Bombali District

Bombali District
Location of Bombali District in Sierra Leone
Coordinates: 9°20′N 12°15′W
Country	Sierra Leone
Province	Northern Province
Capital	Makeni
Largest city	Makeni
Government
• Type	District Council
• Council Chairman	Eric Dura Sesay (APC)
Area
• Total	7,985 km2 (3,083 sq mi)
Population (20010)
• Total	427,547
Time zone	Greenwich Mean Time (UTC-5)

Bombali District is district in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is Makeni, which is also the fifth largest city in Sierra Leone and the largest city in the north. The other major towns in the district include Kamakwie, Kamabai, Masingbi and Binkolo. Bombali is one of five districts that make up the Northern province of Sierra Leone.

Bombali is the second largest District in Sierra Leone in geographical area (after Koinadugu District) and the second most populous district in the North, after Port Loko District. The population of Bombali District is 427,547. The two largest and most dominant ethnic groups in the district are the Temne and Limba.

The District of Bombali occupies a total space of 7,985 km² (3,083 sq mi) and comprises fourteen chiefdoms. The district borders the Republic of Guinea to the north, Port Loko District and Kambia Districts to the west, Tonkolili District to the south, and Koinadugu District to the east. Bombali district is the home district of the current president of Sierra Leone Ernest Bai Koroma and former president of Sierra Leone Joseph Saidu Momoh.

Government

Bombali District is governed with a directly elected district council form of government, which is headed by a District Council Chairman, who is the highest local government official in the district. The District Council Chairman is responsible for the general management of the district. The current District Council Chairman of Bombali District is Eric Dura Sesay of the All People's Congress (APC), following his victory in the 2008 Sierra Leone local elections.

Members of Parliament

The district of Bombali has eight Representatives in the Sierra Leonean Parliament, of which seven member were elected for a 5-year term. The district is a stronghold of the ruling All People's Congress (APC). In the second round of the 2007 Sierra Leone presidential election, the incumbent vice president of Sierra Leone Solomon Berewa and candidate of the then ruling Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) party got 11% of the vote in Bombali District, while the leader of the main opposition party and current president of Sierra Leone Ernest Bai Koroma of the All People's Congress (APC) got 89% of the vote in the second round in the district.

Major towns

• Makeni, largest city
• Kamakwie
• Kamabai
• Binkolo

Towns and villages

• Masongbon
• Kagber
• Kalangba
• Kangbori
• Fintonia
• Lowoma
• Hunduwa
• Kamaranka
• Batkanu
• Mateboi
• Masingbi
• Mapaki
• Moriba
• Rokulan
• Kamalo
• Sanda
• Tonko

Effects of the Civil War

Bombali was a principal former rebel stronghold and experienced considerable displacement, destruction and trauma as a result of the conflict. While progress has been made since the conflict, particularly in restoration of state authority, the level of social services and economic recovery remains unsatisfactory throughout the district. The provincial importance of Makeni is in contrast with the current lack of water and power supply in the township, and the bad road network and large distances in the district have meant that limited intervention has been made in chiefdoms outside of the Makeni area, particularly in the far north.

Notable people from Bombali District

• Ernest Bai Koroma, current President of Sierra Leone
• Joseph Saidu Momoh, President of Sierra Leone from 1985-1992
• Almamy Suluku, was a powerful Limba ruler who maintained his independence as long as possible through brilliant political strategy during colonial era.
• Edward Turay, Politician
• Brima Koroma, football star
• Mohamed Kamara, football star
• Daddi Cool, Guinean reggae musician

See also

• Sierra Leone
• Sierra Leone Civil War

Sources

• Parts of this article reproduced with permission from http://www.daco-sl.org
• http://www.statehouse-sl.org/member-parliament.html