- As she visits for the first time to attend the 10th African Conference On Sexual Health and Rights
Leila B. Gbati writes
On Tuesday, June 28, 2022, when they were traveling to Freetown to attend the 10th African Conference on Sexual Health and Rights, Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor and her entourage were greeted warmly by the government and people of Sierra Leone at Bo-waterside.
VP Taylor is in Sierra Leone because she is scheduled to speak at a High-Level Session at the Conference on “Accelerating the Elimination of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in Africa” along with President Julius Maada Bio and First Lady Dr. Fatima Maada Bio. The Freetown International Conference Centre (FICC), Aberdeen, Freetown, will host the event from June 29 to July 1, 2022.
The First Lady of Sierra Leone, Dr. Bio, extended an invitation to the Vice President of Liberia to attend the conference as the conference’s distinguished Grand Chief Patron.
When Sierra Leonean authorities, residents, particularly ladies and students, were seen jubilantly greeting the vice president of Liberia to Sierra Leone, it was a wonderful scene at Bo-waterside.
It was also a beautiful moment when the Liberian security guarding the Vice President when she arrived in Sierra Leone was handed over to the country’s guards at Bo Waterside.
Sierra Leonean officials delivered a brief statement welcoming VP Taylor and her delegation to Sierra Leone and expressing their happiness to do so during a brief greeting ceremony.
The First Lady of Sierra Leone and including other prominent women warmly welcomed VP Taylor and committed to cooperate with her during her tour to the country.
VP Taylor responded by expressing her happiness to be in Sierra Leone to the country’s people and leaders.
On behalf of herself and her group, she wanted to express her gratitude to the Sierra Leoneans for the welcoming ceremony.
She said she was visiting Sierra Leone for the first time and that she already felt at home.
VP Taylor stated, “Thank you so much; we are extremely appreciative.
As they continue to fight for the health, dignity, and rights of women and girls, they “carefully take into account the commonalities of their countries’ problems facing women and girls,” according to the invitation letter to the 10th African Conference on Sexual Health and Rights from the Office of the First Lady of the Republic of Sierra Leone to the Office of the Vice President of Liberia. It is very evident that our communities and those of our sister nations have nearly the same culture, traditions, and commitment to battling and ending sexual and domestic abuse.
The invitation further noted that the biennial conference is a flagship event that was be jointly organized by Purposeful Sierra Leone, the United Nations Family, and the Office of the First Lady of the Republic of Sierra Leone.
In order to address and promote important sexual health and rights issues on the continent, the goal is to bring together high-level government leaders, United Nations and other international players, academia, civil society, and young activists from around the world.
The invitation also stated that it is the Chief Host of the historic conference’s honor to humbly invite VP Taylor to serve as distinguished Grand Chief Patron because of her fervent interest in the advancement and protection of women and girls and her ongoing efforts to eradicate the culture of SGBV in Liberia.
