December 10, 2010
President Julius Maada Bio has reassured his government’s commitment to human capital development while making a presentation at the Mandela 100 Global Citizen Festival in Johannesburg, South Africa.
This year’s festival focused on human capital development. President Bio was invited as special guest by World Bank President Jim Yong to join other world leaders make commitment on investing in human capital development.
President Bio said his government has placed priority on human capacity building as the basis for development. He said that in the absence of quality education, it would be difficult to move the development process forward. He noted that without access to quality education, children would not have the right start to life.
The president also informed his colleague heads of state that as part of his commitment to the provision of quality and accessible education for all Sierra Leoneans, his government has increased budgetary allocation to education to 21%, adding that the figures would get better in the years to come.
“I made these commitments as president because it is my responsibility to the citizens. By prioritising and investing in our children through quality teaching and learning inputs, my government is investing in human capital growth and empowering the youths to be the generation that will end poverty in our time,” he said.
In another engagement, President Bio and team also met with members of the Congressional Black Caucus, led by congress woman Barbra Lee, and held fruitful discussions to explore possible areas of cooperation and engagement, especially on ways to leverage congressional and US investment in Sierra Leone.
The Mandela 100 Global Citizen Festival is a historic stage for not only donor countries but also African countries standing up for his hope for the future, making sure that Africa stands up and its voice is heard. This year’s festival brought together its largest contingency of heads of state, dignitaries, a group of the world’s most talented artistes and influencers, and thousands of global citizens to celebrate the centenary of Nelson Mandela.