Makeni

Coordinates: 08°52′54″N 12°02′39″W / 8.88167°N 12.04417°W / 8.88167; -12.04417
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the city in Sierra Leone. For the suburb of Lusaka, Zambia, see Makeni, Zambia.
Makeni
City Council
 • MayorAbubakarr Kamara (APC)
 • Deputy MayorIbrahim Nelson Kamara (APC)[1]
 • Governing BodyMakeni City Council
Population
 (2021 Census)
 • Total85,116 [2].
UTC±0
(GMT)

Makeni is the largest city in the

economic center of the Northern Province. Makeni is the fifth largest city in Sierra Leone by population. The city of Makeni had a population of 85,116 in the 2021 census.[1][2] Makeni lies approximately 110 miles east of Freetown. Makeni is home to the University of Makeni, the largest private university in Sierra Leone.[3][4][5]

Government

The city of Makeni is one of Sierra Leone's six

municipal elections held every four years. As of June 2023, the mayor of Makeni is Abubakarr Kamara ("Lamtales") of the All People's Congress (APC).[6] Kamara won the June 2023 Makeni mayoral election, garnering 93.38% of the total votes cast.[6]

Like most parts of Northern Sierra Leone, Makeni is a reliable

political stronghold of the ruling All People's Congress (APC) political party. The city and the entire Bombali District overwhelmingly support the APC in a large majority in Presidential, Parliamentary, and local councils elections.[citation needed
]

Demographics

The population of Makeni is

Muslim, though with a large Christian minority population in the city. The Wesleyan Methodists are the largest and main Christian denomination in Makeni.[citation needed
]

Sport

Like the rest of Sierra Leone, Football is by far the most popular sport in the city. Makeni is home to one of Sierra Leone's biggest and oldest football clubs called the Wusum Stars. The club plays in the Sierra Leone National Premier League, the top football league in the country. The club represents Makeni and the entire Bombali District. They won the Sierra Leonean FA Cup in 1979. Makeni has also played host to matches of the Sierra Leone National football team's under-17 and under-20 teams at the city's Wusum Sports Stadium.[citation needed]

Media

The local radio station that serves Makeni and the Bombali District is Radio Mankneh 95.1. Sierra Leone's national radio and television stations, SLBC (Sierra Leone Broadcasting Cooperation) are on the air in the city, as well as The BBC World Service, CNN International, and several other private stations are on the air for those who have satellite.[citation needed]

Education

better source needed
]

The city is home to the

St. Francis Secondary School is also located in Makeni, one of the most prominent secondary schools in Sierra Leone.[citation needed
]

Health

Diseases endemic to Makeni are

non-governmental organizations
(NGOs). The Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MOHS) shifted to a decentralized health system structure after the end of the civil in war in 2002, in an effort to increase coverage.

One regional government hospital and the Holy Spirit Hospital provide most healthcare services, in addition to private clinics. The Holy Spirit Hospital is the largest private hospital in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Traditional medicine forms part of the primary health care system in Makeni.[citation needed]

In 2019, the First Responder Coalition of Sierra Leone (FRCSL) was formed in Makeni by five national and international organizations: the Sierra Leone Red Cross Society, LFR International, Agency for Rural Community Transformation, the Holy Spirit Hospital of Makeni, and the University of Makeni.[9] 1,000 community members from Makeni were trained as first responders and equipped with a first aid kit by the Coalition.[10] 4,529 lay first responders were trained in total between July and December 2019, who went on to treat 1,850 patients over the following six months.[11]

Aid from China

In March 2010, the Chinese ambassador to Sierra Leone, Qiu Shaofang traveled to the city on an official visit to donate one 16 kVA generator and nine sewing machines.[12]

Notable people from Makeni

Makeni is the hometown of former Sierra Leone's president Ernest Bai Koroma, as he was born and raised in the city. Additional notable people from Makeni are:

See also

References

  1. ^ Sesay, Ibrahim Mohammed; Karama, Andrew A.; Ngobeh, Jinnah J. (2006). Republic of Sierra Leone: 2004 Population and Housing Census: Analytical Report on Population Distribution, Migration and Urbanisation in Sierra Leone (Report). Freetown, Sierra Leone: Statistics Sierra Leone.
  2. ^ "World Gazetteer: Makeni - profile of geographical entity including na…". 12 April 2013. Archived from the original on 12 April 2013.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ a b Turay, Emmanuel A.B. (31 May 2012). "Response to UNIMAK Commentary". The Patriotic Vanguard. Makeni, Sierra Leone. Retrieved 2024-03-17.
  4. ^ "Krio Translation Services". Language9. Archived from the original on 2013-04-25. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
  5. ISBN 9780199286751
    .
  6. ^ a b Wilson, Alusine Rehme (5 July 2023). "Ex-military officer, born from a family of 30, elected Mayor of Makeni". Awoko News. Retrieved 2024-03-17.
  7. ^ Ministry of Education Science and Technology, Sierra Leone
  8. ^ "Sierra Leone: Bombali District Profile - Sierra Leone". ReliefWeb. UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. 16 November 2015.
  9. ^ "Makeni: Coalition of First Responders formed". The Patriotic Vanguard. 2019-07-04. Retrieved 2019-07-04.
  10. ^ Thomas, Abdul Rashid (2019-07-05). "Sierra Leone's road accident First Responder Coalition to save thousands of lives". Retrieved 2019-07-05.
  11. S2CID 221637243
    .
  12. ^ "China Donates to Makeni Council". Sierra Express Media. 2010-03-27. Retrieved 11 October 2010.

External links

Media related to Makeni at Wikimedia Commons

08°52′54″N 12°02′39″W / 8.88167°N 12.04417°W / 8.88167; -12.04417

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Makeni&oldid=1214232584"
This page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia article: Makeni. Articles is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license; additional terms may apply.Privacy Policy