Geneva, Switzerland,
On Friday 13 June 2025, Sierra Leone’s Minister of Employment, Labour and Social Security, Honourable Mohamed Rahman Swaray, reaffirmed the country’s commitment to strengthening collaboration with the International Labour Organization (ILO) during a courtesy visit to the ILO Director-General, Mr. Gilbert F. Houngbo, at the organization’s headquarters in Geneva.
The visit aimed to convey a goodwill message from His Excellency President Dr. Julius Maada Bio to Mr. Houngbo, who is the first African to serve as ILO Director-General.
Minister Swaray assured the ILO leadership of Sierra Leone’s full support, and emphasized the importance of continued cooperation between Sierra Leone and the ILO.
During the meeting, Minister Swaray briefed Mr. Houngbo on Sierra Leone’s recent efforts in the labour sector, including the successful hosting of the country’s first-ever National Labour Conference and Social Dialogue Forum. He highlighted key focus areas such as capacity building for International Labour Standards (ILS) reporting, job creation programmes, labour migration governance, the development of a Labour Market Information System (LMIS), and the formalization of the informal sector.
The Minister also sought ILO’s support for resource mobilisation and technical assistance to conduct a new Labour Force Survey, the last of which was held in 2014. He further requested assistance for the development of a national Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) policy and support for the ratification of ILO Convention C190 on Violence and Harassment in the workplace.
Commending the ILO for its longstanding technical support to Sierra Leone, Minister Swaray reiterated the government’s commitment to fulfilling its obligations as a Member State. He appealed for continued capacity building, assistance with resource mobilisation, support for the implementation of the Decent Work Country Programme Phase II, and efforts to strengthen the Tripartite Plus Social Dialogue Forum, a key platform for engagement between government, employers, and workers.
Minister Swaray expressed gratitude for the warm reception, and reaffirmed Sierra Leone’s commitment to work closely with the ILO in promoting decent work and strengthening labour standards.
In his response, Mr. Houngbo thanked President Bio for his goodwill message and assured the delegation of Sierra Leone of his commitment to strengthening cooperation between the ILO and Sierra Leone. He emphasized the ILO’s readiness to deepen collaboration, particularly in building institutional capacity and promoting decent work to ensure a productive and harmonious working environment.
Minister Swaray was accompanied by the Mission’s Staff, alongside the Ministry’s technical team and representatives of Sierra Leone’s labour sector.
Forming part of the Sierra Leone delegation were Mr. Ones Albert Kobina Walker, President of the Sierra Leone Employers Federation; Mr. Albert Ojo Ulric Collier, Executive Secretary of the Sierra Leone Employers Federation; and Mr. Max Korombo Conteh, Secretary-General of the Sierra Leone Labour Congress.
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Mohamed Sheriff
Information Attaché | Geneva, Switzerland