Mr. Dooley also congratulated President Bio for fostering a great friendship between Sierra Leone and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts through that historic visit.

The citation of the award reads: “The entire membership extends its very best wishes and expresses the hope for future good fortune and continued success in all endeavours.”

The ceremony took place during a town hall meeting with Sierra Leoneans where President Bio also highlighted the achievements of Government in less than one year.

He spoke about his commitment to human capital development through his Free Quality Education Programme, the fight against corruption, the commissions of inquiry among other things.

The President also told the audience that his government had launched the Medium-Term National Development Plan, which was inclusively prepared to address the development challenges of the country.

During the town hall meeting, Chairman of the governing Sierra Leone People’s Party branch in North America, Mohamed Bah, gave the vote of thanks and the Sierra Leone Ambassador to the United States of America, H.E Sidique Abu Bakarr Wai, chaired the meeting.  

On Thursday 7 March, His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio commenced his formal engagement with a visit to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where Chancellor Cindy Barnhart received him and on Friday 8 March 2019, the President visited Harvard University, a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge.