Sierra Leone appears to be determined in moving away from her ranking as the country with the highest levels of joblessness in West Africa. With a 60 percent rate of youth unemployment, the country certainly suffers among West Africa’s highest levels of joblessness. One result: youth migrate, often irregularly.
The adoption of the Law N° 2015-36 which criminalises the smuggling of migrants in Niger, and the closing of several gold mines, once magnets drawing job seekers, have left many people living along northern Niger’s migration routes in search for alternative income-generating activities.
Less than 24 hours after opposition Julius Maada Bio was sworn-in as President of Sierra Leone, some of his supporters have engaged in violent activities.
The violence erupted in the eastern Sierra Leonean district of Kenema, after the installation of Bio as the country’s fifth president.
Samura Wilson Kamara, the defeated Sierra Leone’s presidential candidate is heading for the court, hours after the winner, Julius Maada Bio was sworn into office.
According to reports from Freetown, Kamara is alleging “massive ballot-stuffing, over-voting, fraudulent voter registers and other electoral irregularities”.
According to the result announced by the Sierra Leone’s National Electoral Commission (NEC) on Wednesday in Freetown, Bio received 1,319,406 votes representing 51.81 per cent of the total valid votes cast, 2,546,577, to defeat the candidate of the ruling party.
Kamara polled 1,227,171 votes, representing 48.19 per cent of the valid votes cast.
Sierra Leoneans are trooping to the polling stations again today to decide who should succeed President Ernest Bai Koroma, in a rescheduled run off election.
The two candidates are Julius Maada Bio, a former military head of state, and a former foreign affairs minister Samura Kamara, the torchbearer for the ruling party.
Maada Bio who leads the main opposition Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) won the first round vote held on March 7.
A Sierra Leone court in Freetown has granted a request by a member of the ruling party for an injunction to delay a presidential election run-off scheduled for Tuesday.
The National Electoral Commission (NEC) has warned the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) to refrain from actions that may obstruct electoral activities.
Sierra Leone’s National Electoral Commission (NEC) has ordered the recount of ballot papers for presidential election
The National Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone on Sunday released 75 per cent of the result of the presidential election
