By Ishmael Bayoh , Information Attaché, Sierra Leone Embassy, Dakar, Senegal
The Sierra Leone Ambassador to Senegal, His Excellency Ibrahim Turay, on Saturday, 12th April 2025, engaged Sierra Leonean expatriate workers in Senegal.
This is the ambassador’s second meeting with Sierra Leoneans in Senegal following his first meeting with the Sierra Leonean community since he began his tour of duty five months ago.
The expatriates, drawn from institutions such as GAIBA, UNICEF, UNDP, the business sector, INGOs, and academia, warmly welcomed the initiative. They expressed their delight for engagement, describing it as not only a moment of unity but also an opportunity to harness their expertise for the development of Sierra Leone.
Ambassador Turay was impressed with them for honoring the invitation. He told them that when he assumed duty and during the biennale arts festival, which was hosted by the embassy, he met few Sierra Leoneans, which prompted him to seek such an engagement. Also, having spent some years as an expatriate himself in Senegal, he saw the necessity to leverage the collective ideas for collaborative development.
The engagement was not only to know each other, but it provided the opportunity for them to inspire, utilize, and coordinate their wealth of experiences and resources for the good of Sierra Leoneans. It was also about what could be the role of the embassy to provide protection and support to their activities on one hand and how to strengthen the bond among them.
The ambassador explained to them that there were over 3,000 Sierra Leoneans living in Senegal and that many of them working in the fishery and construction areas were without contracts, living them vulnerable to abuses. He called upon the professionals to assist in drafting standardized employment agreements for those working for fishing vessels and construction companies.
Ambassador Turay also briefed attendees on preparations for Sierra Leone’s upcoming Independence Anniversary celebration, which will take place at the iconic African Renaissance Monument in Dakar. They were assured of their presence in marking the country’s independence.
