In his statement at the signing ceremony held at the Conference Room of Amadou Dieng University, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Sierra Leone, Professor Foday Sahr said after months of intensive observation and research into the activities of Ahmadou Dieng University, he was convinced that collaboration between the two institutions would be of immense benefit.

He  added that he looked forward to the commencement of the activities spelt out in the MOU for the benefit of both institutions and hoped that the relevant departments will take maximum advantage of the opportunities being offered.

The Vice Chancellor of Ahmadou Dieng University, Professor Kobia Jalloh, explained that Ahmadou Dieng University was one of the largest private universities in Guinea with five campuses throughout the country including two in the rural areas.

He said that one of its greatest strengths is research and its key areas of teaching and research include Engineering in the fields of Mining, Geology, Civil and Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.

Other academic pursuits he  mentioned included International Trade, Accounting, Banking, Finance, Marketing, International Relations, Law, Political Science, Public Administration, Sociology and Liberal Arts.

The representative of the Minister of Technical and Higher Education of the Ministry of Education in Guinea, Professor Abdul Karim Jalloh, congratulated the two universities for the initiative, which he said would go a long way in strengthening inter-university cooperation within the framework of the Mano River Union and ECOWAS.

He urged lecturers and students of the two universities to take maximum advantage of the opportunities being offered to advance higher education in the sub-region

The MOU took effect immediately after the signing ceremony and a delegation from Amadou Dieng University is expected in Freetown shortly to work with their colleagues in mapping out the first set of activities to be undertaken under the terms of the agreement.

Delegation from the University of Sierra Leone comprised the Vice Chancellor and Principal of USL, Professor Foday Sahr; the Deputy Vice Chancellor of Fourah Bay College, Professor Lawrence Kamara; the Deputy Vice Chancellor of the College of Medicine and Allied Sciences, Professor Mohamed A. Samai, the Registrar of the University of Sierra Leone, Mrs.  Olive Barrie,  the Director of International Relations of the University of Sierra Leone, Mrs. Bernadette Cole and the head of the Department of Language Studies at Fourah Bay College, Mr. Prince Kenny.