1st Special Course for Diplomats from Sierra Leone

The 1st Special Course for Diplomats from Sierra Leone is being held virtually from the Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Service (SSIFS), Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi from 21 June – 02 July 2021. Thirty-one (31) diplomats from Sierra Leone are participating in the programme.

The Special Course was inaugurated on 21 June 2021 by Amb. J.S. Mukul, Dean (SSIFS). The two-week Course would include modules on India’s foreign policy, contemporary international issues, multilateral diplomacy, diplomatic skills, India’s economic and technological development, disaster management and health diplomacy. The Course would also include lectures on India-West Africa Relations including regional groupings and a special focus on India-Sierra Leone Relations, contemporary issues such as maritime security.

Earlier, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between SSIFS, MEA, India and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs & International Cooperation of Sierra Leone was signed on 13 October 2019. So far, 11 diplomats from Sierra Leone have participated in different courses for foreign diplomats conducted by SSIFS.

India and Sierra Leone have a robust and multi-faceted partnership marked by increasing trade, investment and development cooperation. India opened its resident Mission (High Commission) in Freetown in 2020. India played a pivotal role in achieving peace and stability in Sierra Leone by contributing around 3000 troops to the UN Assistance Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) from 1999-2001. The warm and close bilateral relations are based on common values and a shared vision and are poised to widen and deepen in the near future.

New Delhi
21 June 2021