Peace Corps Sierra Leone Marks 64 Years of Partnership, Expands School Support

Peace Corps Sierra Leone has commemorated 64 years of partnership with Sierra Leone, highlighting a continuing focus on education, community development and the exchange of knowledge.

The commemoration took place on September 30, 2026. The organisation said its relationship with Sierra Leonean communities dates back to 1962 and has continued through periods of significant national difficulty.

Volunteers support classroom learning

Peace Corps volunteers currently serve in classrooms alongside Sierra Leonean teachers and pupils at different levels of the education system. Some support English instruction in elementary schools, while others work with teachers and pupils in Mathematics and Science at junior secondary school level.

According to Peace Corps Sierra Leone, the volunteers are intended to complement local educators rather than replace them. Their work includes exchanging knowledge with teachers, strengthening teaching practices and supporting classroom learning.

The programme’s stated education goals include improving foundational literacy and numeracy while strengthening learning in Mathematics and Science. It also seeks to ensure that skills and knowledge shared during volunteer assignments remain in schools and communities after volunteers complete their service.

Deployment beyond Freetown

A new cohort of volunteers has been deployed to Port Loko and Kono Districts, where they are expected to work with local schools and communities. Peace Corps Sierra Leone described the deployment as part of its wider support for locally driven development and efforts to expand educational opportunities beyond Freetown.

The organisation said its partnership with Sierra Leoneans has continued through the civil war, the Ebola outbreak and subsequent recovery efforts. Volunteers left the country during the civil conflict before the programmes later resumed.

The anniversary message reflected the cooperative nature of the partnership through the Krio saying, “One Hand Cannot Tie a Bundle.” It also presented education as central to independent thinking, opportunity and national development, using the phrase, “Education is the architecture of freedom.”

Peace Corps Sierra Leone said its ongoing approach remains centred on direct community engagement, collaboration with Sierra Leonean teachers and the retention of knowledge within local institutions after individual volunteer assignments end.