CONAKRY, Oct 2, 2026 — Vice President Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh has been received in Conakry as a special guest of Guinean President Col. Mamadi Doumbouya for Guinea’s 68th Independence Day celebrations.
Dr. Jalloh arrived in Conakry on Wednesday and was welcomed at the airport by senior Guinean government officials and Sierra Leone’s Ambassador to Guinea, *Alhaji Brima Koroma*.
His presence at the celebrations comes just weeks after his working visit to Conakry on September 14, 2026, where he held closed-door talks in French with Guinea’s Prime Minister Amadou Oury Bah. The talks focused on irregular migration, joint border security, cross-border trade, and complaints of harassment of Sierra Leonean traders and workers in Guinea.
Guinea became the first French-speaking African country to gain independence on October 2, 1958, after voting “No” in the French referendum under late President Ahmed Sékou Touré.
This year’s celebration is being held under the theme: “Drawing Inspiration from the Past to Build the Future Together: Our Youth,” with a military parade at the Stade du 28 Septembre and cultural displays expected.
For Sierra Leone, relations with Guinea remain critical. The two countries share a 550km border, and cooperation is key on issues ranging from the Yenga border dispute to the joint management of the Great Scarcies and other transboundary resources, the fight against smuggling, and the recent ECOWAS push for free movement.
Guinea under President Doumbouya, who took power in a September 2021 coup, is currently in a transition period, with presidential elections expected before the end of 2026 after a constitutional referendum last month.
Vice President Jalloh’s invitation as a guest of honour is seen as a sign of the strong personal rapport between the two governments, despite Guinea’s suspension from ECOWAS following the coup.
He is expected to hold a brief bilateral meeting with President Doumbouya on the sidelines of the celebrations before returning to Freetown on Friday.
