The Civic Digital Content Creator Training program successfully ended on Tuesday, 11th November 2025, on the theme, “Voices of Salone – Civic Storytelling in Digital Spaces.”
The program was organized by the Ministry of Information and Civic Education, in collaboration with the Ministry of Communications, Technology and Innovation (MOCTI), and partnership with the United Nations Development Programme, Africell Impact Foundation and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
In September this year, thirty young content creators completed a week of hands-on training focused on crafting constructive, civic-minded stories about Sierra Leone.
After the training, they were given assignments to create contents reflecting the six civic pillars. The contents created were reviewed and made way for the closing ceremony.
The event was moderated by Timothy Sam, Head of Partnerships at the Ministry. It opened with the national pledge, followed by a warm welcome from the Acting Director of Information, MoICE who praised the program’s innovative approach to storytelling and thanked all partners and participants for their commitment to promoting positive narratives about the country.
A traditional drumming performance greeted attendees as the ceremony moved into its main moments. The top five short videos produced by participants from the training were shown, each aligned with the six civic pillars: Love, Feed, Clean, Heal, Digitise and Salone for We All. The top 5 winners spoke about how these pillars influenced their work and what their videos hoped to convey to citizens on and offline.
Trainers, Frank Kojo Amankwa and Murtala Mohamed Kamara, addressed the audience during a reflection segment. Amankwa congratulated the winners and encouraged all participants to continue telling Sierra Leone’s positive stories. Kamara urged the trainees to maintain a constructive, celebratory tone in digital spaces, stating, “We should celebrate ourselves as a country. Let’s showcase Sierra Leone positively.”
Representing Africell Impact Foundation, Joe Abass Bangura spoke about the power of belief and creativity. He urged young people to persevere and to keep using digital platforms to share uplifting messages: “If you think you can, you can. If you think you won’t, you won’t.”
A ten-minute theatre piece, ‘The Echoes of Salone’, celebrated resilience and unity and tied its themes to the six civic pillars. Afterwards, certificates of participation were presented to all participants as they were recognized for their dedication and achievements.
In closing, the Minister of information and Civic Education, Chernor Bah, thanked partners and participants and encouraged ongoing collaboration to empower young voices in the digital space to enhance Sierra Leone’s image online through responsible, creative storytelling that reflects the country’s values and aspirations. The event ended with the audience reciting the national anthem and a group photo to commemorate the day.
