David John Francis (born October 5, 1965) is a Sierra Leonean politician, academic and author serving as Chief Minister of Sierra Leone since April 2018.
He is the first person to hold the office of Chief Minister since it was abolished in 1978 and is one of the most highly ranked government officials in Sierra Leone.Francis studied at Fourah Bay College, Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law and International Institute of Social Studies.
From 1994 to 1998 he was a postdoctoral research associate at University of Southampton.
Prior to his current position in the government of Sierra Leone, he was a professor at the University of Bradford where he was the coordinator of the UNESCO Chair in African Peace and Conflict Studies.
He is the author of nine books and over fifty journal articles and commissioned-policy papers.