FREETOWN, Monday 26 October 2026 – Former President Ernest Bai Koroma has arrived at the Freetown International Conference Centre, Bintumani, to participate in the National Unity and Social Cohesion Conference.
The former President, who is also Chairman and Leader of the main opposition All People’s Congress (APC), was received at the entrance and escorted into the main conference hall by Vice President Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh and the National Chairman of the ruling Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), Jimmy Batilo Songa.
The moment – a former APC President being received by the leadership of the SLPP Government – drew applause from participants and has been described by many as a powerful symbol of national unity.
The two-day conference is organised by the Independent Commission for Peace and National Cohesion (ICPNC) under the theme: “From Commitment to Action: Rebuilding Trust, Strengthening National Unity and Advancing Social Cohesion.”
President Julius Maada Bio is expected to deliver the keynote address titled “Sierra Leone’s Next Chapter of Peace and National Unity.” The conference brings together current and former leaders, political parties, traditional and religious leaders, civil society, women and youth groups, the media and international partners.
According to sources close to the former President, Koroma cut short his participation in the Tana High-Level Forum on Security in Africa, which is taking place in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia, to attend the Freetown gathering.
The Tana Forum is Africa’s premier annual security forum, bringing together Heads of State, policymakers and experts to discuss peace and security on the continent. Koroma, who is a member of the Tana Forum Board and a regular participant, had been invited as a former Head of State and statesman.
His decision to leave Ethiopia to attend the national conference underscores the importance attached to the Freetown process.
The conference is expected to produce the Freetown Declaration on National Unity and Social Cohesion 2026 and comes three years after the Government and APC signed the Agreement for National Unity (ANU) on 18th October 2023, following the disputed June 2023 elections.
The ANU, brokered by ECOWAS, the African Union and the Commonwealth, ended the APC’s boycott of governance and set up mechanisms for dialogue and electoral reforms through the Tripartite Committee.
The ICPNC says it hopes the conference will move the country from commitments to concrete action on peacebuilding, inclusion and responsible political communication.
