Sierra Leone Minister Calls for Human-Centred AI at ILO Geneva Session

Sierra Leone's government minister Swaray addressed the International Labour Organization's 114th Session in Geneva on June 11, 2026, calling for a human-centred approach to artificial intelligence that protects workers as AI adoption spreads through African labour markets.

The core argument

Swaray argued that AI adoption strategies pursued without deliberate safeguards risk displacing workers in economies like Sierra Leone's, where formal social safety nets remain limited. The minister called on international bodies and national governments alike to prioritise reskilling, worker protections and inclusive design when deploying AI systems into workplaces.

Linking domestic strategy to global forums

The Geneva remarks built directly on Sierra Leone's National AI Strategy, published earlier in 2026 with World Bank support, giving the country's international engagement a consistent throughline: AI adoption paired with explicit attention to its labour-market consequences rather than adoption for its own sake. Sierra Leone's presence at a major ILO session also signalled an effort to position the country's AI policy voice within global labour and technology governance conversations typically dominated by larger economies.