By Iliya Kure
President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone and his wife, Fatima Bio have been received in Ankara by Turkey’s President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his wife, Emine Erdogan, during a private visit.
A statement by spokesperson to Sierra Leone’s President, Yusuf Keketoma Sandi, says the private meeting was also meant to strengthen bilateral relations between Turkey and Sierra Leone, as well as further explore investment opportunities between the two countries.
“Last year, under the joint leadership of H.E Dr. Julius Maada Bio and H.E Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Sierra Leone and Turkey signed cooperation agreements on visas, education, defence and the exemption of double taxation,” the statement says, adding that the President was also expected to meet potential private sector investors with business interests in Sierra Leone.
President Bio had proceeded to Turkey from London on 10 August 2021 after participation in the Global Education Summit on 29 July in London, where selected global leaders raised $4 billion for Global Partnership for Education, as part of a $5 billion funding target to transform education for 175 million children in the world’s most vulnerable countries and get 88 million more girls and boys in school by 2025.