Sia Koroma

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Sia Nyama Koroma
First Lady of Sierra Leone
In role 17 September 2007 – 4 April 2018
President	Ernest Bai Koroma
Preceded by	Patricia Kabbah
Succeeded by	Fatima Maada Bio
Personal details
Born	(1958-03-19) 19 March 1958 (age 63) Kono District, British Sierra Leone
Nationality	Sierra Leonean
Political party	All People's Congress (APC)
Spouse(s)	Ernest Bai Koroma ​ (m. 1986)​
Children	Alice and Danke Koroma
Residence	Freetown, Sierra Leone
Alma mater	The Annie Walsh Memorial Secondary School and King's College London
Profession	Biochemist, Psychiatric Nurse
Website	http://www.firstladysl.org (official website)

Sia Nyama Koroma (born on 19 March 1958^[1] in, Kono District, British Sierra Leone) is Sierra Leonean biochemist and psychiatric nurse.^[2] She served as First Lady of Sierra Leone from 17 September 2007 - 4 April 2018. She is the wife of Ernest Bai Koroma, the 4th President of Sierra Leone.

Koroma was a pioneer in her role as First Lady, established the Office of the First Lady to undertake development initiatives.^[2] She focused on projects for Sierra Leonean women and children.^[2]

She is the founder of the Women's Initiative for Safer Health (WISH) project which focuses on improving reproductive health for women.^[2]

Early life and education[]

Koroma was born on 19 March 1958 in Kono District in the Eastern Province of Sierra Leone. She is the daughter of Danke Koroma, a primary school teacher, and Abu Aiah Koroma, a lawyer and the former Attorney General of Sierra Leone.^[3] She is a member of the Kono ethnic group.

During her childhood, her father worked as the Managing Director of the National Diamond Mining Company (NDMC) before entering into politics. He served as Minister of Natural Resources and later as Minister of Political and Parliamentary Affairs. Her father was also a presidential candidate in the 1996 General Election. Koroma spent her early years at various primary schools around Sierra Leone as her father was being posted from one place to another.

She attended the oldest secondary school for girls in West Africa, the Annie Walsh Memorial Secondary School in Freetown, and completed her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry and a Master of Science degree in Synthetic Organic Chemistry in the United Kingdom. During the 1997 interregnum in Sierra Leone, she left the country for the United Kingdom where she studied nursing at Kings College University in London and later became a Fellow of the West African College of Nursing. From 1984 to 1992 she worked as Chief Chemist at the Sierra Leone Petroleum Refinery Company, where her work included routine quality control monitoring of petroleum products in the country and sub-region.

First Lady of Sierra Leone[]

In September 2007, after a two-round election, Ernest Bai Koroma, a former insurance executive with no previous track record in politics, became the new President of Sierra Leone. His wife Sia Nyama Koroma who is a KT member was suddenly swept from being an 'ordinary' wife, mother and professional to be the First Lady of the country.

In February 2008, during a visit to the UK by the President and First Lady, the KT Sierra Leone Fellowship hosted a special service of thanksgiving for Sierra Leone. The special guest of honour was Mrs Sia Koroma.

The congregation which included Sierra Leone's High Commissioner and Deputy High Commissioner and other dignitaries was addressed by Pastor Amanda Dye. This is a brief recount of Sia's remarkable transformation from a servant in ministry to be the First Lady of Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone's New First Lady Sia Nyama Koroma is a woman of substance but with a humble disposition despite her admirable life achievements. Although she hails from the most prominent political family in Kono District in Sierra Leone, prior to now, the highly educated Sia Koroma never sought the limelight but quietly stayed in the background, strategically supporting her husband's political ambitions. Sia's deep faith and conviction as a born-again Christian has been well documented over the past few months as she has settled into her new official role.

Personal life[]

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References[]

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