By Mohamed Konneh
The Budget Advocacy Network (BAN) on Wednesday 29th July 2026 concluded a pre-budget engagement with marginalised, vulnerable and women groups. The engagement took place at the organization’s office, Hill Station in Freetown. This activity is part of a project title Making Tax Work for Women implemented by Budget Advocacy Network.
Speaking during the engagement, the National Coordinator of BAN, Abu Bakarr Kamara said too often budget decisions are made without the voices of women, persons with disabilities, and other vulnerable Sierra Leoneans.
He said with the policy hearing and budget discussion to take place soon, it is but fitting that such an engagement be held to hear from the people themselves.
‘’The budget is the second most important document after the constitution and the reason each and every person must be involve in it. These category of people we have brought in, are mostly the forgotten categories when it comes to planning. This engagement is to hear from them and document their concerns that will be presented to the various MDAs responsible,’’ he said.
Doreen Barrie is the Executive Director of DOFA an organization that advocates for old people. She told the gathering that old people including women have always been left out in development aspiration.
“We want the budget to reflect our needs. For women in the market, we need better sanitation, for mothers, better health care, and for people with disability, access and support,” she said.
The goal for this pre-budget engagement is to gather their priority needs and present them directly to government before the 2027 budget is drafted and concluded.
The various groups presented their priority needs including transportation and boarding support for learners in remote communities, trained health care workers to understand specific health needs of persons with albinism, fund public education to address myths, discrimination, violence and harmful practice against persons with albinism and many more. The sessions were facilitated by Abu Bakarr Tarwally, Policy analyst at Budget Advocacy Network.
