AYV News, December 16, 2025
January 18 has been officially proclaimed as National Remembrance Day by the President of Sierra Leone, fulfilling a key recommendation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to honor the victims of Sierra Leone’s decade-long civil war.
President Dr. Julius Maada Bio said January 18 holds historical significance as the date in 2002 when the civil war was officially declared over by former President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah. He cited Paragraph 202 of the TRC Report, stating that the annual observance will be dedicated to civic education, community service, peacebuilding activities, and the remembrance of survivors and those lost during the conflict.
President Kabbah’s declaration from 2002 says, “We have all resolved that never again shall we resort to violence to settle matters of political importance.”
President Bio announced that the annual commemoration will be led by the Ministry of Information and Civic Education, the National Council for Civic Education and Democracy, and the Independent Commission for Peace and National Cohesion.
