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The Institute for Legal Research and Advocacy for Justice, ILRAJ, has formally requested the complete text and financial details of a five-year health cooperation agreement signed between Sierra Leone and the United States, citing concerns over transparency and public debt obligations.
In a letter dated 11 June 2026, ILRAJ said the Memorandum of Understanding on Health Cooperation was signed on 22 December 2025 by Health Minister Dr Austin Demby for Sierra Leone and U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Ms Rabia M. Qureshi. The agreement, framed under the U.S. “America First Global Health Strategy,” runs from 2026 to 2030.
According to ILRAJ, the MOU commits “tens of millions of dollars of Sierra Leonean public funds” and requires steadily increasing co-investment from government. The institute states that under the terms, Sierra Leone is expected to take responsibility for most commodity costs, health workforce expenditure, and laboratory operations by 2030.
ILRAJ argues the agreement will restructure how the country’s health sector is financed and governed for the next five years.
Despite the scale of the commitment, ILRAJ says the full MOU has not been published. “No complete text, annexes, implementation plan, or financial schedules have been published on the Ministry’s website or through any public repository as of the date of this letter,” the organization noted. It added that official communications so far have been limited to high-level press releases from the Ministry of Health and the U.S. Embassy.
“This lack of transparency is of serious concern,” ILRAJ said. “Sierra Leoneans have a legitimate interest in knowing the precise terms under which their Government has assumed substantial financial obligations.”
ILRAJ has invoked the Right to Access Information Act, 2013. The organisation is asking the Ministry of Health to release within 10 working days:
– The full signed MOU of 22 December 2025, including all pages, signatures, and any amendments.
– All annexes and subsidiary documents referenced in or attached to the MOU.
– Details of Sierra Leone’s co-investment obligations – the amounts and schedule for each year from 2026 to 2030.
– Budget documents showing the funding sources and budget lines to be used.
– Records of disbursements* made by government from signing to date.
– Any fiscal or domestic resource mobilisation reforms required by the U.S. as a condition of assistance.
ILRAJ said the public interest in disclosure is “compelling” because the MOU directly affects health services, welfare, and public finances. It warned that it will appeal to the Information Commissioner and seek judicial review if the request is denied or partially withheld.
