A New Industrial Future: The Roadmap Emerging From Sierra Leone’s 2025 Manufacturers Conference

The 2025 Manufacturers Conference was more than a gathering — it was a recalibration of Sierra Leone’s industrial journey. After two days of presentations, dialogue, exhibitions, and policy reflections, one message stood out with unmistakable clarity: Sierra Leone’s manufacturing sector is no longer on the margins of the national economy — it is being positioned […]
Policy, Power, and Progress: Inside the High-Level Discussions That Are Reshaping Sierra Leone’s Manufacturing Future

If there was one message that echoed through the policy-focused sessions of the 2025 Manufacturers Conference, it was this: Industrialisation is no longer an abstract aspiration — it is a national imperative. Over two days, ministers, regulators, technical agencies, private-sector leaders, and development partners tackled the structural issues shaping Sierra Leone’s manufacturing landscape. Their discussions […]
Inside the Private Sector Session: What Manufacturers Really Said About Fixing Sierra Leone’s Industrial Economy

At the 2025 Manufacturers Conference, the Private Sector Session emerged as one of the most candid and consequential conversations of the entire event. Away from the formal speeches and protocol, manufacturers spoke openly about the realities shaping production in Sierra Leone — from energy reliability to standards, access to finance, policy bottlenecks, and the urgency […]
From Vision to Action: How Sierra Leone’s Manufacturing Agenda Is Being Rebuilt from the Ground Up

Sierra Leone’s 2025 Manufacturers Conference did more than gather policymakers and CEOs under one roof — it signalled a decisive shift in how the country intends to rebuild its industrial base. Anchored by the President’s message and the Minister of Trade and Industry’s charge to the sector, the event outlined a new era of manufacturing […]
Sierra Leone’s Manufacturing Reboot: A New National Direction Emerges from the 2025 Manufacturers Conference

Sierra Leone’s manufacturing sector entered a new chapter of ambition and clarity during the 2025 Manufacturers Dialogue Conference and Exhibition — the first of its kind in the country’s history. What unfolded over two days at the Freetown International Conference Centre was more than a technical dialogue; it was a sector-wide mobilisation, backed by strong […]
From Policy to Practice: Sierra Leone Steps Into a New Trade Era at the AfCFTA Regional Conference

Sierra Leone took a decisive step toward rewriting its place in Africa’s trading future as government leaders, regional institutions, development partners, and private-sector actors convened in Freetown for the Sierra Leone AfCFTA Regional Conference, held 14–17 October 2025. Hosted at the Foreign Service Academy, the four-day gathering did more than tick boxes on continental obligations […]
Sierra Leone Steps Forward: How the AfCFTA Conference Positioned the Country as a Front-Runner in Regional Trade Readiness

Sierra Leone’s ambition to become a competitive player under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) took centre stage during the October 2025 National AfCFTA Conference in Freetown. Over four days, regional bodies, development partners, the private sector, and government agencies openly acknowledged Sierra Leone’s progress — highlighting the country as a reform-driven, increasingly coordinated, […]
From Rules to Opportunities: A Practical Guide to AfCFTA’s Rules of Origin for Sierra Leonean Businesses as Discussed in the AfCFTA Conference

Insights from the Technical Sessions of the AfCFTA National Conference As Sierra Leone prepares to trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), one issue emerged repeatedly during the National AfCFTA Conference in October 2025: understanding the Rules of Origin (RoO). They are the gateway to the entire agreement — determining which goods qualify […]
Women, Youth & the AfCFTA: What Sierra Leone Learned About Inclusive Trade at the National AfCFTA Conference

Women and youth drive Sierra Leone’s economy — farming, processing, trading, transporting, and powering local markets across the country. Yet, as highlighted at the National AfCFTA Conference held in Freetown, Sierra Leone (14–17 October 2025), they remain among the groups most constrained by structural barriers that limit their participation in cross-border and formal trade. The […]
Sierra Leone’s Manufacturing Reboot: A New National Direction Emerges from the 2025 Manufacturers Conference

Sierra Leone’s manufacturing sector entered a new chapter of ambition and clarity during the 2025 Manufacturers Dialogue Conference and Exhibition — the first of its kind in the country’s history. What unfolded over two days at the Freetown International Conference Centre was more than a technical dialogue; it was a sector-wide mobilisation, backed by strong […]