By Emma Black

Statistics Sierra Leone (Stats SL) has held a high-level strategic meeting with the ministry of health and sanitation (MoHS) on Monday 7 July 2025, to discuss the implementation roadmap for the country’s upcoming demographic and health survey (DHS).

The meeting, held at the ministry’s headquarters on the 4th and 5th floors of the Youyi Building in Freetown, brought together key stakeholders to review progress, discuss budget revisions, and chart the way forward for the long-awaited national survey.

Present at the engagement were minister of health and sanitation, Dr. Austin Demby; statistician general of stats SL, Mr. Andrew Bob Johnny; chief medical officer, Dr. Sartie Kanneh; deputy minister of health, Dr. Tom Sesay; and the director of the demographic, health, and social statistics division at stats SL, Mr. Mohamed Koblo Kamara, other senior officials from both institutions also participated.

Statistician-General Johnny delivered a detailed status update, noting that coordination with ICF, the global technical partner supporting DHS implementation, is ongoing, he informed stakeholders that a thorough budget review has been completed and revisions to the DHS project document are currently in progress to reflect updated priorities.

Health minister Dr. Austin Demby commended Stats SL for its consistent professionalism and commitment to providing accurate, data-driven insights that guide national health interventions, we are eager to see the DHS implemented this year, Dr. Demby emphasized, t

he ministry has been operating based on the 2019 DHS report, which is now outdated, we urgently need fresh, reliable data to better plan and manage our health services, he assured the full backing of the government to ensure the successful execution of the DHS.

Adding to the conversation, chief medical officer Dr. Sartie Kanneh urged stats SL to fast-track the remaining administrative processes and finalize the signing of the DHS implementation contract within two weeks.

The demographic and health survey is a vital, nationally representative household survey that collects key indicators on population health, reproductive health, child nutrition, and family planning, the data collected is instrumental for government agencies, health professionals, and international partners in monitoring and evaluating health and development programs across the country, as planning continues, stakeholders are optimistic that this critical national exercise will soon begin, helping shape policy decisions and improve service delivery across Sierra Leone’s health sector.

Copyright –Published in Expo Times News on Wednsday,9th July, 2025 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)