Welcome Message
Welcome Message
I am delighted to welcome you to the website of the Embassy of Ireland in Sierra Leone. It is an honour for me to have taken up duty as Ambassador of Ireland to Sierra Leone in August 2021.
The Government of Ireland first opened a development cooperation office in Sierra Leone in 2005. This was upgraded to an Embassy in 2014 to demonstrate our commitment to deepening and strengthening the relationship and close ties between Sierra Leone and Ireland.
Since 2019, the work of the Embassy has been guided by a five year Ireland in Sierra Leone Mission Strategywhich aligns closely with A Better World: Ireland's Policy for International Development. This Strategy sets out Ireland’s ambition to deepen bilateral, political, economic and cultural cooperation between Ireland and Sierra Leone. It reflects our priorities across the five pillars of Global Island: Ireland’s Foreign Policy for a Changing World and has as its overarching goal to promote Ireland’s values and interests in Sierra Leone, with a focus on the empowerment of women and girls. Support for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and reducing inequality is at the core of the Embassy’s mission.
There are four key areas of focus for our Mission Strategy and our development cooperation programme in Sierra Leone:
- Gender equality;
- nutrition and food security;
- governance;
- education.
Following on from that, our Strategy identifies four core outcomes for our work:
• that women and children have improved nutritional status;
• that women and girls are empowered to realise their potential and their rights;
• that more girls access and benefit from quality education;
• and that citizens – in particular women - are more empowered to engage with inclusive and accountable democratic institutions and processes.
Our team in Freetown is committed to working as a constructive and collaborative partner to the Government of Sierra Leone in support of the aims of the Medium-Term National Development Plan (2019-2023). To this end we work closely also with Civil Society partners.
There is a vibrant Irish community here. Irish Missionaries first came to Sierra Leone over 150 years ago to work in the health and education fields. This interest in partnership and working towards a shared vision for a better future continues to the present day, with Irish people working with and in civil society and international organisations here.
Our team at the Embassy provides consular services to the Irish community and guidance on visas to Sierra Leoneans interested in travelling to Ireland. The Embassy also manages the Ireland-Africa Fellows Programme for Sierra Leone, a scholarship initiative that aims to nurture future leaders and develop in-country capacity to achieve the SDGs.
I hope you will learn more about our work on the pages of our website and I invite you to follow us on Twitter at @IrlEmbFreetown where you will see regular updates on our activities.
We look forward to meeting and working with you here in beautiful Sierra Leone!
Céad Míle Fáilte and KabÉ”,
Claire Buckley
Biography
Claire Buckley took up duty as the Ambassador of Ireland to the Republic of Sierra Leone in August 2021.
She joined the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in 2002 and has enjoyed both policy roles in European Union and Political Divisions as well as operational roles in Protocol Division, Irish Abroad Unit and Human Resources. She was posted to Athens and undertook a temporary assignment to the Permanent Mission of Ireland to the UN in New York.
Claire holds a degree in European Studies from Trinity College, Dublin and a post-graduate diploma from the Technological University Dublin in Legal Studies.
Claire is married with three sons and, as a family, is really enjoying discovering all that Sierra Leone has to offer.