, Emma Kowa has called for tougher laws to address violence against women and girls "because despite all the sensitisation that has been going on women and girls are still victims of everyday violence".

She was speaking during an outreach programme by MPs in their constituencies to educate them on sexual and gender-based violence.