Meet the Leaders Shaping Sierra Leone Diaspora Investment 2026

As the Sierra Leone Diaspora Investment Conference (SLDIC) 2026 expands across global cities including London, Silver Spring, and Freetown, a dedicated planning committee is shaping the agenda.  Every conversation, connection, and opportunity at SLDIC must translate into real impact for Sierra Leone. 

The planning committee has leaders from government, business, investment, and the diaspora community. The diverse team has a shared goal: to create an effective platform where diaspora capital meets structures, actionable opportunities. 

These are the bright minds behind the scenes making this landmark moment for diaspora investment and national development. 

Sidi Saccoh

Sidi Saccoh is an operator, strategist, and ecosystem builder with over a decade of experience across startups, accelerators, and venture capital. He focuses on decoupling the complexities of scaling in emerging markets, helping founders move from idea to execution. Sidi advises public institutions, investors, and innovation hubs on designing programs and frameworks that drive real economic outcomes. He is the author of ‘Startup to Growth’ and host of ‘The Control Room: Uncensored’ podcast.

Magnifique Muhoza

Magnifique Muhoza is a Communications and Media Specialist with over six years of experience shaping impactful narratives across government and international organizations. She has led strategic campaigns and global event communications, including public health initiatives and high-level international conferences. Passionate about community-centered engagement, she brings a strong track record in driving visibility, partnerships, and meaningful impact across Africa. She is currently using her skills to help the VR&C Marketing team achieve their global goals. 

Siana Bangura

Siana Bangura is a British-Sierra Leonean multi-award-winning writer, playwright, producer, filmmaker, curator and community organiser hailing from South East London, currently living and working between London and the West Midlands. 

Her creative practice spans literature, theatre, film and live events, rooted in care, political urgency, community archiving and collective storytelling. As a playwright, Siana’s work includes ‘Swim, Aunty, Swim!’, winner of Best New Play at the UK Theatre Awards and earning her recognition as Best Playwright at the Black British Theatre Awards. 

As a filmmaker, she has won international awards in Chennai, New York, Los Angeles, and Cannes for her production and directing work on her short film, ‘The Waves’. As a poet, she is the author of the critically acclaimed poetry collection ‘Elephant’, exploring Black British womanhood and life growing up in London.

Siana is also founder and former editor of the Black British feminist platform No Fly on the WALL; producer of ‘1500 & Counting’, a documentary examining deaths in police custody in the UK; and founder of Courageous Films, a social-justice-led documentary production house. Additionally, she is the producer and curator of Siana Bangura Productions, a creative studio curating multi-disciplinary work and events with care and intention; and is co-founder and co-curator of the Sierra Leone Arts & Culture Festival (SLACfest).  

Across all her work, Siana is committed to moving voices and experiences traditionally marginalised, from the margins to the centre, and creating infrastructures for communities and creatives to thrive.

Dr. Yakama Manty Jones

Dr Yakama Manty Jones is an economist, finance professional, and entrepreneur with over a decade of experience advising governments and institutions on economic and public policy, investment strategy, and development delivery across Africa.

Currently on secondment from her Director of Research and Delivery at Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Finance, she works as a consultant providing delivery advisory to the Presidency and Institutions in the human capital development and technology space across Africa, supporting the design and implementation of high-impact reforms and investment initiatives. 

Her expertise sits at the intersection of economics, finance and human-centred design, bringing hands-on experience across public financial management, human capital development and private sector development, with a particular focus on structuring solutions that strengthen public systems, unlock private capital and translate strategy into measurable results.

Beyond her advisory work, Dr Jones is an entrepreneur and the founder of the Yak Jones Foundation and Data Mansah, initiatives to enhance citizens’ capabilities in literacy, data analytics and technology.

A published economist and sought-after speaker on development economics, entrepreneurship and innovation, Dr Jones is on the faculty of the Department of Economics and Commerce at Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, where she graduated with a BSc(Hons) in Economics. She has also earned postgraduate qualifications from the University of Manchester and the University of London (Queen Mary & Westfield College and Birkbeck College). 

Committed to lifelong learning and education, Dr. Jones has pursued executive training programmes at the University of Oxford, Harvard Kennedy School and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Edleen Elba

Edleen Elba is a Sierra Leonean business leader and investor in people, with a strong track record of building and scaling enterprises that drive inclusive economic growth. She is the Founder and Managing Director of Elba Group, a multi-sector business with interests in human resources, business support services, and enterprise development.

With a professional background spanning over two decades, and a large global network, Edleen brings a diaspora-informed perspective to investment, workforce development, and private sector growth. She is a Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) and has held senior leadership roles across finance, operations, and people management.

Edleen currently serves a key role as Council Member of the Sierra Leone Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture, where she advocates for private sector development and investment-friendly policies. She is also actively involved in initiatives that support youth employment, women’s empowerment, and skills development.

Her work increasingly focuses on creating investable opportunities in Sierra Leone — particularly in real estate, retail infrastructure, and integrated learning and enterprise hubs — while building bridges between diaspora investors and local markets.

Binta Jalloh

Binta Jalloh is a strategic policy advisor and international development specialist with over a decade of experience in governance, foreign policy, and global development across Africa and the U.S. She is currently the Senior Executive Advisor in the Office of the Vice President of Sierra Leone, providing high-level strategic, policy, and operational support to advance national priorities and coordinate government initiatives.

She has advised diverse institutions, including U.S. government agencies, multilateral organizations, foundations, and African governments. Most recently, she consulted with USAID’s Africa Bureau on a biodiversity initiative under the Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation.

Previously, Binta was a Policy Fellow at the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition in Washington, D.C., where she analyzed African political and conflict trends and their implications for U.S. foreign policy, developing strategic engagement materials for Congress and administration officials.

She also served as Regional Advocacy Lead for West and Central Africa at the United Nations World Food Programme in Dakar, Senegal, leading regional advocacy strategies across 19 countries to influence policy and resource mobilization on social protection, food security, and nutrition.

Earlier, as a Senior Advocacy Officer at Niyel, she developed high-impact strategies for global foundations like the Hewlett and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundations on reproductive health, data governance, and civic engagement. She began her career with the Open Society Initiative for West Africa and Population Services International in Sierra Leone.

Additionally, Binta’s experience in the film industry in Los Angeles and New York enhanced her skills in storytelling and strategic communication. She holds an M.S. in Development Administration and Planning from University College London and a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh.

Mohammed Abu Sesay

Mohamed Abu Sesay is a seasoned commercial and financial advisor, Chartered Accountant, Certified PPP Specialist, Energy Economist, and Strategist with over 25 years of experience in African investment and infrastructure. He is currently a Director in the PPP Directorate at Sierra Leone’s National Investment Board (NIB), where he has driven national investment strategies and facilitated PPP projects, increasing private-sector participation and economic growth. His policy reforms have attracted over $500 million in investments.

Mohamed began his international advisory career with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Africa (2006-2009) under a DFID-supported program, gaining foundational experience in financial advisory and public sector reform. His expertise covers structuring, financing, and delivering complex PPPs and large-scale infrastructure projects in energy, transport, and strategic infrastructure, including toll roads, power plants, and solar projects. He is an expert in privatisation and energy-sector reform, market restructuring, and utility reform.

A highly skilled financial modeller, Mohamed advises governments, DFIs, and private partners on transaction structuring, financial modelling, risk allocation, and investment strategy, combining financial rigour with commercial insight. He holds double Master’s degrees in Finance and Investment, is a Certified PPP Specialist, a Fellow of the ACCA (FCCA), and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants. He is a recognized thought leader in investment facilitation, PPP policy reform, and infrastructure finance in West Africa.

Mohamed is available for advisory mandates, board appointments, and strategic partnerships, offering tailored solutions for clients’ investment and infrastructure goals, ensuring impactful, sustainable outcomes.

About the Sierra Leone Diaspora Investment Conference

The Sierra Leone Diaspora Investment Conference is an annual initiative dedicated to mobilizing the financial, intellectual, and social capital of the Sierra Leonean diaspora for national development. It serves as the premier platform for facilitating diaspora engagement and direct investment and strengthening ties between Sierra Leone and its global citizens.

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