The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development (MoPED), with support from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), has last Friday 26th August 2022 presented the Sierra Leone National Population Policy to stakeholders in Wara-Wara Yagala Chiefdom, Koinadugu District, at the well-attended ceremony.
In December 2021, similar engagements were held in Kenema, Makeni and Bo respectively where the eight objectives and 21 indicators in the policy, with 75% of the population is made up of youths, that 46% is uneducated for as there is a big gap between school children.
Stakeholders including a representative of the Paramount Chief of Wara Wara Yagala Chiefdom, Gbawuru Mansaray II and the Chairman, Koinadugu District Council, Yembeh Mansaray pledged their support to the policy noting that if youths are not catered for they would become armed robbers, prostitutes and seek greener pastures abroad.
They pointed out that the district is dynamic with various tribes peacefully cohabiting together and described Koinadugu as the land of milk and honey. They vowed to widely disseminate the policy for the benefit of the district, and appealed to all to be attentive and ask questions about the implementation of the policy. They however highlighted the challenging topography of the district and its high maternal mortality rate in the district.
Officially handing over the population policy document to Koinadugu stakeholders, the Director of Performance Management and Planning, Ministry of Planning and Economic Development (MoPED), Dr. Robert Moikowa said the Mid-term Census is to correct the anomalies of the previous one for accurate allocation of resources depending on the population of each district.
He apologized to the gathering that due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the country in 2018, government was late to popularize the policy, adding that the document was first launched in 2018 to get all and sundry onboard the plan.
Dr. Moikowa informed that Sierra Leone had pledged commitment at the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) to among others provide Family Planning to promote the use of contraceptives and manage the birth rate, reduce maternal and infant mortality, end child marriage as well as improving the lives of youths. He appealed to all to disseminate the policy in their respective communities to enable government provide deliver social services to people at every level.
He disclosed that the policy is forward looking, all-encompassing with credible data, pointing out that government plans to train and employ 1,000 midwives and health workers, reduce gender-based violence and harmful traditional practices in addition to prohibiting and criminalizing child marriage. He said the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has a crucial role to play in the policy citing the progress government has made to empower women, pledged that UNFPA would continue to support government due to its strong commitments to accelerate the ICPDs as well as budgetary support to the Ministry of Health and Sanitation to reduce maternal and infant mortality in the country.
Gabriel Dumbuya of the National Population Secretariat, MoPED said the policy was developed in 2018 and launched by the Vice President of Sierra Leone in 2019, reiterating that the policy is very important for the country. He underscored the need to manage the country’s population with the available resources so as to improve the lives of the people, especially women and children and affirmed that the Mid-Term Census generated credible data.
Stakeholders expressed the importance of the Mid-Term Census for proper planning and promised to sensitize their subjects on the policy
