4. CONTD FROM PG.1 After his statement, a cross cutting concern from the majority of the benefi ciaries, that came up during the interactive questions and answers session, had to do with their Sim Cards through which the electronic cash tran sfer were done, which several people had complained were blocked by Orange Ltd, the service provider. Upon consultation with the Orange Team on the ground, the ACC Deputy Commissioner assured th e beneficiaries that the issue was a precautionary move to protect the Sim Cards from being tampered with by unsuspecting persons, and that the issue will be addressed swiftly. It could be recalled that the World Bank and UNICEF have committed a Forty ($40) Milli on Dollars Grant to the Productive Social Safety Net and Youth Employment (PSSNYE), a five - year (2022 - 2027) project, that seeks to provide unconditional cash transfer to beneficiary households, employment for youth, through the lab or intensive cash for work and entrepreneur skills support for youths. The supervision exercise of the ACC's Deputy Commissioner continues in other Districts in the coming days. By: Sylvanus Blake, PRO - ACC A Beneficiary posing a question to the Deputy Commissioner

3. Page 3 In a bid to strengthen bilateral relationship and equip employees with the needed - skills required to eradicate corruption in Sierra Leone, two staff of the Anti - Corruption Commission (ACC), together with their counterparts from other African countries, have benefited from a three - day training in Cairo, Egypt, which ran from the 9 th - 11 th October, 2023. ACC’s Finance Manager, Kinny Alie Brima Walker and Information Officer, Amie Massaquoi, were the two ACC staff that benefited from the training. The training, which was organized by the Egyptian Anti - Corruption Academy of Administrative Control Authority, covered issues such as corruption prevention, public awareness, assets recovery and mon- ey laundering. The Administrative Control Authority (ACA) is Egypt’s lead anti - graft agency. The Egyptian Anti - Corruption Academy of the Administrative Control is the main reference for providing education and training to Egyptians and foreigners, to prevent and combat corruption. In his welcome address to participants, the Deputy Director, ACA, Major General Abdul Rahman, commended member states of the African Union for their commitment to the fight against corruption. He said ethical, economic, moral and petty corruption, are the types of corruption issues that cut across member states of the African Union. He acknowledged that the African continent has achieved many successes in the fight against corruption but is yet to get rid of the menace. The Deputy Director highlighted the benefits of the training, which he said is always mutual as countries display ideas, success stories and challenges they encounter in fighting corruption. He added that the training is established to equip countries with strategies to fight corruption, and to also collaborate and create strong bilateral relationship which will bring the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) vision to reality. The Chairman of the Egyptian Anti - Corruption Academy, Mohamed Salama, in his statement said the training course on combating corruption falls under the directives of the President of the Republic of Egypt to enhance capacities of African states to combat corruption. He urged the 30 cohort of African trainees to use the opportunity to learn from different perspectives. He lectured on the role of the Administrative Control Authority in combating corruption, also focusing on the review of the UNCAC, the method which the Egyptian anti - corruption strategies are developed, implemented and monitored. Director of International Cooperation Sector, ACA, Dr. Khaled Siad, spoke on corruption risk management, the use of technology, which he said is an incredible tool to combat corruption as it provides little or no window of opportunity to give bribe for service. He said corruption has begun from the beginning of man, traced to ancient Egypt. He added that countering corruption and establishing justice systems can lead the state to positive outcomes. Because of the political will, he said, Egypt has been able to make strides in corruption fight. The training was climaxed with question - and - answer sessions, and the presentation of Certificate of Completion of the course to the participants. Information Officer, Amie Massaquoi (L) and Finance Manager, Kinny Alie Brima Walker (R) shortly after receiving their certificates presented by the Deputy Director, ACA, Major General Abdul Rahman (C) By: Amie Massaquoi, Information Officer, ACC

1. 23rd —27th October 2023 Issue 1 Volume 11 INTEGRITY HOUSE, TOWER HILL FREETOWN, SIERRA LEONE EDITORIAL TEAM EDITOR - IN - CHIEF Abubakarr Turay EDITORS Sylvanus Blake Alex A. Bah LAYOUT & GRAPHICS Philippa M Davies EDITORIAL ADVISERS Augustine Foday Ngobie Patrick Sandi CONTD PG.4 T he Deputy Commissioner of the Anti - Corruption Commission (ACC) Augustine Foday Ngobie, has in a usual manifestation of strong leadership in the roll - out of all unconditional cash transfer project activities and other work of the Commission commenced robust supervision of the "Third Cohort Contingency Emergency Cash Transfer (ECT)" across 11 Districts in Sierra Leone, excluding the Regional Headquarter cities of Kenema, Bo, Makeni, Port Loko and Freetown. He commenced the supervision in Pujehun Town, Pujehun District, Southern Sierra Leone on Friday the 20th of October 2023. Addressing thousands of beneficiaries, the ACC strongman reassured the expectant crowd that each and every beneficiary will receive what is due them, without any hassle, harassment, extortion, and intimidation. He further assured them that he was out to continue to superintend the cash transfer payments and help address concerns and challenges on the ground. "We are out here to ensure together with our partners, (NaCSA and Orange mobile company) that you are attended to adequately. Every beneficiary head will receive Two Thousand Six Hundred and Nine New Leones (NLe2,609) or Two Million, Six Hundred and Nine Thousand Old Leones (Le2,609,000) via electronic money/cash transfer to your sim cards. There will be no deductions, and this money should be used for the well - being and welfare of your households. If you have any complaints or grievances, please feel free to tell me while I'm here, or you can tell the ACC staff here with you.” ACC’s Deputy Commissioner Augustine Foday Ngobie addressing beneficiaries Beneficiaries in Pujehun Town listening to the Deputy Commissioner By: Sylvanus Blake, PRO - ACC Mr. Ngobie encouraged the payment teams to ensure the beneficiaries are serviced swiftly as many are household heads, old and sickly. He encouraged the beneficiaries to exercise patience as though the pro- cess might be long because of the huge number of beneficiaries, all of them will be paid eventually. At the Pujehun Town Barry, 4,047 beneficiaries were to receive the above stated amount. The project will service 35,000 beneficiary households across the 11 Districts, namely; Pujehun, Moyamba, Bon- the, Karene, Falaba, Kambia, Koina- dugu, Tonkolili, Kono, Kailahun, and Western Area Rural.

2. Page 2 A Team of Experts contracted by the Anti - Corruption Commission (ACC) on the 17 th October, 2023, commenced a nationwide consultation in a bid to solicit information from various stakeholders, for the crafting of the 5th Generation of the National Anti - Corruption Strategy (NACS) - 2024 - 2028. The maiden engagement was held at the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE) Conference Hall in Port Loko. This engagement attracted participants such as bike riders, commercial drivers, traders, the media, civil society activists, public officials, members of Inter - Religious Council, etc. Welcoming the participants, the North - West Regional Manager of the ACC, Fatu Kamara, spoke on the importance of including everyone in the development of this strategy, noting that the input of all participants will be highly cherished. Declaring the purpose of the engagement, the Director of the NACS Secretariat Nabilahi - Musa Kamara, informed his audience that the creation of the NACS stems from the decision of Sierra Leone signing the United Nation Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) which makes it mandatory for member states to develop a National Anti - Corruption Strategy. He described the strategy as the roadmap for the country to fight corruption in the next five years. In developing the strategy, he said, the UNCAC provides that a national consultation must be conducted to get the views of the citizenry. “The convention indicates that in developing this strategy we should talk to a large section of people in the country, as it should have a wider participation where people will have their say on issues bordering on corruption,” he said. Mr. Kamara assured his audience that resolutions of the discussions will be part of the strategy. He announced that the next strategy is geared towards building stronger institutions which will stand the test of time to combat corrupt practices. Opening the discussions, the Chairperson of the Team of Experts, Chairman of the Team of Experts, Kebbe Koroma, speaking at the engagement Kebbe Koroma, challenged his audience to dig deep within them and bring out what they feel are the issues related to corruption in their various institutions and communities, what are the causes of corruption and what solutions they will proffer to combat the scourge. Mr. Koroma said that they will also have a one - on - one meeting with key stakeholders in the district. “Today we came to you, to listen to you, so that you will tell us what is happening, and we will not stop here, we will also be calling key stakeholders to tell us their own view,” he said. The engagement was climaxed with the formation of groups who later presented their findings to the experts, followed by a question, comment and answer session. In a separate engagement, the team also held one - on - one meetings with the Senior District Officer (SDO) and the Provincial Secretary (PS) of Port Loko, to solicit their expertise in the crafting of the Strategy. By: Bernard Abass Kargbo, Public Education Officer, ACC Participants during the group