Commonwealth Citizenship Project
By working closely with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MOEST) in Freetown and with the Commonwealth Secretariat: we have helped produce a Framework for Citizenship Education in Schools in Sierra Leone. The framework document was presented to the Ministry of Education by the Commonwealth Secretary General in May 2004. Our next step will be a series of initiatives to convert the Framework into an agreed curriculum and methodology.
UK-Sierra Leone Local Government Links
We support setting up new links between communities in Sierra Leone and communities in the UK to promote cultural exchange and information and skills-sharing. Currently there are strong links between Freetown and Hull, Bo and Warwick, Newton and Olney (Bucks), and Hastings (England) and Hastings (Sierra Leone).
If you represent a community or community group in the UK and are interested in joining the scheme and finding a local a partner in Sierra Leone please contact our Director.
50/50 Group
The poor representation of women in public office and parliament has been of considerable concern for some time. Indeed, very few women are politically active and those that are often receive marginal roles; few have the skills necessary to articulate women’s concerns and speak cogently on their behalf. The reasons are many and include lack of schooling for many women as a result of the war, poverty and parental discrimination against girl children. (Only 1 woman in 14 in the northern region has been to school).
True democracy is about proper representation for all, and women actually constitute more than half of the population of Sierra Leone (about 52%). To help redress the imbalance, we invited the founder of the UK’s 300 Group, Lesley Abdela, to assist in developing strategies and training to increase women’s participation in democratic politics.
A significant outcome of the training was the formation of the 50-50 group by Sierra Leonean educationalist Dr.Nemata Eshun-Baiden. His Excellency President Ahmad Tejan Kabba officially launched the group on the 30 November 2001. The group has since been campaigning and training activists in order to get more women in Parliament and Local Government. 50-50 has now become a household word in Freetown, as shorthand for women’s rights and progress.
Partnership with the Commonwealth
Our priorities in Sierra Leone include partnering Commonwealth bodies in activities that support our strategic objectives. Our current co-operation includes support to the Commonwealth Secretariat on Gender and Education work, and co-operation with the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association for its training activities for Sierra Leone's MPs. Other co-operation has been with the Commonwealth Local Government Forum for its efforts to link Sierra Leone and UK communities, and the Commonwealth Youth Programme in identifying suitable leadership candidates. We have supported both the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association and the Commonwealth Press Union in cost-sharing the training and visits of journalists. Work with the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative and administration of Commonwealth Scholars has furthered the relationship.
Youth and Sports
Our Youth and Sports Programme is part of a world-wide initiative by the British Council which aims to develop greater awareness of how sport can underpin creative education and build civil society. Sport can help develop leadership and cross-cultural awareness in young people. We are anxious to support any constructive initiatives that will promote sporting prowess and are focusing our efforts on two sports in particular, football and cricket.
Young Women Leaders
In 2003 we launched a ground-breaking initiative to establish a network of young women leaders in Sierra Leone, who would come to play an active leadership role in their organisations and communities. Mary-Ann Stephenson, former Director of the Fawcett Society in London, was invited to advise the Group. Since that time, the network of young women has grown to around 150, and many have received skills training. The group meets regularly providing a forum and support for young women leaders to take forward their ideas.
For more details contact our Customer Services Officers.
SCRIPTNET – REEL PEACE
We are working with REEL PEACE supported by the Commonwealth, this is a regional training and production project for film and television media which has initiated a project in Sierra Leone.
The first Phase in 2004-5 aims to develop new talent for writing for the screen – the precursor to any successful screen drama. This will focus only on fiction drama, no documentaries. We are looking to develop dramas that contribute to peace and reconciliation through a creative approach to issues, engaging storylines and socially responsible messages.
The Second phase in 2005-6 will develop, produce and exhibit five short films and provide further technical training to broadcasters and production companies in Sierra Leone. This will be accompanied by exhibition programmes in Sierra Leone and internationally.
INTERACTION LEADERSHIP PROGRAMME
The InterAction programme works to build and maintain an influential network of opinion formers and future leaders in recognition of the distinctive public diplomacy role we can play in Africa. In Sierra Leone the programme will identify 15 future leaders and help to enhance their capacity and skills. Apply here.
CONNECTING FUTURES
In today’s globalised world many of us perceive and fear a slide towards homogeneity of culture. Also worrying is the dominance in the media of events and global issues that characterise intolerance and misunderstanding between cultures, many of which are asserting their heterogeneity, their unique differences and their desire to be both understood, and separate.
This regional project will provide a framework for 10 stories representative of young people’s understanding of, and relationship with other cultures. This framework will be identified, researched, filmed and edited into short documentaries that provide insights into issues of local, national and regional identities in a globalised world.
The aim of the project is to give young film makers from 6 countries the opportunity to film personal stories about the interconnectedness of cultures and identities. In giving these stories to larger audiences through public exhibition and the internet, we will promote intercultural dialogue, witness shared concerns and increase mutual understanding. The 10 short films will be made in two countries and jointly edited by pairs of film makers (UK – Senegal; UK – Sierra Leone; UK – Ghana; UK – Cameroon; UK – Nigeria) Their subject matter will be identified and developed using focus group research in both countries. In the first year the films will be shot. In the second year they will be edited, launched and toured.
DFID Governance Projects
We have recently completed two major governance projects for DFID (the UK’s Department for International Development). The first was in support of the legal sector including the judiciary. The second was in support of the Media. We partnered the UK’s Thomson Foundation on the Management of the Media Project. We also supported a local NGO Campaign for Good Governance in their governance programme.
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