Presidents Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone and Hage Gengiob of Namibia expressed their commitment to strengthening ties with one another on December 10, 2022.

This pledge was made during a brief press conference that followed bilateral talks between the two leaders at the President’s Lodge at Hill Station in Freetown.

From Friday, December 9 through Sunday, December 11, H.E. Hage Gengiob and First Lady Monica Gengios will be in Freetown at the invitation of H.E. and Lady Fatima Bio to celebrate the fourth anniversary of the “Hands Off our Girls” campaign.

Madam Monica Gengios, the current president of the African First Ladies, shares First Lady Fatima Bio’s commitment to empowering women and girls. The two first ladies want to make their countries into places where women and girls may feel protected. The globe over, Madam Fatima Bio’s efforts are being praised and honored. She successfully pioneered a resolution for an international day honoring survivors of sexual exploitation and violence during the 77th session of the UN General Assembly. Lady Camila, the Queen Consort of the UK, recently hosted Lady Fatima Bio as a special guest.

Presidents Julius Maada Bio and Hage Gengiob commemorate the unique historical and cordial connections between Namibia and Sierra Leone during this momentous visit. They remember the days of Namibia’s colonial struggle, particularly from 1966 to 1990, and the guerilla movement led by the South-West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO), in which many Namibian freedom fighters who served in the SWAPO leadership and other individuals who managed to flee colonialism called Sierra Leone home.

These Namibians assimilated into Sierra Leonean families as well. Both heads of state recalled that many Namibians pursued secondary and tertiary education in Sierra Leone, among them Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila, Namibia’s current prime minister, who attended the Koidu Secondary School for Girls (Kono) and the St. Joseph’s Secondary School in Freetown, as well as many other individuals in past and present leadership positions in Namibia. Among the many Namibians, President Hage Gengiob was glad to see that he also had a Sierra Leone passport, which had prevented him from being deported abroad at one point.

With a population of 2.5 million, Namibia has one of the youngest populations in both Africa and the world. The country gained independence from SWAPO in March 1999.

Both Presidents have decided to not only rekindle relations but also to broaden the Cooperation’s existing limited scope to include cooperation in the mining and mineral industries, fishing, agriculture, etc.

Sam Nujoma of Namibia gave a heated address during the OAU conference that Sierra Leone held in Freetown in 1980, during which he described Namibia’s struggle against colonialism. President Hage Gengiob is currently in attendance to represent a new Namibia and to discuss ways in which our two countries may work together for the prosperity of our two countries as well as for world peace and sustainable development goals.

Members of the Committee of Ten African Heads of State working to reform the UN and organize Africa’s quest for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council include Namibia and Sierra Leone. The current C-10 Coordinator is President Julius Maada Bio.

First Lady Fatima Bio and First Lady Monica Gengios will visit the 34 Military Hospital together, meet with a number of women and girls, and schedule some time for sightseeing during their visit. They will also hold discussions about the work they do on behalf of women and girls.

Just so know that, the motto of Namibia it reads “unity, liberty and justice”. It bears such a striking similitude of our motto “unity, freedom.and justice”. Floriat Sierra Leone-Namibia relations. These two sisters countries are in many ways similar and have shared history.