On August 28, U.S. Ambassador Maria Brewer proudly joined representatives from the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health and Sanitation to acknowledge 30 graduates of the Community Health Officer Management and Leadership Training Program. The graduates, working in Pujehun and Bonthe districts, are serving critical roles in supporting the COVID-19 response in their respective communities, health facilities and district health management teams.

In 2016, the U.S. Embassy launched this leadership training program to support Sierra Leone in building capacity in public health leadership and management. The program represents a successful collaboration between the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Njala University, Emory University, ICAP of Columbia University, and eHealth Africa.

The U.S. Government remains committed to supporting the Government of Sierra Leone to strengthen the health sector. We are proud of the investments made in developing disease detection systems and are pleased to work together to ensure health workers in Sierra Leone maintain critical skills so that public health action can be taken quickly to respond to health threats.