‘My mother always looked radiant and beautiful in the kitchen, wearing her ‘Lappa’ (a T-shirt and a head wrap). She reminded me of a ‘Shining Star’. She was always so stunning’. My fondest memory was the day I used my lunch money to buy twelve yards of fabric for her. She sewed for herself and…

My name is Ayesha Alexis Kaikai.  I am 13 years old, born on June 23 2005 to Jemillatu Lewally-Stober and Abubakar Kaikai. I live in Freetown, Sierra Leone with my mother and sister. In my spare time I love to read, sketch, listen to music and dance or just relax. At  7,  I dreamt of…

As a young boy growing up, Maka became interested in basketball and started playing during his secondary school days. With a lot of determination and passion, Maka, under the mentorship of Patrick Sundifu found himself playing for the 1st division at the National Basketball League. Maka reached the height of his basketball career in 2011…

It’s a pleasure to introduce ISHMEAL ALFRED CHARLES (read that again- Ishmeal). He says it’s always a challenge to write his name; as the computer will try to correct it and end up making it wrong.  His dream has always been to help those in need of it, especially the sick, when he was a…

Hands up if you took an okada (commercial motorbike) to work this morning. If its per the usual; the rider must have sped beyond limit. Took sharp turns and could barely wait for you to pay. ‘Passenger duya, try for mi’ When was the last time you waited hours to process one small document, at a…

Yakama Manty Jones is a Sierra Leonean woman with a passion for education and development, both in the personal and economic sense.  Having being groomed from an early age by her parents, Sanah Jonhsen Mara and Zaria Amina Mara on the importance of education, she finds everything that has to do with learning and acquiring…

`The highest rates of child mortality are still in Sub-Saharan Africa—where 1 in 9 children dies before age five, more than 16 times the average for developed regions (1 in 152). Under-five mortality rate in Africa (per 1,000 live births) declined from 163 in 1990 to 100 in 2011′.-USAID   Most statistics around healthcare in Africa borders between  two words  dire or depressing,…

Luciana Gilmore, was and will always be an educator at heart. She is the founder of  mothers and daughters revived. This is a conference that supports connections between mothers and daughters, creating a safe space to share while heightening awareness surrounding issues that have historically severed ties between them. She was in education for over…

Asmaa James is an award-winning female radio broadcaster with over 18 years of radio broadcast experience in post conflict Sierra Leone. Her passion and interests include upholding and promoting independent media platforms, creating safe spaces for diverse voices, positions and interests with the aim of promoting an active citizenry, whilst strengthening democratic governance. Due to…

My childhood was exciting, I had parents who were middle-aged and were liberal for the most part. Nonetheless been in a nuclear family setting gave me a guided view, with set intentions and a narrow perspective on life. Everything was pretty much black and white. I relied heavily on emotional support from family, teachers and…