Labour Minister Secures November Undertaking

By Mahmud Tim Kargbo

Marampa Mines management has undertaken to resolve outstanding redundancy matters by the end of November, following intervention by Employment Minister Umaru Napoleon Koroma. The pledge places a major mining operation’s recovery under scrutiny and raises a pressing question: can commercial restructuring protect the rights and prospects of the people whose work sustains the mine?

Koroma gave the assurance after meeting management, union representatives and workers at the mine on 3 November 2026. Officials from the Ministry of Employment, Labour and Social Security and the National Minerals Agency (NMA) also attended. He said his Ministry would monitor the commitments and ensure that employer-employee relations complied with the law. The meeting did not establish statutory compliance.

Paul Lombard, Chief Executive Officer of Marampa Mines Holding, said the company sought to restart as a stronger, more sustainable business. He attributed the restructuring to higher international freight rates, rising fuel costs and difficult conditions in the global iron ore market. He also cited improvements under the Marampa Reset Programme in production performance, plant recovery and operational discipline. Lower operating costs, he said, were necessary to restore competitiveness.

Management said restructuring had begun with expatriate positions to rebalance expatriate and national employment. It pledged greater emphasis on career progression for Sierra Leoneans, skills transfer and leadership development. Their test will be measurable national recruitment, promotion and skills transfer. Management praised workers for their calm and constructive approach, and promised fairness, transparency and continued engagement.

That ambition has a statutory foundation. Part VIII of the Sierra Leone Local Content Agency Act, 2016 gives qualified citizens first consideration for employment and training, and requires employment plans and human-resource development. Section 61 separately addresses technology transfer. Parliament publishes the Act at https://www.parliament.gov.sl/uploads/acts/The%20Sierra%20Leone%20Local%20Content%20Agency%20Act%2C%202016.pdf. Section 23 of the Employment Act, 2023 also gives first consideration to Sierra Leoneans and requires a training and succession plan where a foreign expert is hired because local skills are unavailable: https://sierralii.gov.sl/akn/sl/act/2023/15/eng%402023-05-11. For mining, section 167 of the Mines and Minerals Development Act, 2022 requires preference for qualified citizens and a skills-development plan: https://sierralii.gov.sl/akn/sl/act/2023/16/eng%402023-05-12.

The political commitments are relevant, but they are not law. The SLPP’s 2018 New Direction Manifesto promised a Sierra Leonean First Policy, improved work-permit monitoring, opportunities for qualified nationals, counterpart training and stronger labour-law enforcement (pp. 53-55). It also pledged collaboration with trade unions and social dialogue. An archived copy is available at https://www.sierra-leone.org/Docs/SLPP-Manifesto2018.pdf. The party’s 2023 manifesto renewed those commitments, promising to strengthen the Ministry’s enforcement capacity, collaborate with the Sierra Leone Labour Congress and employers’ organisations, implement the Employment Act, 2023, and apply Part VIII of the Local Content Agency Act. It also pledged job-creation and national skills-development requirements in agreements with foreign firms, including mining companies (pp. 36-38): https://statehouse.gov.sl/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/The-Full-New-Direction-Manifesto-Consolidating-Gains-And-Accelerating-Transformation-Thursday-23-May-2023.pdf. Marampa’s stated intentions accord with that policy direction. Their credibility will depend on results.

For workers facing redundancy, the immediate test is the Employment Act, 2023. Section 82 requires an employer contemplating workplace changes likely to cause redundancy to give the Commissioner and, where applicable, the trade union written information at least three months before the changes. The information must state the reasons, number and categories of workers likely to be affected, and proposed timing. The employer must consult workers or their union on avoiding or reducing job losses and mitigating their effects. The section also provides for “last in, first out”, subject to relative merit, and requires best endeavours to negotiate redundancy payments. The Act is available at https://sierralii.gov.sl/akn/sl/act/2023/15/eng%402023-05-11.

Section 86 imposes additional requirements where an employer contemplates terminating at least five per cent of its workforce within no more than four weeks for economic, technological, structural or force majeure reasons. It requires consultation, disclosure to union representatives and written notification to the Commissioner. Representatives must generally receive the relevant information at least four weeks before the first termination takes effect, unless that is not reasonably practicable. Whether this provision applies at Marampa depends on the number of workers affected and the proposed timetable, neither of which was disclosed. Section 80 separately provides severance pay or end-of-service benefit for workers who have served the same employer continuously for at least one year and whose services end for reasons other than gross misconduct, as well as in specified cases of retirement, death or resignation.

Koroma said this was his first visit outside Freetown concerning workers’ issues since taking office. He said redundancy was recognised under the Employment Act and that the Ministry must ensure lawful relations between employers and employees. Management had assured him, he said, that outstanding matters would be resolved by the end of November and affected workers would receive their rightful entitlements. He directed officials to protect workers’ interests and praised their patience. An assurance is a commitment to be monitored, not evidence that the statutory process has been completed.

Ibrahim Sattie Kamara, representing the NMA, apologised for the absence of the Minister of Mines and Mineral Resources and conveyed the Ministry’s support. He commended the workers’ calm, acknowledged mining’s economic importance and said Government had tried to avert the situation, although some challenges were beyond its control. He said the difficulties were not the end of the road. The NMA’s mandate includes regulating mineral rights and minerals trading, advising on mining policy and promoting responsible sector development and community rights: https://www.nma.gov.sl/mandate-mission-vision/. Union representative Mohamed Kabia thanked the delegation, while workers appealed for fair treatment and meaningful opportunities in future operations.

Koroma described Marampa Mines as an important national asset and urged workers to remain hopeful. He said some might return when operations resumed, but did not guarantee re-employment. The responsibilities are now clear: management must honour its legal duties and commitments; the Ministry must verify compliance; and institutions must make national employment and skills development tangible. The mine’s recovery will be measured in restored production. Its enduring value to Sierra Leone will also be measured in the opportunities it creates and the rights it respects.