When Secretary-General visited children in Freetown

Sylvia Samora had studied in her civics lessons that her country, Sierra Leone was a member of the Commonwealth. She also knew that there were 52 other countries that made up the association.

But she never expected to meet Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon, crack jokes, and shake his hand, and did not understand the full extent of the Commonwealth’s engagements in her country.

“I am very excited … It is like I am dreaming,” said Sylvia, a high school student at Hermann Gmeiner International School, an affiliate of SOS Children’s Village -- a centre that caters for disadvantaged children affected by conflict -- in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

She was one of the students who met Mr McKinnon during his visit to Sierra Leone from 4 to 5 March 2007.

The Secretary-General visited the school and talked to the students about what the Commonwealth is; its engagement with young people; and its development work in Sierra Leone following the end of a decade-long conflict.

“The Commonwealth has stood by your country through the troubled years of war. We have continued to assist your government to establish institutions such as the police force to make sure that there can be law and order,” Mr McKinnon told more than 500 students amid sweltering temperatures.

He also spoke about the Commonwealth’s broad agenda -- supporting education in Sierra Leone as well as other member states, helping end conflict or prevent conflict through its peace-building and good offices work, and improving the capacity of developing countries in trade negotiations and facilitation through its Hub and Spokes programme.

For Sylvia, it was fun, drama, excitement. Many students in this school are survivors of Sierra Leone’s brutal conflict, and school policy bars them from telling their stories to help their mental wounds heal faster.

After speaking about the history and role of the Commonwealth to young people, the Secretary-General conducted an impromptu quiz, putting questions to students on some basic facts about the association to test their knowledge of the Commonwealth. Each student who gave a right answer received a Commonwealth-branded prize.

“Who can name me five African countries that are members of the Commonwealth?”

And all arms were up in the air.

“Sierra Leone, Ghana, Nigeria, The Gambia and Liberia,” replied Hassan Sessay, a sixth form student, when he was picked by Mr McKinnon.

“Liberia is not a member of the Commonwealth,” another student pointed out.

“You are right,” said the Secretary-General. But Hassan still won a ball for getting the other four answers right.

Another student listed some other Commonwealth African countries: Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Lesotho, Botswana, South Africa, Malawi and Swaziland.

“The future of the Commonwealth lies in the hands of young people like these students. That is why I always make it a point to speak to them whenever I visit a member country,” Mr McKinnon explained later. He routinely speaks to student audiences on his visits around the Commonwealth to bolster knowledge of the association among young people.

His visit to Sierra Leone also took him to Fourah Bay College, where the Commonwealth Secretariat supports a Commonwealth Diploma in Youth Development. He met some graduates of the diploma programme who spoke of how the training they received had equipped them with skills to do their work better.

“The modules of the Youth Diploma programme are very relevant to the challenges my country is facing in its post-conflict recovery efforts,” said Ibrahim Seymour, one of the beneficiaries.

Secretariat Links:

• Country Profile: Sierra Leone
• Sierra Leone prepares for general Elections (video)