The Director General of the National Social Security and Insurance Trust (NASSIT), Mohamed Fuaad Daboh, on Wednesday, 3rd June 2026, called for strategic institutional collaboration between NASSIT and the Embassy of Egypt in Sierra Leone to extend social security coverage to the country’s expansive informal sector.
The appeal came as NASSIT advances a legislative framework for an Informal Sector Policy aimed at incorporating workers who have traditionally been excluded from formal social security schemes.
Speaking at a meeting with the Egyptian Ambassador to Sierra Leone at the Embassy in Freetown, Mr. Daboh noted that nearly 90 percent of Sierra Leone’s active labour force operates in the informal sector, leaving market traders, artisans, drivers, and farmers without retirement or invalidity benefits.
He described social security as a basic human right and stressed that Sierra Leone’s long-term economic resilience depends on expanding safety nets beyond formal corporate and public sector employment.
He further informed the Ambassador that the Informal Sector Project has received Cabinet approval and that the draft bill is currently under review by the Law Officers’ Department before being submitted to Parliament. He added that NASSIT has been engaging international partners to strengthen its implementation framework.
“With diplomatic support from the Embassy of Egypt, NASSIT aims to adopt modern social protection strategies tailored to the local context,” Mr. Daboh said.
Responding, the Egyptian Ambassador to Sierra Leone, Her Excellency Rasha Soliman Mohi Eldin Soliman, reaffirmed Egypt’s commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation with Sierra Leone. She noted her country’s readiness to support technical exchanges, capacity development, and broader social protection systems in line with Sierra Leone’s national development priorities.
Ambassador Soliman highlighted Egypt’s demand-driven approach to development partnerships, stating that the Embassy is prepared to share expertise in support of Sierra Leone’s social protection goals.
“Egypt will support vocational collaboration, capacity development for social security personnel, and technical advisory services to help ensure Sierra Leone’s future informal pension scheme becomes a regional success story,” she said.
The Deputy Director General in charge of Operations, who also serves as Chairman of the Informal Sector Technical Committee, and Victor Immanuel Samai, Executive Assistant to the Director General and a member of the Informal Sector Secretariat, accompanied Mr. Daboh at the meeting.
