FREETOWN, May 18, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - Sierra Leone's president expressed hopes

in an AFP interview that a newly announced African mediation effort would end
Russia's war in Ukraine "for the sake of humanity".

"We are all suffering as a result of the war in Ukraine... For the sake of
humanity, for what is happening, let's end the war," said President Julius
Maada Bio, who was elected in 2018 and will next month seek a second term.

"I think even those who sympathise with Russia are in favour of stopping this
war," he said in the Wednesday interview.

The leaders of Zambia, Senegal, the Republic of Congo, Uganda, Egypt and
South Africa will next month launch a mission to Moscow and Kyiv to try to
broker peace.

African countries, which were already struggling from the Covid-19 pandemic,
have been hit hard by the war and its impact on supply chains and prices.

African countries have been divided at the UN over the conflict, but Sierra
Leone has voted with Western nations in favour of resolutions to condemn
Russia's actions.

Last July, Sierra Leone slashed three zeros off its currency hoping to
restore confidence in the inflation-hit leone unit.

In August, riots erupted over the rising cost of living and 27 civilians and
six police officers were killed.

"We have a vested interest in seeing to it that that war comes to an end as
quickly as possible... especially as a country that has gone through war
before -- but also (because of) the impact on us," said Bio.

Sierra Leone's mineral-dependent economy is still recovering from a brutal
1991-2002 civil war and the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola epidemic.

Bio, 59, who was elected in 2018, also set out plans to end his country's
reliance on food imports and foreign aid.

"It is not a pleasure to go begging around nations, when you say you're a
sovereign nation," he said. "I believe that we can do enough to develop our
own resources."

He said agriculture would be a second term focus, pledging "serious policy
shift in the Ministry of Agriculture to be able to produce our staple food,
to the point that we will not need to import rice".

The West African country of 8 million people will hold presidential,
parliamentary and municipal elections on June 24.