Sierra Leone News: SWSL rounds up Social Month celebration
By Stephen V. Lansana
Social Workers Sierra Leone (SWSL), the leading organization for social workers in the country, on Saturday concluded the 2019 Social Work month with a symposium where leading practitioners called for greater recognition of the profession.
The month of March is designated as Social Work Month, and around the world practitioners celebrates it with the aim of educating the general public about their invaluable contributions to society. The month also offers social workers the opportunity to reflect on their work, vis-à-vis best practices.
This year’s celebration marks the fourth time the Social Work Month is being commemorated in Sierra Leone. And SWSL was the first to celebrate the month in the country. The global theme for the celebration was: “Promoting the importance of human relationships.” Individual countries also carved their own themes. SWSL adopted the American theme, ‘Elevate Social Work.’
The symposium convened at the conference hall of the Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs, was preceded by a street procession from the Cotton Tree in the center of Freetown to the Ministry`s offices at New England. The audience comprised members of SWSL and social work students from its partner learning institutions, including Fourah Bay College; Milton Margai College of Education, Science and Technology; and the College of Theology and Management Studies.
The speakers at the symposium, who were drawn from academia, employing organizations, and the government, took turn to admonish serving and prospective social workers to take the profession with the seriousness it deserves. The presentations included three perspectives from the United Kingdom, Canadian and Russian experiences of social work.
Hamid Conteh, communications coordinator of SWSL and chairman of Saturday’s symposium, said as social workers, they have their own role in elevating the lives of the vulnerable communities.
Maimuna Kargbo, a Sierra Leonean social worker who studied and worked in Canada, advises young social workers against the temptation of passing judgement on clients with non-conforming lifestyles. This, she said, is important given the conservative nature of Sierra Leone where people tend to be biased through religious influences.
“Everyone has a story to tell…Social workers should not be judgmental,” said Ms Kargbo, while talking about meeting the needs of neglected communities like same sex people.
A Lecturer at Social Work Department, FBC, Moses Abdul Fullah said, “Social work is very much needed in our country which has a lot of social issues: poverty, the effect of the civil war, the Ebola epidemic and the mudslide,” he said. He also cited the many mentally retarded people in the streets of Freetown as well as the homeless people who he said needed social work services.
Elizabeth Kaima, who recently moved from the UK to Sierra Leone, observed that the condition of able bodied population alone leaves a lot to be desired in terms of access to social services. She wondered therefore what it would mean for those who are disadvantaged, hence the need for social workers.
The Child Protection Officer at UNICEF Sierra Leone, David Lamin, spoke on the need for regulation as interest in the profession grows rapidly.
He said while there was the need for social work services, it was also important to ensure that practitioners follow the rules governing the profession, hence the need for regulation. He cited examples where social workers have been found wanting for abusing children under their care.