AWE Media Sierra Leone

By: Alusine Rehme Wilson  Sierra Leone's reigning Premier League champions, East End Lions FC, are set to begin their 2025 CAF Champions League campaign today in Tunisia, facing off against US Monastir at the Hammadi Agrebi Stadium.  Today clash which will get underway at 13:00hrs, marks the start of the Sierra Leone soccer powerhouse club's continental journey, with a strong squad bolstered by foreign talents. Leading the squad is Ghanaian defender Abdul Nyameke, who has been handed the captain’s armband for the campaign.  The Ghanian born defender was instrumental in East End Lions' domestic triumph in the 2024/25 season and now becomes part of a new wave of foreign players making their mark on the club. Joining Nyameke are five other international recruits, namely Guineans Mohamed Cissé Koua (goalkeeper), Aliya Bangoura (defender), and Alhassane Doumbouya (midfielder), alongside Ivorians Sam Diallo (winger) and Ibrahim Sorie Dumbuya (midfielder). Together, these player...

‼️PRESS RELEASE In preparation for the upcoming 2026 Population and Housing Census, Statistics Sierra Leone (Stats SL) will commence a ten-day nationwide training program for field officers in support of its national cartographic mapping exercise. This critical training initiative marks a foundational step toward delivering a credible, inclusive, and technologically driven 2026 Census. The training exercise will run from Monday, 22nd September to Wednesday, 1st October 2025, and will take place simultaneously across all regional centers: Bo, Kenema, Makeni, Port Loko, and the Western Area (Rural and Urban). Purpose of the Training The training is designed to equip selected field personnel with both the technical and practical skills needed for accurate and standardized cartographic mapping across the country. Participants will be trained in the use of modern digital tools, including GPS-enabled devices and Geographic Information System (GIS) software (EADPad), to effectively: •Deline...

By: Alhaji A. Barrie The Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) Interim Transition Committee, formed after the Elective Congress of August 2nd, 2025, has released a damning report that reveals deep-rooted dysfunction across the organization’s governance and financial systems.  The seven man committee headed by renowned journalist and lecturer, Mr. Issac Massaquoi was tasked with assessing SLFA’s operational health and ensuring a structured handover, the committee’s findings have sent shockwaves through the football community. As part of their interim mandate handed to them by the new SLFA president Babadi Kamara to assess SLFA’s operational health and ensuring a structured handover, the Transition Committee conducted a comprehensive review of governance, finance, competitions, staffing, and coordination with oversight bodies.  However, thier findings are troubling. They found a pattern of neglect, opacity, and mismanagement that has left the Association vulnerable and adrift...

By: Alusine Rehme Wilson  As Bhantal Football Club prepares to make its debut in continental football, newly appointed head coach Ibrahim Sillah says he is determined to guide the team to a historic campaign in the 2025/26 CAF Confederation Cup. The Sierra Leonean Premier League runners-up will host Guinea’s Hafia FC this Saturday, September 20, at the Southern Arena in Bo, in the first leg of the preliminary round. Speaking to AWE Media Sierra Leone, Coach Sillah described the upcoming match as a defining moment for both the club and the country.  “Bhantal FC may be a young club, but what they’ve achieved in just two years is remarkable,” Sillah said. "Now, we have an opportunity to represent Sierra Leone on the continental stage, and I’m here to make sure we do so with pride and purpose," he noted. Established only two years ago, Bhantal FC has rapidly climbed the ranks of Sierra Leonean football. The club has finished as runners-up in the national Premier League in consecu...

By: Alusine Rehme Wilson  A new partnership between the Dorwontony Organization for the Aged (DOFA) and Air Sierra Leone is set to bring renewed attention to elderly care in Sierra Leone, with a focus on dignity, recognition, and support for senior citizens, particularly elderly women affected by the country’s civil war. The collaboration was officially launched with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding, positioning Air Sierra Leone as the official sponsor of DOFA’s upcoming  Miss Old is Gold  pageant, an annual event celebrating older women during the national Month of the Aged. Beyond event sponsorship, Air Sierra Leone will also feature DOFA’s  Old People Magazine  on its flights and participate in future community outreach projects that seek to improve the lives of older people nationwide. Speaking at the signing, Air Sierra Leone’s Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Sukhjinder Mann, said the airline sees the partnership as a moral and social responsibilit...

By: Kemo Cham The Africa Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) on Monday September 15th convened a high level stakeholders’ meeting in Freetown, with the objective of rallying support for the enactment of a modern mental health legislation in Sierra Leone. A draft bill in the making for over 15 years, led by the Ministry of Health (MoH), is already before lawmakers. If passed, it will repeal a colonial era law campaigners say is not only overly outdated, but also serves as barrier to access to mental services in the country. This initiative by Africa CDC is part of implementation of the African Union’s strategy on mental health, which seeks to strengthen mental health systems, improve service access, reduce stigma and develop leadership and policy capacity in member countries. And it is a crucial part of the African Union's Agenda 2063 development blueprint. The Freetown engagement held at the Atlantic Lumley Hotel in Aberdeen is one of several activities being u...

By: Alhaji A. Barrie  In a move that has reverberated through diplomatic circles with quiet gravity, U.S. Ambassador to Sierra Leone, Bryan Hunt, has officially resigned from his post, citing urgent family responsibilities.  The decision, confirmed by multiple sources, was prompted by a serious medical emergency involving his father, who is being discharged today following a major heart operation. Ambassador Hunt’s resignation was submitted directly to President Donald J. Trump and is effective immediately. He is not expected to return to Freetown. Leadership at the U.S. Embassy in Sierra Leone has now transitioned to Chargé d’Affaires Yancey, who will oversee mission operations in the interim. Sources close to Hunt describe the resignation as “immediate and deeply personal,” made within hours of receiving news of his father’s condition. With his mother now facing the emotional and logistical demands of caregiving, Hunt chose to step away from his diplomatic role to be present...