Peace Without Poison

The man responsible for introducing population control measures in 1982 in Sierra Leone isSiaka Stevens, who was the third prime minister of Sierra Leone from 1967 to 1971 and its firstpresident from 1971 to 1985. He made this move towards the end of his presidency andimmediately after serving as Chairman of the Organization of African Union from 1981 to 1982,where he was undoubtedly inspired by other African leaders and came into daily contact with theinternational community and learned to think in geopolitical terms and consider the future.There is no evidence to suggest that President Stevens used involuntary methods of populationcontrol, as there is no evidence to suggest that his successor, Joseph Saidu Momoh (1985-1992),used such methods either. From 1982 to 1992 the total fertility rate declined only modestly from7 to 6.5 children per woman.Following a coup d'état in 1992, Sierra Leone had military rule until 1996 when civiliangovernment was restored. During these 4 years, the total fertility rate declined modestly from736 | P a g e