Tinubu Receives Former Sierra Leone President Ernest Bai Koroma at State House

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Tuesday received former President of Sierra Leone, Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma, at the State House in Abuja.

The meeting comes shortly after Koroma’s return to Sierra Leone following more than two years in Nigeria, where he had been based amid legal proceedings connected to the November 2023 attempted coup in Sierra Leone.

The criminal proceedings against the former president were discontinued by Sierra Leonean authorities earlier this month.

Koroma, who served as Sierra Leone’s president from 2007 to 2018, returned to Freetown on July 19 to participate in the 69th Ordinary Summit of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

His return followed regional diplomatic efforts and was widely viewed as an important development in Sierra Leone’s ongoing efforts toward political reconciliation and national cohesion.

Nigeria played a significant role in facilitating Koroma’s stay in Abuja. Reports said he departed Nigeria for Sierra Leone aboard a Nigerian presidential fleet aircraft ahead of the ECOWAS summit.

The latest meeting between President Tinubu and the former Sierra Leonean leader underscores the continuing importance of Nigeria’s diplomatic engagement in West Africa, particularly as the region seeks to strengthen peace, democratic governance, dialogue and regional cooperation.

Koroma’s return to Sierra Leone and his renewed engagements with regional leaders come at a significant moment for the country, with reconciliation and political stability remaining central issues in Sierra Leone’s national discourse.