The Ministry of Information and Civic Education (MOICE) will host a two-day civic festival dubbed the Salone Civic Festival on the 11th and 12th of December 2024 at the front lawn of Youyi Building in Freetown.
The unprecedented event seeks to bring the government closer to the people by creating a platform for ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs), including the offices of the president, vice president, first lady, and chief minister, to interface with citizens on the status of the government’s Big Five agenda in the past year.
At the center of the civic festival is the launch of the Civic Education Strategy, which has six pillars as follows: Love Salone, Feed Salone, Clean Salone, Heal Salone, Digitize Salone, and Salone For We All. The Civic Education Strategy is a blueprint for the enhancement of responsible and productive citizenship in Sierra Leone.
Interspersed with panel discussions, exhibitions, public engagements, and cultural displays, the festival will engender national unity, civic pride, and active citizenship. Citizens will directly engage with government ministries in their respective booths to respond to their questions and provide other vital information pertaining to the implementation of the government’s Big Five agenda.
The civic festival will also promote cultural pride, heritage, and unity through music, art, film, and fashion, among other things, and entreat citizens to actively participate in national development and support the Civic Education Strategy’s goals.
The Ministry of Information and Civic Education will use the occasion to unveil its new website as well as those of other ministries in an effort to increase public access to essential civic information and delivery on government promises while presentations will spotlight Sierra Leone’s key achievements, particularly in mining, local content development, infrastructure, agriculture, digital transformation, etc.
A massive outdoor stage will be erected to host continuous live entertainment, including music, poetry, fashion, exhibitions, cultural displays, etc., throughout both days, ensuring an electrifying, celebratory atmosphere. The main indoor event in the Miatta Conference Center will be dedicated to presentations and discussions around the Big Five by the relevant authorities. This will be strictly by invitation, while the outdoor activities will be free. Also, there will be live coverage of the event, allowing a wider audience to experience the celebrations virtually. A dedicated media team will manage interviews, live social media updates, and press releases.
The targeted audiences include youth, media practitioners, artists and filmmakers, government officials, and the general public.
Ministries will leverage the festival to present their work, empowering citizens to understand, appreciate, and support national progress under the Civic Education Strategy. By creating a platform for transparent cultural celebration and active participation, the civic festival will mark the beginning of a new era of civic responsibility and unity in Sierra Leone.
The Salonel Civic Festival will go a long way in bridging the communications gap between government and citizens.
