By: Kadiatu Sankoh
The Commissioner and Registrar of the Sierra Leone Commission on Arms and Ammunition (SLCAA), Major General (Rtd.) Christian Fahim Marah, has outlined significant achievements of the Commission during the weekly government press briefing on Tuesday, August 5, 2025. He reminded journalists that the Commission’s core mandate is to supervise, regulate, and manage the manufacturing, use, and trade of small arms and ammunition, along with other related materials.
Commissioner Marah recalled that one of the key challenges that united both the government and the international community after Sierra Leone’s 11-year civil war was the absence of a national mechanism to collect weapons from individuals in possession of arms and ammunition. To address this, the Sierra Leone National Commission on Small Arms was established by an Act of Parliament in 2010. A review of the 2010 Act led to the enactment of a new law in 2012, and in 2024, Act No. 23 formally changed the name of the body to the Sierra Leone Commission on Arms and Ammunition.
He explained that the transition to SLCAA was undertaken to align Sierra Leone’s legal framework with the provisions of the Arms Trade Treaty and ECOWAS regulations on small arms, to which the country is a signatory. He noted that over the years, the Commission has revised its laws to meet contemporary international standards and developed a national work plan to guide its activities up to 2029.
Highlighting recent achievements, Commissioner Marah revealed that in 2025 alone, the Commission successfully destroyed 3,900 unserviceable weapons. Prior to this, 8,500 weapons had already been destroyed. While some of these were still functional, they were deliberately destroyed to reduce the number of individuals carrying arms in the country.
He also disclosed that between July 21 and 25, 2025, the Commission completed a weapons-marking training programme to enhance the ability to trace weapons used in criminal activities. This weapons-marking system has already been rolled out across all regions of the country except the Western Area. Additionally, more than 1,000 weapon licences have been issued to private individuals, further strengthening the Commission’s oversight and control of firearms nationwide.