17/05/2026
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Sierra Leone President Calls for Resilient African Leadership at Oxford Africa Conference
Oxford, England β May 17, 2026 β Sierra Leoneβs President, Julius Maada Bio, has urged African leaders to embrace resilient, reform-driven governance as the continent confronts mounting political, economic, climate and technological challenges.
Speaking at the Oxford Africa Conference 2026 at the University of Oxford, Bio said Africaβs future would depend on building strong institutions capable of withstanding global shocks and sustaining long-term progress.
Delivering the keynote address under the conference theme, βAnchoring Africa: Grounded, Game-Changing Leadership in the Age of Disruption,β Bio argued that Africa must move beyond rhetoric and focus on durable systems of governance.
βI spoke last year about African agency,β he told delegates. βThis year, we must ask something harder: Can what we define endure? Can it survive shocks and disruption?β
Addressing academics, policymakers, students and members of the African diaspora, Bio described Africaβs crises as interconnected, warning that climate shocks, food insecurity, economic instability and insecurity often reinforce one another.
βA drought does not stay a drought. It becomes a food crisis. A food crisis becomes a revenue crisis. A revenue crisis becomes a security crisis,β he said.
Bio, who also serves as Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, reflected on Sierra Leoneβs recovery from civil war, the Ebola epidemic and economic hardship, presenting the country as an example of institutional resilience and gradual reform.
He highlighted his governmentβs Free Quality Education Programme and the Feed Salone agricultural initiative as key policies aimed at improving educational access and strengthening domestic food production.
βThese are not perfect outcomes. But they are meaningful ones,β Bio said. βThey show that when policy is sustained and aligned with national priorities, progress becomes tangible.β
On regional stability, Bio warned that military coups and unconstitutional transfers of power in West Africa reflected deeper governance failures and declining public confidence in democratic systems.
βDemocracy goes far beyond elections,β he said. βTo be meaningful, democracy must work in substance.β
He also called for stronger regional cooperation, warning that instability in one country inevitably affects neighboring states through migration, arms trafficking and economic disruption.
Turning to Africaβs growing youth population, Bio said governments must adapt quickly to meet the expectations of younger generations.
βAfrica is the worldβs youngest continent,β he said. βIf politics does not adapt to demographic reality, frustration will outrun reform.β
The Sierra Leonean leader further urged African nations to play a greater role in shaping global Artificial Intelligence governance, warning that the continent risks becoming dependent on technologies developed elsewhere without adequate African input.
βWe need a pan-African AI governance framework,β he said.
On climate change, Bio described the crisis as a global injustice, noting that Africa contributes the least to global emissions while suffering disproportionately from climate-related impacts.
In closing, he encouraged young Africans and diaspora communities to remain engaged in the continentβs development.
βThe diaspora is not outside Africaβs story,β Bio said. βThe diaspora is one of Africaβs most powerful assets.β
Bio concluded by saying Africa is already shaping its own future, but sustaining progress would require institutional strength, political stability and bold reform.
βWhat remains is leadership steady enough to hold the ground where stability is needed, and bold enough to change it where reform is overdue,β he said.
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