By Sulaiman Jalloh
The Sierra Leone Maritime Authority (SLMA) has concluded a 2-day seminar on Mainstreaming the Maritime Domain and the blue economy at the Freetown City Council Hall under the theme: ‘Imperative for leveraging and optimizing opportunities and potentials of the Maritime Domain and the blue economy in Sierra Leone. The seminar, which started on the 4th and ended March 5th, 2024 attracted different people from different walks of life, including students, the security sector the media, heads of parastatals/MDAs and staffers of the SLMA to ensure proper education on the blue economy.
The executive director of SLMA, Mr Paul Sobba Massaquoi spoke about the statutory mandate, impact and highlighted some of the strategic plans of the authority especially on the actualization of the multi fore cited of the blue economy which includes sustainable fishery, the impact of the establishment of the marine administration, noting the blue economy is in need of the African economic revolution and has huge potential for younger generation for economic growth.
He added that the country’s blue economy potential has to invite major sectors that includes extraction and use of marine non-living resources, noting that the African continent has an estimated blue economy of about one trillion dollars, adding that countries in the sub-region are suffering from over extraction, dumping of micro plastics waste among others. He therefore called on every sector connected to his institution to join him and coordinate for the good of Marine water.
Speaking as a guest the chairman presidential initiative on climate change, renewable energy and food security Hon. Kandeh Yumkella said there is a need for coordination to the marine water in order to improve the country’s economy, noting by coming together, working together to take care and protect the water, oceans millions of dollars will be generated something he said will benefit everyone.
“If we manage it well every year we will make money out of it, but for Sierra Leone there is no control; people do fish at their will and at the same time people complain that there is no fish” Hon. Yumkella said, adding that the water pollution has affected the country’s fishing industry greatly. “As when we go fishing, we will see waste materials in the water? Like used blades, broken bottles” he asked, according to him that has been a contributing factor to the African countries producing poor qualities of fish.
Also speaking was the oversight committee chairman on maritime authority at the house of parliament Hon. Ambros Maada Lebby who said parliament has the mandate to provide oversight responsibility and to pass laws that suit effective functioning of SLMA. He therefore pledged his committee’s support to ensure that valuable laws are passed.
The registrar at the court of Sierra Leone Lansana Kotor Kamara who spoke on behalf the chief justice said Sierra Leone has emerged as a leader of maritime laws, noting during the first and the second World war Sierra Leone played an important role as the country served as an allied forces and there are so many treaties the African country signed, adding that the 1991 constitution of Sierra Leone has a provision of the admiralty law in chapters 2 and 3.
“Chapter 2 and 3 of the 1991 constitution made it very clear that Sierra Leone should protect the maritime domain in fact even if you look at section 44 (d) of the 1991 constitution which gives the executive the power to ensure that they enter into treaties which affect our maritime domain”, he stated, adding that the common law of England and most of the laws are applicable to Sierra Leone.
Lawyer Kamara highlighted some of the problems faced by Sierra Leone among which he mentioned is poor coordination; according to him engineers need lawyers, securities need parliamentarians and vice-vasa, noting education and outreach is one of the problems amongst other problems he highlighted.
Robert Kondema kargbo is a journalist and a publisher of one of the newspapers in the country notes that the media controls the minds of the masses and to ensure the sustainability of the blue economy public engagement is very crucial, noting SLMA should organize a regular training for journalists in order to educate them on how to report on maritime issues.
Copyright –Published in Expo Times News on Monday, March 11th, 2024 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
