Forthcoming Events
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Past Events
PRESIDENTIAL VISIT: JANUARY 2008
Sunday 27th January
His Excellency, the President Ernest Bai Koroma will meet officials at Southwark Council @ The Peckham Town Hall, Southwark on Sunday, 27th January 2008 for 3:00 pm.
Thereafter, he will meet with Sierra Leoneans in the Diaspora @ The Damilola Taylor Centre in Peckham SE5.
Please contact Bockarie Stevens on 07956610762 for more details on the meeting at the Damilola Centre.
Tuesday 29 January 2008, 13.15 - 14.15, Chatham House
Sierra Leone: An Agenda for
Change
Speaker
HE
Ernest Bai Koroma, President of the Republic of Sierra
Leone
Seven years after a successful British military and
humanitarian intervention, Sierra Leone last year enjoyed
its first democratic change of government in many years.
Sierra Leone is currently bottom of the UN Human
Development Index, and the new President has promised to
tackle the country’s many challenges with a highly
ambitious programme of reforms. With the UK still Sierra
Leone’s major development partner, the President will
outline his plans for the country.
The presentation will be on the record. The questions and
answers will be under the Chatham House Rule.
PLEASE REGISTER BY 17.00 ON THURSDAY 24 JANUARY:
asoliman@chathamhouse.org.uk
YOU WILL BE SENT AN E-TICKET ON FRIDAY 25 JANUARY WHICH YOU
SHOULD PRINT AND BRING WITH YOU TO THE EVENT.
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Gwyn Jay Allen’s ‘I Love Louis’ ALBUM LAUNCH
A Creole Tribute to Louis Armstrong
Vocalist
Gwyn Jay Allen, delivers his Creole Tribute Album to ‘I
Love Louis’
He
will be joined by piano genius, musical director and
producer,
Alex Wilson.
The album on sale on the night, features Grammy award
winner, jazz trumpeter
Roy Hargrove.
Performing on both nights will be the delectable
vocalist
Lauren Dalymple.
The star studded band also features
Quentin Collins
on trumpet,
Troy Miller
on drums,
Neil Charles
on bass,
Barnaby Dickinson
on Trombone and
Joe Caleb
on Guitar with special appearance by Gwyn’s
sons
Nathan Allen
and
Sean Allen
(AKA
Erase).
An evening not to be missed at London’s premier jazz
venue
Pizza Express
in
Soho.
The event will be filmed live for future TV broadcast so
put on your best Cotton Club cotton and be entertained.
Call and book your tickets now, as seats will go fast.
Sunday
27th and Monday 28th January 2008
7.30pm PROMPT
Pizza Express Jazz Club
10 Dean Street,
W1D 3RW, Soho
020 7734 3220
www.pizzaexpresslive.com
7http://www.pizzaexpresslive.com/34
3220rerrr
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Pedal for Sierra Leone
Saturday 24th
– Monday 26th
May 2008
This three-day sponsored cycle ride to the French port of
Dieppe will raise funds for the Hastings Sierra Leone
Friendship Link. The Pedal for Sierra Leone will cover some
beautiful countryside on both sides of the Channel and take
in many places of historic interest en route.
For more information, contact organisers Nice Work on 01797
230730; Email info@nice-work.org.uk or visit
www.nice-work.org.uk
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The African Women's Protocol
A
public event co-hosted by
Oxfam GB, Akina Mama wa Afrika, and Womankind
January 23rd 12-2pm
Franklin-Wilkins Building , Kings College
50 Stamford Street, Waterloo, London SE1 9NH, Waterloo
This is a meeting to share the experiences of women's
movements' efforts in Africa to popularize, and lobby for
the ratification and implementation of the African Women's
Protocol. Members of three civil society organisations and
a government official from Malawi will share their
experiences of working on this important Protocol.
The Protocol came into force in November 2005 and is the
first instrument of international law developed by Africans
for women in Africa. It reinforces attention on women's
rights as elaborated by other international and regional
instruments. And it is the first instrument in
international law to explicitly include women's sexual and
reproductive rights to medical abortion when pregnancy
results from rape or incest or when the continuation of
pregnancy endangers the health of the mother, and calls for
the legal prohibition of female genital mutilation.
Speakers
will include:
•
Matrine Bbukku Chulu, Women and Law Southern Africa
(WILSA),
Zambia
•
Christobel Chakwana, Deputy Director of Women, Ministry of
Women and
Child Welfare , Malawi
•
Muchimba Sikumba Dils, Africa Gender Equality and Women's
Empowerment
Monitor (AGM), South Africa
•
Therese Niyondiko, FEMNET (representing the Solidarity for
Africa Women's
Rights - SOAWR)
We
welcome you to join us to hear about the inspiring work of
the social
movement that has brought this Protocol into force, and the
international
solidarity that is needed to extend the work to effective
implementation
and ensure that the rights of African women are fully
respected.
Sandwiches
and tea/coffee will be available
Please let Ann Burgess, Oxfam GB, know if you are planning
to attend so we
can cater for numbers: aburgess@oxfam. org.uk Tel 01865
472018
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West
Africa/EU Business Relations: Growth through Partnership'
Kimbima
Hotel Conference Centre Aberdeen Freetown
Wednesday 28th - Friday 30th November 2007.
For more information, please contact:
Tunde
Titilayo
Consultant &Forum Secretary
2 Main Motor Rd
Congo Cross
Freetown
+232-76-593-765
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Centre
for Democracy and Development (CDD)
Conference: West African Diaspora in the UK: Communicating
and Collaborating with UK Policy and Decision-Makers
Date:
5th November 2007
Time:
10 am – 2pm
Venue:
Room G3, SOAS, Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square WC1
Background
The
2001 census indicates that in the UK, out of a total black
African population of 485,277, the overwhelming majority
originate from West African countries such as Nigeria,
Ghana and Sierra Leone, with Nigeria and Ghana alone
totalling nearly 150,000. Yet, despite these statistics,
there is little interaction and cooperation between the
West African Diaspora and UK policy and decision-makers. As
a result, the aspirations of the members of this community
and the challenges facing them are often unknown or
ignored, the social and political implications of their
presence in the UK overlooked, and their real as well as
potential economic contribution to both the UK and their
countries of origin, unacknowledged.
To remedy the above, the Centre for Democracy and
Development (CDD), is organising a roundtable between CDD,
the Department for International Development (DFID), the
Foreign Commonwealth Office (FCO), and other UK policy and
decision-makers.
Main
Aim
The
roundtable seeks to facilitate an exchange of ideas between
members of the West African Diaspora and UK policy and
decision-makers. The discussions will revolve around the
aspirations of the members of the West African community,
the challenges facing them, the resources available to them
in the UK and how they can work with UK policy and
decision-makers to achieve common objectives.
Expected
Outcomes
CDD
expects this roundtable to serve as a platform for
information generation and exchange. It is hoped that:
▪ UK policy and decision-makers will enhance their
knowledge of the aspirations of the members of the West
African Diaspora as well as the challenges confronting
them;
▪ Members of the UK-based West African Diaspora will learn
more about the resources available to them from the FCO,
DFID and other organisations.
▪ UK policy and decision-makers and members of the West
African Diaspora will find out ways of improving
communication and collaboration.
Chair:
Dr. David Styan, school of politics, Birkbeck,
Speakers Include:
Dr. Jibrin Ibrahim, CDD Director; Dr. Funmi Olonisakin,
King's College, London; Ms Charlotte Heath, DFID and Mr.
Robin Gwynn, FCO.
Refreshments
provided
Please RSVP to
sbradwell@cdd.org.uk
We
are grateful to the Centre of African Studies for hosting
us at SOAS
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Call
for Papers
The Foundation for Democracy in Africa and African-New
World Studies at Florida International University, in
partnership with Miami-Dade
Community College (North Miami), are pleased to invite
papers for the 10th AfrICANDO Conference in Miami
Date:
Sept. 19-22, 2007.
Click here for more information and contact
details
<</span>http://www.democracy-africa.org/aghttp:/www.democracy-africa.org/africando%202007/Africando
_Call%20for%20papers.pdfoacsonet/ghana%202007/2007
_agoa_cso_session.pdf>
The
Sierra Leone Elections Debate
The
Debate was by all accounts a success. Representatives from
the three main political parties in Sierra Leone were in
attendance to present various aspects of their party
manifestos to the delegates. The most pertinent issue,
unsurprisingly was Energy and the lack of consistent
electricity. Over 250 questions were submitted, from Sierra
Leone, Canada to Australia.
For more information, please visit:
www.slelectionsdebate.co.uk
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May 11th
2007
6.30pm (Film
starts 7.00pm )
AFFORD,
31-33 Bondway, Vauxhall SW8 1SJ
The
compelling 30 minutes documentary, ‘A
Homecoming for Jobs in Africa’
told the powerful story of the SEEDA (Supporting
Entrepreneurs and Enterprise Development in Africa)
Programme.
Members of the Sierrra Leonean Diaspora and Friends came to
see how Sierra Leonean entrepreneurs are given a “handup”
(not handouts) from Africans in the Diaspora; working with
them as business advisors, friends, & mentors.
The session was a great opportunity to share experiences
and advice on how best to support entrepreneurs and
potential investors in Sierra Leone.
For
more information on investing in Sierra Leone, please
contact:
Georgina Awoonor-Gordon
Acting Programmes Manager, SLDN
info@sldn.org.uk
/ 020
8291 3627 / 07956 560 785
For
information on the SEEDA Programme and to request a copy of
the DVD, please contact:
Onyekachi
Wambu, AFFORD, onyekachi@afford-uk.org / 020 7587
3905
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SLDN
organised two viewings of the DFID – GoSL DVD,
Sierra Leone: Back in Business,
in Kennington and at Chatham House
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28th
April 2005
SLDN
Official Launch
Chatham
House
10
St James's Square
London
SW1Y 4LE
4pm
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