President Maada Bio will attend in Nairobi, on May 11 and 12, the Africa Forward summit, jointly organised by Kenya and France. On the eve of this summit, we publish an article of Luc Briard, Ambassador of France to Guinea and Sierra Leone, which presents the objectives of the summit and highlights more particularly projects supported by France in Sierra Leone.
Luc Briard, French ambassador in Guinea and Sierra Leone
Almost ten years after French President Emmanuel Macron’s Ouagadougou speech, which laid the foundations for renewed relations between France and the countries of Africa, Kenya and France are co-organizing the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi on 11 and 12 May 2026.
This renewal is built on a partnership of equals, based on shared interests and tangible results. And so initiatives have been implemented over the past nine years: ending permanent French military presence and closing bases in Senegal, Chad, Gabon and Côte d’Ivoire, prioritizing training courses (21 regionally-oriented national schools); supporting greater representation of the continent of Africa in international forums; mobilizing our partners by organizing summits on the economic growth of the continent (Conference on the Financing of African Economies in 2021 and Paris Summit for a New Global Financing Pact in 2023), fighting global warming (One Forest Summit in Gabon in 2023), strengthening food security (Food & Agriculture Resilience Mission in 2022), and producing vaccines in Africa (Global Forum for Vaccine Sovereignty and Innovation in 2024).
Similarly, France has been able to face its colonial past, with a will to move forward in a spirit of dialogue. Remembrance work on the actions of the French State and public administration began wherever it was requested (Rwanda, Senegal, Cameroon) and an unprecedented movement on the return of cultural goods was initiated (Benin, Algeria, Senegal, Madagascar, Côte d’Ivoire).
Specifically, in Sierra Leone, France’s renewed commitment has led to the following actions:
AFD-Proparco supports with more than EUR 43 million two leading local projects of agro-industrial development, the industrial farm JOLAKS (oilseeds) and the project SONOCO (cereals).
Jolaks Manufacturing secures a USD 20 million loan to boost food security in Sierra Leone
Sonoco to launch wheat flour production in Sierra Leone, with support from Proparco
These two projects are fully compliant with the “Feed Salone” priority of the Medium-Term National Development Plan and contribute to the agro-industrial sovereignty of Sierra Leone.
They are part of the FARM program (Food and Agriculture Resilience Mission), led by France, which will be highlighted at the Nairobi summit.
AFD also supports smaller projects, for approximately EUR 11.5 million, implemented by civil society organisations (CSOs) and Small and Medium-sized enterprises, in the rural development, microfinance, health and gender issues.
In the energy sector the new GERES project Energy4Business (E4B), which will be launched in May 2026, will improve access to energy in rural areas to support economic activities by local entrepreneurs.
Thanks to a support by the Sierra Leonean authorities and with support from the Embassy in Conakry, a small French school reopened into a new building in Freetown last December, precursor to a reborn Alliance Française, and the teaching of French in Sierra Leone is increasing. This will help Sierra Leone to be better integrated with its Francophone neighbours, and this will trigger more exchanges at a regional level.
Inauguration of the new French school in Freetown (December 2025)
From the left to the right: Janice Bras, president of the school, Jean Lamy, chargé d’affaires in Freetown, Conrad Sackey, minister of Education, Luc Briard ambassador of France, Dennis Bright, former minister of Youth and Sports
In the same vein, the Africa Forward Summit, for the first time hosted and co-chaired by an English-speaking country, will reflect the profound transformation in its ties with African countries which Fance undertook almost 10 years ago, based on acknowledgement of the past and a will to build balanced, forward-looking partnerships.
It will be an opportunity to highlight the commitment of France, Kenya and other African countries to stepping up mutual investment and to building and financing tangible solutions to common challenges, including health system strengthening, food sovereignty, digital competitiveness, energy access and connectivity. It will illustrate the rich diversity of relations between Africa and France, built around a wide variety of actors – States, business leaders, young people, artists, diasporas, with special emphasis on young people and the private sector.
The results of the Summit, which are focused on action and built with all of the continent’s Heads of State and Government, will help consolidate the ties binding Africa and France, and build forward-looking partnerships.
Such a movement, which tends to abolish artificial language barriers, is also supported by many companies and civil society organizations in Sierra Leone, because it will increase the opportunities for all and it is in the interest of people in an increasingly globalized world.
Luc Briard, French ambassador in Guinea and Sierra Leone
