“BREAKING BARRIERS IN THE SKIES: MUSAYEROOH BARRIE’S AVIATION REFORMS PUT SIERRA LEONE BACK ON THE GLOBAL MAP”

Director General of the Sierra Leone Civil Aviation Authority (SLCAA), Madam Musayeroh Barrie, has been recognised among Sierra Leone’s influential women, with her leadership increasingly linked to bold reforms aimed at strengthening the country’s aviation sector.

Barrie was listed at No. 31 among the 100 shortlisted nominees for the ninth edition of the 50 Most Influential Sierra Leonean Women Awards in 2026. Organisers said the selection followed a nationwide nomination process that attracted 2,006 nominations, with final honorees to be chosen based on professional achievement, impact, leadership and contribution to national development.

Since becoming the first woman appointed Director General of the SLCAA in August 2023, Barrie has overseen a wave of transformation. Under her administration, Air Sierra Leone was reintroduced, the country’s first Air Operator Certificate was issued since 2008, and direct flights between Freetown and London were restored in April 2025.

The SLCAA has also advanced institutional capacity through a 2024 Management Service Agreement with the International Civil Aviation Organisation, supporting the development of the Civil Aviation Master Plan, National Aviation Safety Plan, and National Air Navigation Plan.

Beyond regulation, Barrie is championing youth and gender inclusion. More than half of SLCAA’s workforce is under 40, with over 40% below 35. In January 2026, she delivered a keynote at an ICAO High-Level Youth Summit in Montréal, urging young professionals to build a sustainable aviation future.

Her leadership was again tested during Sierra Leone’s hosting of the 2026 ECOWAS Summit, where SLCAA coordinated operations at Freetown International Airport and deployed a drone-detection system covering a 20-kilometre radius to secure airspace.

While the 2026 awards ceremony is scheduled for July 18 at Bintumani, records confirm Barrie was also named among the 50 Most Influential Sierra Leonean Women in 2025.

From restoring connectivity to building capacity, Barrie’s reforms are repositioning Sierra Leone’s skies — and proving that visionary leadership can lift an entire sector.