Senegal’s Prime Minister, Ousmane Sonko, left, with Sierra Leone’s Vice President, Juldeh Jalloh, at the Freetown International Airport yesterday, on arrival Sonko

Abubakar Hashim

Senegal’s Prime Minister, Ousmane Sonko, arrived in Sierra Leone yesterday, June 2, 2025 and was received at the Freetown International Airport by the Vice President, Dr Juldeh Jalloh.

He is currently meeting with President Julius Maada Bio at State House.

His two-day visit is crucially significant for two mutually beneficial and operationally related reasons:

1. Development of a regional mineral hub, domiciled in Sierra Leone, to cater for the processing of minerals to add value to the contents before exports and even local use.
2. ⁠Develop food energy sovereignty. Bio’s “Feed Salone” program, which received accolades at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Ibadan, Nigeria, will be topical in today’s discussion between Sonko and Bio. Senegal will study Sierra Leone’s strategies toward food sovereignty

An MoU and a communique will be signed at the end of today’s meeting

Ousmane Sonko became Prime Minister in Senegal when Bassirou Diomaye Faye won the Presidency in 2024.

Both were imprisoned by former President Mackey Sall, but were eventually released due to widespread demonstrations by Senegalese. Prisoners Faye and Sonko became the people’s choice as President and Prime Minister, respectively.

Sonko’s visit is the outcome of the ongoing diversification process in Senegal, away from the newly discovered oil, into agribusiness and energy sufficiency.

Senegal (together with Ghana, Liberia), has been the bastion of democracy in West Africa.

* Abubakar Hashim in TheNWS’ West Africa Bureau Chief