John Karefa-Smart, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

    

John Karefa-Smart

Sierra Leonean politician

Date of Birth: 17-Jun-1915

Place of Birth: Rotifunk, Sierra Leone

Date of Death: 26-Aug-2010

Profession: writer, lawyer, politician, diplomat, university teacher

Nationality: Sierra Leone

Zodiac Sign: Gemini


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About John Karefa-Smart

  • Dr.
  • John Albert Musselman Karefa-Smart (17 June 1915 – 26 August 2010) was a Sierra Leonean politician, medical doctor and university professor.
  • He served as the first Foreign Minister under Sierra Leone's first Prime Minister, Milton Margai.
  • He was an ordained Elder of the United Methodist Church. A medical doctor by profession, Karefa-Smart was one of the founding fathers of the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) in 1951.
  • He was one of Sir Milton Margai's closest political advisors and a close personal friend.
  • From 1957 to 1964, Karefa-Smart was a Member of Parliament of Sierra Leone from Tonkolili District. After the death of Prime Minister Milton Margai in 1964, Karefa-Smart challenged Albert Margai for the SLPP leadership position, but he was unsuccessful, as Albert won the SLPP leadership and succeeded his brother as Sierra Leone's Prime Minister.
  • Karefa-Smart ultimately left the SLPP and politics overall and moved abroad to continue his professional career. From 1965 to 1970, Karefa-Smart served as Assistant Director-General to the World Health Organization (WHO).
  • In 1970, he made an unsuccessful bid for the Presidency in Sierra Leone.
  • From there, he returned to Geneva, then migrated to the USA to pursue his career in university teaching, research and public speaking.
  • In 1996, Karefa-Smart returned to Sierra Leone's politics as the founder of the newly formed United National People's Party (UNPP).
  • He stood as the UNPP candidate in the 1996 presidential election, but he was defeated in the second round election runoff by the SLPP candidate Ahmad Tejan Kabbah.

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