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Two senior officials of Sierra Leone’s National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) have completed a two-week intensive training programme focused on work safety and emergency management capacity building for English-speaking African countries in Beijing, China.
The two officials, Mohamed L. Bah, Director of Communications, and Sinneh Mansaray, Director of Relief and Response, represented Sierra Leone at the high-level seminar organised by China’s Ministry of Commerce in collaboration with the Ministry of Emergency Management.
The programme concluded with a closing ceremony in Beijing, where participants were awarded certificates in recognition of their successful completion of the training.
The seminar brought together mining engineers, disaster management practitioners and emergency management officials from several African countries, including Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Zambia, Tanzania, Uganda, Ghana, South Africa, The Gambia and Kenya.
The training focused on key areas of disaster risk reduction and emergency management, including workplace and mine safety, risk assessment, early warning systems, emergency preparedness and response, risk communication, post-disaster coordination, as well as the use of digital and artificial intelligence-supported technologies in safety management.
As part of the programme, participants also embarked on technical field visits to several Chinese institutions and facilities with expertise in safety, mining and emergency management.
These included the China Coal Research Institute, Shougang Mining’s Smart Mine facilities, the Digital Intelligence Center, the Mecheng Iron Ore Concentrator, and the China University of Mining and Technology in Beijing.
The field visits provided participants with practical exposure to China’s approach to integrating technology, professional expertise, monitoring systems, risk assessment and institutional coordination in preventing and responding to emergencies.
For the NDMA, the training is expected to contribute to strengthening the Agency’s technical and institutional capacity in disaster risk management.
The knowledge and practical experience gained by the Sierra Leonean representatives could support improvements in areas such as early warning, emergency coordination, preparedness and response, mine safety and workplace safety.
The programme also provided an opportunity for the NDMA representatives to study international best practices that could be adapted to Sierra Leone’s national disaster management context.
The successful completion of the training is therefore expected to enhance the Agency’s ability to effectively manage disasters and emergencies while strengthening its preparedness for emerging risks.
Beyond capacity building, the programme also contributed to strengthening cooperation between Sierra Leone and China in disaster management, emergency preparedness and human resource development.
The training forms part of broader South-South cooperation efforts aimed at promoting the exchange of knowledge, technical expertise and best practices between developing countries.
