By Hassan Osman Kargbo
After the re-election of President Bio as President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, there has been a lot of eyebrow in the entertainment industry because many hold the views that Sierra Leone entertainment needs a lot of reform if only the industry wants to match with other countries not only in Africa but the World at large.
President Bio appoint Amara Dennis Turay whose stage name is Kao Denero as the first ever special Envoy for Entertainment Ambassador in the country. His appointment brought a lot of mixed feelings from not only his colleague entertainers but also from the general public.
However, say what you may, President Bio did very well to bring the entertainment sector on board, because for far too long the industry had been marginalized. Now that the country has a special envoy for entertainment whose responsibilities is to channel the issues of the industry to the government and also to the international world. One might think that because of the appointment of ‘Kao’ as the country’s entertainment ambassador, the enormous problems that entertainers are facing would now be addressed in a simple an accurate manner; However, It is not a secret that the industry was and it is still under a lifesaving machine which the current Ambassador is yet to build the blocks that will help the entertainment industry to stand up tall to reach its climax for not only in Africa but the world at large. It is also not a secret that there are lots of Africa countries that are making waves in the World when it comes to entertainment. Countries are making Millions of dollars, but why Sierra Leoneans entertainers are still finding it difficult to get a break through in the international world? This is the million dollar question people have been asking; Let’s look at countries like: Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania, among others, are all exploring in the international world, but the entertainment industry is still crippling in Sierra Leone.
Entertainment Sectors like: comedy, filmmakers, content creators, musicians etc. are all making good names across the world but it is a different scenario in Sierra Leone.
It is almost three years now since Kao Denero took office as the entertainment Ambassador, what has been his success as the entertainment Ambassador? This is one of the questions which many have been asking.
Who could be the next Ambassador? Many say our current Ambassador has failed to unite and structure the industry, and who could be the next country’s entertainment ambassador if the President decided to appoint another face in the entertainment industry.
Say what you may, we still have a lot of faces in the industry that could change the face of the industry in Sierra Leone. We have faces like the god father Jimmy B, Steady Bingo, Famous, Abu Bakarr Turay popularly known as Kabaka, Star Zee, Legendary comedian Desmond Benya and many more names are in the industry that are household names who could take the mantle of leadership and could create more opportunities for young people in the entertainment sector.
Entertainment is one of the sectors that a lot of youth are focusing on. A lot of vibrant youth and their families depend on entertainment to feed on. So, this sector could not only help in job creation and poverty alleviation but would also help to bring stability in the country. If only the political and ambassadorial will is there. It could serve as a job creation and help sell the culture and tradition of Sierra Leone to the international world.
The entertainment industry if only the government takes it very seriously, it is a sector that could employ hundreds if not thousands of youths in the country.
