Minister of Gender and Children’s Affairs Addresses UNGA Side Event.

Conference Room II, United Nations Building, New York, USA: The Minister of Gender and Children’s Affairs of Sierra Leone, Dr. Isata Mahoi, delivered a remarkable Keynote address at the UNGA side event “Better Together: Global Solidarity Rooted in the Family.”

In her presentation, Dr. Mahoi extended heartfelt appreciation to the Government of Türkiye and other distinguished stakeholders for their laudable initiative to convene the dialogue at the UN General Assembly. She reaffirmed her Ministry’s commitment to championing children’s affairs in Sierra Leone by strengthening legal frameworks and policies to address emerging challenges affecting children and families.

Highlighting Sierra Leone’s Alternative Care Policy (2014), she described it as a roadmap to reinforce family bonds and transition support “from institutions to families and communities.” She also referenced the Domestic Violence Act (2007), which provides a framework to safeguard families from violence while criminalizing physical, emotional, and sexual abuse within households. “We are working to transform silence into accountability,” she emphasized, underscoring the Ministry’s efforts to ensure protection, access to justice, and survivor-centered services through stronger community engagement and enforcement.

Dr. Mahoi reiterated Sierra Leone’s Child Rights Act, recently enacted to protect children against violence, neglect, and exploitation, including corporal punishment and sexual abuse. She further emphasized the country’s adherence to international and regional instruments such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, CEDAW, the Maputo Protocol, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as guiding frameworks for advancing child protection globally.

She also spoke on the Spotlight Initiative, highlighting district-level consultations conducted to identify key issues affecting women and girls.

Dr. Mahoi concluded by reaffirming her Ministry’s deepened commitment to strengthening collaboration with the Ministry of Social Services and global partners to advance child protection and family welfare.

“Together, we can ensure that families—whether in Freetown or Istanbul, in rural villages or urban centers—are not left behind, but placed at the heart of our development agenda,” she affirmed in closing.

Communications Unit

Ministry of Gender and Children’s Affairs (MoGCA) mkelson367@gmail.com