THE ROAD TO LEADERSHIP - A CASE FOR SIERRA LEONE LEADERSHIP.pdf

The Road To Good Leadership- A Cases for Sierra Leone Democracy Page 1
BY PROF. PAUL ALLIEU KAMARA
PROFESSOR OF LEADERSHIP AND ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT
RUDOLPH KWANUE UNIVERSITY
INTRODUCTION
Historical perspective refers to understanding a subject in light of its earliest phases and
subsequent evolution. The Road to Leadership is perspective differs from history because its
object is to sharpen one's vision of the present, not the past. When historical perspective is
overlooked in social research, researchers may draw misleading conclusions. Historical
perspective expands research horizons by encouraging study of the relative stability of
phenomena, providing alternative explanations for phenomena, and aiding problem formulation
and research design.

Definition and Context
Historical perspective is the study of a subject in light of its earliest phases and subsequent
evolution. Historical perspective differs from history in that the The comments of Lotte Bailyn,
Steven Barley. Gibb Dyer, Meryl Louis, Edgar Schein, and John Van Maanen on an earlier draft
of this paper are gratefuUy acknowledged. 307 whatever the future will bring (Maule, 1945)
remains compelling. Horatio Alger and the Lone Ranger are heroes of this tradition. And in the
real world, test pilots, astronauts, and computer engineers are idealized for pushing their lives
past endurance in pursuit of progress (Kidder, 1981; Wolfe, 1979). In this future-oriented
American vision, "history," as Henry Ford once said, "is more or less bunk" (Bartlett, 1968, p.
714). This vision is deliberately overstated to make a point: progress is a strong cultural value,
and it is antithetical to the use of historical perspective. The statement "social] research has come
a long way" presupposes that the present is both different from and better than the past. One
cannot both dismiss the past as primitive and use it as a key to understanding the present. Thus,
most social scientists tend to use the past only to measure historic progress, rather than to bring
contemporary events into clearer focus. How does historical perspective focus research studies
on the present? It provokes the major question: What elements in the findings or theory are trans-
historical? Answering this question is one test of "grand" theory-separating that which is truly
universal in human behavior from that which is not. However, given that much of social science
is not universal, a second "midrange" question emerges: Within what time period are the findings
and theory generalizable?
What is the importance of good leadership in nation?
Good leadership makes the society into a positive and content society. A leader with the good
amount of self-confidence can keep the people in the society motivated and aspired and works
for the betterment of the society rather than the own benefits of himself.
.Why leadership is important
Leadership is never an easy task or easy quality. Even though some leaders manage to us the
impression that it’s such an easy task being a leader, the qualities, and the role played by a leader
is a tough one and requires great courage to pull off the tasks that are always challenging.
But, what is leadership?
Leadership is the art of motivating and attracting talented workers to put their talents into work
on meeting certain goals that have been set.
Why is leadership important?

Leadership is the process through which one person influences the attitudes, behaviors, and
thoughts of the others. They have the ability to set things in the right direction by helping others
see beyond the eyes can see and making everyone aware of the challenges.
A leader sees the potential in every individual and aims to exploit this and inspires them.
Leading by example is a positive attitude of a good leader.
Why is leadership important in the society?
When we talk about leadership, it almost always is applied to the areas of within the workplace.
The importance of leadership and good leaders in the society is a totally neglected matter.
Leadership isn’t limited to only the corporate context. It should be extended to the society even
because it evolved as a social phenomenon long before it came into
the professional phenomenon.
Leadership in the society is vital because there has to be someone who has the ability to give
structure to the human society and help it develop and grow in a responsible manner. People
have been divided naturally into leaders and followers and the leaders make and lead the way for
the followers while they complete the given tasks and help in bringing the changes about.
Leadership plays a very big role in the achieving of social change because it is not possible to
unite and inspire a group of people without the of a good leader.
Good leadership makes the society into a positive and content society. A leader with the good
amount of self-confidence can keep the people in the society motivated and aspired and works
for the betterment of the society rather than the own benefits of himself. When people have trust
and faith in their leader, they are in a better frame of mind.
Why is leadership important in the workplace?
Our perception of teams is that they are highly democratic entities in which everyone makes
equal amounts of contribution to finish a given task in a given deadline. However, just like
presidents and the prime ministers are required to leave greatest democracies, a leader is without
no doubt, an essential part of the team building.
Leaders keep the teams accountable for his/her responsibility and make sure that everyone’s
contribution is made in the completion of the project. In the true meaning, a good role
model leader takes the full responsibility for the final results of a team whether it is the best or
the worst.
Leaders empower the team the team by trusting each and every person’s potential and carrying
the tasks in the way that they seem fit. Leadership in this context means that flexibility in the
work can be given based on the amount of trust given.

Through great leadership qualities, the teams can streamline and simplify their decision-making
process since the leaders have the power of the final say. However, a good leader will always
have excellent listening skills and listen to every query of the fellow teammates.
Through the good leadership of a great leader, the organizational projects will keep moving
faster at a faster pace. A designated leader will get rid of any hindrance by initiating
conversations and steer the team back on track during some problematic meetings. Organizations
need such leadership qualities because they have a clear vision and clear deadlines established.
Why should stand up for leadership every day?
Now that we have known clear reasons why we need leadership in both the society and
organizational context, we should not be afraid of doing something about it every day.
If we don’t stand up and take the leadership of anything going wrong around s, there will be no
one to put an end to it as everyone will be speculators and no one will be the stopper. We should
start up for ourselves and start fighting for what is right.
Leadership fills the gap within the Society. It allows the society to move in a direction that is
well defined. Without any leader, a society or organization will be no different from a zoo.
Sierra Leone- the Road to Good Democratic Leadership
Let travel the Road to Leadership
Officially the Republic of Sierra Leone is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It
shares its southeastern border with Liberia, and the northern half of the nation is surrounded
by Guinea. Covering a total area of 71,740 km2
(27,699 sq mi),[11]
Sierra Leone has a tropical
climate, with diverse environments ranging from savanna to rainforests. The country has a
population of 7,092,113 as of the 2015 census.[12]
Freetown is the capital and largest city. The
country is divided into five administrative regions, which are subdivided into 16 districts.[13][14]
Sierra Leone is a constitutional republic with a unicameral parliament and a directly
elected president serving a five-year term with a maximum of two terms. The current president
is Julius Maada Bio. Sierra Leone is a secular nation with the constitution providing for the
separation of state and religion and freedom of conscience (which includes freedom of thoughts
and religion).[15]
Muslims make up about three-quarters of the population, though with an
influential Christian minority. Religious tolerance in the West African nation is very high and is
generally considered a norm and part of Sierra Leone's cultural identity.[16]

Let Travel the Geographical Road To Leadership
The geographic area has been inhabited for millennia, but Sierra Leone, as the country and its
borders are known today, was founded by the British Crown in two phases: first, the coastal
Sierra Leone Colony in 1808 (for returning Africans after the abolition of slavery); second, the
inland Protectorate in 1896 (as the Crown needed to establish more dominion inland following
the outcome of the Berlin Conference of 1884–1885). Hence, the country formally became
known as the Sierra Leone Colony and Protectorate or simply British Sierra Leone.[17][18]
Sierra
Leone gained independence from the United Kingdom on 27 April 1961, and became
a Commonwealth Nation or realm on the same day; the country's name changed to the Dominion
of Sierra Leone. Sir Milton Margai became Sierra Leone's first prime minister.[19]
Let Travel the Road to Political Leadership
During the few decades following independence, Sierra Leone witnessed an increase in political
activities, transformations, turmoil, humanitarian and socio-economic crises. The country had its
first general elections as an independent nation on 27 May 1961. Margai's Sierra Leone People's
Party (SLPP) won a plurality of parliamentary seats and he was re-elected Prime Minister. A new
constitution was adopted in 1971, paving the way for Sierra Leone becoming a republic,
and Siaka Stevens, leader of the All People's Congress (APC), becoming the first executive
president of the Republic of Sierra Leone. Stevens held on to this position for 14 years (until
1985) under a one-party system of government facilitated by the controversial 1978 Constitution.
However, Stevens' hand-picked successor Joseph Saidu Momoh promised to return the country
to a multi-party system; a new constitution was adopted in 1991 that provided the means for a
multi-party democracy.
Let Travel The Road to Our Civil Arm Struggle to Democratic Leadership
A brutal civil war broke out the same year, which went on for 11 years with devastating effects.
In 1992, just a year after the war broke out, President Momoh was ousted in a coup led by Sierra
Leone Army captain Valentine Strasser. Strasser was later ousted by his army colleague and
second-in-command Julius Maada Bio, for failing to commit to a quick transfer to civilian rule.
Bio would then return the country back to a democratic republic in 1996 through a general
election.[20]
In early 1996, despite the country going through a brutal civil war, the emergence of the prospect
of a transformation back to a multi-party democracy brought fresh hopes and great expectations
among a majority of Sierra Leoneans, as the national debate "Peace before Elections vs Elections
before Peace" became a hot topic. Eventually, "Elections before Peace" won the
debate.[20]
Ahmad Tejan Kabbah won the 1996 presidential election and became the first multi-
party democratically elected president of Sierra Leone. Since then, there has been a smooth
succession to the presidency all via elections. A brief coup in 1997 led by Sierra Leone Army
major Johnny Paul Koroma ousted Kabbah, who went into exile in Guinea. He was reinstated
after nine months through military intervention by ECOMOG. Kabbah's presidency marked the

dawn of a new Sierra Leone, which included the end of the civil war in 2002, a focus on
fostering national unity and reconciliation, trust in government, peace and stability, the
improvement in relations with many countries, and the refounding of the Sierra Leone Armed
Forces with special assistance and training led by the Government of the United Kingdom.[21][22]
Let Travel The Road to Our Ethnicity
About 18 ethnic groups inhabit Sierra Leone; the two largest and most influential ones are
the Temne and Mende peoples. About 2% of the country's populations are Creole people,
descendants of freed African-American and Afro-Caribbean slaves. English is the official
language used in schools and government administration. Krio is the most widely spoken
language across Sierra Leone, spoken by 97% of the country's population. Sierra Leone is rich in
natural resources, especially diamond, gold, bauxite and aluminium.
Let Travel The Road to Our International Relationship
The country is a member of the United Nations, African Union, Economic Community of West
African States (ECOWAS), Mano River Union, Commonwealth of Nations, IMF, World
Bank, WTO, African Development Bank, and Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Sierra Leone
is home to Sub-Saharan Africa's first Western-style university: Fourah Bay College (established
in 1827).[23]
Let Travel The Road to our Etymology
The country takes its name from the Lion Mountains near Freetown. Originally named Serra
Leoa (Portuguese for 'lioness mountains') by Portuguese explorer Pedro de Sintra in 1462, the
modern name is derived from the Venetian spelling, which was introduced
by Venetian explorer Alvise Cadamosto and subsequently copied by other
European mapmakers.[24]

Let Travel the Road to our History
History of Sierra Leone
Fragments of prehistoric pottery from Kamabai Rock Shelter
Bunce Island, 1805, during the period the slave factory was run by John and Alexander

An 1835 in Sierra Leone
The colony of illustration of liberated Africans arriving Freetown in 1856Houses at Sierra-Leone
(May 1853, X, p. 55)[25]

Let Travel the Road to our Archaeological finds
Archaeological finds show that Sierra Leone has been inhabited continuously for at least 2,500
years;[26]
populated successively by societies who migrated from other parts of Africa.[27]
The use
of iron was adopted by the ninth century, and by 1000 AD, agriculture was being practised along
the coast.[28]
Over time, the climate changed considerably, altering boundaries between different
ecological zones, affecting migration and conquest.[29]
Sierra Leone's dense tropical rainforest and swampy environment were considered impenetrable;
it was also host to the tsetse fly, which carried a disease fatal to horses and the zebu cattle used
by the Mande-speaking people. This environment protected its people from conquest by
the Mandinka and other African empires,[29][30]
and limited the influence of the Mali
Empire. Islam was introduced by Susu traders, merchants and migrants from the north and east,
becoming widely adopted in the 18th century.[31]
Let Travel The Road to Our European trading
European contacts within Sierra Leone were among the first in West Africa during the 15th
century. In 1462, Portuguese explorer Pedro de Sintra mapped the hills surrounding what is now
Freetown Harbour, naming the shaped formation Serra da Leoa or "Serra Leoa"
(Portuguese for Lioness Mountains).[32]
The Spanish rendering of this geographic formation
is Sierra Leona, which later was adapted, misspelled and became the country's current name.
Though according to Professor C. Magbaily Fyle, this might have been a misinterpretation from
historians. According to Professor Fyle, there has been evidence of travellers calling the
region Serra Lyoa long before 1462 (before the first arrival of Sintra to the region). This would
imply that the identity of the person who named Sierra Leone is unknown.[33]
Soon after Sintra's
expedition, Portuguese traders started arriving at the harbour. By 1495, they had built a
fortified trading post on the coast.[34]
Traders from European nations, such as the Dutch Republic, England and France also started to
arrive to Sierra Leone and establish trading stations. These stations quickly began to primarily
deal in slaves, who were brought to the coast by indigenous traders from interior areas
undergoing wars and conflicts over territory. The Europeans made payments, called Cole, for
rent, tribute, and trading rights, to the king of an area. Local Afro-European merchants often
acted as middlemen, the Europeans advancing them goods to trade to indigenous merchants,
most often for slaves and ivory.[35][36]
Sir Francis Drake reached Sierra Leone on 22 July 1580 as
the last stop of his voyage along the west coast of Africa. Bunce Island, an island on the Sierra
Leone River, was used as a base by European slavers as a place for slave ships to dock before
sailing via the Middle Passage to the Americas. Until the passage of the Slave Trade Act 1807,
the island was operated by the London-based firm Grant, Oswald & Company, who occupied it
in 1748.[37]

Let Travel the Road to our Black Poor of London
In the late 18th century, many African Americans claimed the protection of the British Crown.
There were thousands of these Black Loyalists, people of African ancestry who joined the British
military forces during the American Revolutionary War.[38]
Many of these Loyalists had been
slaves who had escaped to join the British, lured by promises of freedom (emancipation). The
official documentation known as the Book of Negroes lists thousands of freed slaves whom the
British evacuated from the nascent United States and resettled in colonies elsewhere in British
North America (north to Canada, or south to the West Indies).
Pro-slavery advocates accused the Black Poor of being responsible for a large proportion of
crime in 18th century London. While the broader community included some women, the Black
Poor seems to have exclusively consisted of men, some of whom developed relationships with
local women and often married them. Slave owner Edward Long criticized marriage between
black men and white women.[39]
However, on the voyage between Plymouth, England and Sierra
Leone, seventy European girlfriends and wives accompanied the Black Poor settlers.[40]
Many in London thought that moving them to Sierra Leone would lift them out of
poverty.[41]
The Sierra Leone Resettlement Scheme was proposed by entomologist Henry
Smeathman and drew interest from humanitarians like Granville Sharp, who saw it as a means of
showing the pro-slavery lobby that black people could contribute towards the running of the new
colony of Sierra Leone. Government officials soon became involved in the scheme as well,
although their interest was spurred by the possibility of resettling a large group of poor citizens
elsewhere.[42]
William Pitt the Younger, prime minister and leader of the Tory party, had an
active interest in the Scheme because he saw it as a means to repatriate the Black Poor to Africa,
since "it was necessary they should be sent somewhere, and be no longer suffered to infest the
streets of London".[39]
Let Travel the Road to our Province of Freedom
In January 1787, the Atlantic and the Belisarius set sail for Sierra Leone, but bad weather forced
them to divert to Plymouth, during which time about 50 passengers died. Another 24 were
discharged, and another 23 ran away. Eventually, with some more recruitment, 411 passengers
sailed to Sierra Leone in April 1787. On the voyage between Plymouth and Sierra Leone, 96
passengers died.[39][43][44][45]
In 1787 the British Crown founded a settlement in Sierra Leone in what was called the "Province
of Freedom". About 400 black and 60 white colonists reached Sierra Leone on 15 May 1787.
After they established Granville Town, most of the first group of colonists died, owing to disease
and warfare with the indigenous African peoples (Temne), who resisted their encroachment.
When the ships left them in September, their numbers had been reduced to "276 persons, namely
212 black men, 30 black women, 5 white men and 29 white women".[39]
The settlers that remained forcibly captured land from a local African chieftain, but he retaliated,
attacking the settlement, which was reduced to a mere 64 settlers comprising 39 black men, 19
black women, and six white women. Black settlers were captured by unscrupulous traders and
sold as slaves, and the remaining colonists were forced to arm themselves for their own
protection.[39]
The 64 remaining colonists established a second Granville Town.[46][47]

Let Travel the Road to our Nova Scotians
Nova Scotian Settlers
Following the American Revolution, more than 3,000 Black Loyalists had also been settled
in Nova Scotia, where they were finally granted land. They founded Birchtown, but faced harsh
northern winters and racial discrimination from nearby Shelburne. Thomas Peters pressed British
authorities for relief and more aid; together with British abolitionist John Clarkson, the Sierra
Leone Company was established to relocate Black Loyalists who wanted to take their chances in
West Africa. In 1792 nearly 1,200 persons from Nova Scotia crossed the Atlantic to build the
second (and only permanent) Colony of Sierra Leone and the settlement of Freetown on 11
March 1792. In Sierra Leone they were called the Nova Scotian Settlers, the Nova Scotians, or
the Settlers. Clarkson initially banned the survivors of Granville Town from joining the new
settlement, blaming them for the demise of Granville Town.[39]
The Settlers built Freetown in the
styles they knew from their lives in the American South; they also continued American fashion
and American manners. In addition, many continued to practise Methodism in Freetown.
In the 1790s, the Settlers, including adult women, voted for the first time in elections.[48]
In 1792,
in a move that foreshadowed the women's suffrage movements in Britain, the heads of all
households, of which a third were women, were given the right to vote.[49]
Black settlers in Sierra
Leone enjoyed much more autonomy than their white equivalent in European countries. Black
migrants elected different levels of political representatives, 'tithingmen', who represented each
dozen settlers and 'hundreders' who represented larger amounts. This sort of representation was
not available in Nova Scotia.[50]
The initial process of society-building in Freetown was a harsh
struggle. The Crown did not supply enough basic supplies and provisions and the Settlers were
continually threatened by illegal slave trading and the risk of re-enslavement.[51]
Let Travel the Road to our Jamaican Maroons and Liberated Africans
The Sierra Leone Company, controlled by London investors, refused to allow the settlers to
take freehold of the land. In 1799 some of the settlers revolted. The Crown subdued the revolt by
bringing in forces of more than 500 Jamaican Maroons, whom they transported from Cudjoe's
Town (Trelawny Town) via Nova Scotia in 1800. Led by Colonel Montague James, the Maroons
helped the colonial forces to put down the revolt, and in the process the Jamaican Maroons in
Sierra Leone secured the best houses and farms.[52]
On 1 January 1808, Thomas Ludlam, the Governor of the Sierra Leone Company and a leading
abolitionist, surrendered the company's charter. This ended its 16 years of running the Colony.
The British Crown reorganised the Sierra Leone Company as the African Institution; it was
directed to improve the local economy. Its members represented both British who hoped to
inspire local entrepreneurs and those with interest in the Macauley & Babington Company,
which held the (British) monopoly on Sierra Leone trade.[53]
At about the same time (following the abolition of the slave trade in 1807), Royal Navy crews
delivered thousands of formerly enslaved Africans to Freetown, after liberating them from illegal
slave ships. These Liberated Africans or recaptives were sold for $20 a head as apprentices to the
white settlers, Nova Scotian Settlers, and the Jamaican Maroons. Many Liberated Africans were
treated poorly and even abused because some of the original settlers considered them their

property. Cut off from their various homelands and traditions, the Liberated Africans were
forced to assimilate to the Western styles of Settlers and Maroons. For example, some of the
Liberated Africans were forced to change their name to a more Western sounding
one.[54]
Though some people happily embraced these changes because they considered it as being
part of the community, some were not happy with these changes and wanted to keep their own
identity. Many Liberated Africans were so unhappy that they risked the possibility of being sold
back into slavery by leaving Sierra Leone and going back to their original villages.[54]
The
Liberated Africans eventually modified their customs to adopt those of the Nova Scotians,
Maroons and Europeans, yet kept some of their ethnic traditions.[55]
As the Liberated Africans
became successful traders[54]
and spread Christianity throughout West Africa, they intermarried
with the Nova Scotians and Maroons, and the two groups eventually became a fusion of African
and Western societies.[55]:3–4,223–255
These Liberated Africans were from many areas of Africa, but principally the west coast.
Between the 18th and 19th century, freed African Americans, some Americo
Liberian "refugees", and particularly Afro-Caribbeans, mainly Jamaican Maroons, also
immigrated and settled in Freetown. Together these peoples formed the Creole/Krio
ethnicity and an English-based creole language, (Krio), which is the lingua franca and de
facto national language used among many of the ethnicities in the country.[56][57][58][59]
Let travel the Road to our Colonial era (1800–1961
Sierra Leone Colony and Protectorate
Bai Bureh, Temne leader of the Hut Tax War of 1898 against British rule

The settlement of Sierra Leone in the 1800s was unique in that the population was composed of
displaced Africans who were brought to the colony after the British abolition of the slave trade in
1807. Upon arrival in Sierra Leone, each recaptive was given a registration number, and
information on their physical qualities would be entered into the Register of Liberated Africans.
Oftentimes the documentation would be overwhelmingly subjective and would result in
inaccurate entries, making them difficult to track. In addition, differences between the Register
of Liberated Africans of 1808 and the List of Captured Negroes of 1812 (which emulated the
1808 document) revealed some disparities in the entries of the recaptives, specifically in the
names; many recaptives decided to change their given names to more anglicised versions which
contributed to the difficulty in tracking them after they arrived in Sierra Leone.[60]
In the early 19th century, Freetown served as the residence of the British colonial governor of the
region, who also administered the Gold Coast (now Ghana) and the Gambia settlements. Sierra
Leone developed as the educational centre of British West Africa.[61]
The British
established Fourth Bay College in 1827, which rapidly became a magnet for English-speaking
Africans on the West Coast. For more than a century, it was the only European-style university
in western Sub-Saharan Africa. Samuel Ajayi Crowther was the first student to be enrolled at
Fourah Bay.[62]
Fourah Bay College soon became a magnet for Sierra Leone Creoles and other
Africans seeking higher education in British West Africa. These included Nigerians, Ghanaians,
Ivorians and many more, especially in the fields of theology and education. Freetown was known
as the "Athens of Africa" due to the large number of excellent schools in Freetown and
surrounding areas.[63]
Temne leader Bai Bureh seen here in 1898 after his surrender, sitting relaxed in his traditional
dress with a handkerchief in his hands, while a Sierra Leonean West African Frontier
Force soldier stands guard next to him.

The British interacted mostly with the Krios in Freetown, who did most of the trading with the
indigenous peoples of the interior. Educated Krios held numerous positions in the colonial
government, giving them status and well-paying positions. Following the Berlin Conference of
1884–1885, the British decided that they needed to establish more dominion over the inland
areas, to satisfy what was described by the European powers as "effective occupation" of
territories. In 1896 it annexed these areas, declaring them the Sierra Leone Protectorate.[64]
With
this change, the British began to expand their administration in the region, recruiting British
citizens to posts and pushing Krios out of positions in government and even the desirable
residential areas in Freetown.[64]
During the British annexation in Sierra Leone, several chiefs in the northern and southern parts
of the country were resisting the "hut tax" imposed by the colonial administrators but they used
diplomacy to achieve their goal. In the north, from 1820 to 1906, there was a Limba chief named
Almamy Suluku who ruled his territory for many years, fighting to protect his territory, while at
the same time using diplomacy to trick the protectorate administrators while sending fighters to
assist Bai Bureh, a prominent Temne chief in Kasseh who was fighting against the imposition of
the "hut tax" by the colonial administrators. The war was later known as the Hut Tax War.
Another prominent figure in Sierra Leone history is Bai Sherbro (c. 1830–1912). Bai Sherbro
was a chief and warrior on Bonthe Island, in the southwestern part of the country. He, like Bai
Bureh, resisted the British. Sherbro also sent fighters to assist Bai Bureh in the fight against the
British. Sherbro was influential and powerful and the British greatly feared him. Bai Sherbro was
captured and with Bai Bureh, exiled to the Gold Coast (modern Ghana).
Nyagua (c. 1842–1906), also known as the "Tracking King", was a fierce king who captured
many districts and many people came to join him for protection. Nyagua also resisted the British.
Realizing that he lacked sufficient strength, he resorted to diplomacy. At the same time, he sent
warriors to assist Bai Bureh in fighting against the British. The British later captured Nyagua,
and he was also exiled to the Gold Coast. Madam Yoko (c. 1849–1906) was a brilliant woman of
culture and ambition. She employed her capacity for friendly communications to persuade the
British to give her control of the Kpaa Mende chiefdom. She used diplomacy to communicate
with many local chiefs who did not trust her friendship with the British. Because Madam Yoko
supported the British, some sub-chiefs rebelled, causing Yoko to take refuge in the police
barracks. For her loyalty, she was awarded a silver medal by Queen Victoria. Until 1906, Madam
Yoko ruled as a paramount chief in the new British Protectorate. It appears that she committed
suicide at the age of fifty-five, perhaps due to the loss of support from her own people.

Moa River Bridge, Sierra Leone. Lisk-Carew Brothers, Freetown, Sierra Leone
The British annexation of the Protectorate interfered with the sovereignty of indigenous chiefs.
They designated chiefs as units of local government, rather than dealing with them individually
as had been the previous practice. They did not maintain relationships even with longstanding
allies, such as Bai Bureh, who was later unfairly portrayed as a prime instigator of the Hut Tax
War.[65]
British West African Campaign troops in Freetown, 1914–1916. Published caption: "British
expeditionary force preparing to embark at Freetown to attack the German Cameroons, the main
object of the attack being the port of Duala. Auxiliary native troops were freely used in African
warfare."

Colonel Frederic Cardew, military governor of the Protectorate, in 1898 established a new tax on
dwellings and demanded that the chiefs use their people to maintain roads. The taxes were often
higher than the value of the dwellings, and 24 chiefs signed a petition to Cardew, stating how
destructive this was; their people could not afford to take time off from their subsistence
agriculture. They resisted payment of taxes, tensions over the new colonial requirements and the
administration's suspicions towards the chiefs, led to the Hut Tax war of 1898, also called the
Temne-Mende War. The British fired first; the northern front of mainly Temne people was led
by Bai Bureh. The southern front, consisting mostly of Mende people, entered the conflict
somewhat later, for other reasons.
For several months, Bureh's fighters had the advantage over the vastly more powerful British
forces but both sides suffered hundreds of fatalities.[66]
Bureh surrendered on 11 November 1898
to end the destruction of his people's territory and dwellings. Although the British government
recommended leniency, Cardew insisted on sending the chief and two allies into exile in the
Gold Coast; his government hanged 96 of the chief's warriors. Bureh was allowed to return in
1905, when he resumed his chieftaincy of Kasseh.[65]
The defeat of the Temne and Mende in the
Hut Tax war ended mass resistance to the Protectorate and colonial government, but intermittent
rioting and labour unrest continued throughout the colonial period. Riots in 1955 and 1956
involved "tens of thousands" of Sierra Leoneans in the Protectorate.[67]
African Naval ratings march past the Governor of Sierra Leone, Sir Hubert Stevenson.

Domestic slavery, which continued to be practised by local African elites, was abolished in
1928.[68]
A notable event in 1935 was the granting of a monopoly on mineral mining to the Sierra
Leone Selection Trust, run by De Beers. The monopoly was scheduled to last 98 years. Mining
of diamonds in the east and other minerals expanded, drawing labourers there from other parts of
the country.
Let Travel the Road to our Protectorate
In 1924, the UK government divided the administration of Sierra Leone into Colony and
Protectorate, with different political systems constitutionally defined for each. The Colony was
Freetown and its coastal area; the Protectorate was defined as the hinterland areas dominated by
local chiefs. Antagonism between the two entities escalated to a heated debate in 1947, when
proposals were introduced to provide for a single political system for both the Colony and the
Protectorate. Most of the proposals came from leaders of the Protectorate, whose population far
outnumbered that in the colony. The Krios, led by Isaac Wallace-Johnson, opposed the
proposals, as they would have resulted in reducing the political power of the Krios in the Colony.
In 1951, Lamina Sankoh (born: Etheldred Jones) collaborated with educated protectorate leaders
from different groups, including Sir Milton Margai, Siaka Stevens, Mohamed Sanusi
Mustapha, John Karefa-Smart, Kande Bureh, Sir Albert Margai, Amadu Wurie and Sir Banja
Tejan-Sie joined together with the powerful paramount chiefs in the protectorate to form
the Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP as the party of the Protectorate. The SLPP leadership,
led by Sir Milton Margai, negotiated with the British and the educated Krio-dominated colony
based in Freetown to achieve independence.[69]
Owing to the astute politics of Milton Margai, the
educated Protectorate elites were able to join forces with the paramount chiefs in the face of Krio
intransigence. Later, Margai used the same skills to win over opposition leaders and moderate
Krio elements to achieve independence from the UK.[70]
In November 1951, Margai oversaw the drafting of a new constitution, which united the separate
Colonial and Protectorate legislatures and provided a framework for decolonisation.[71]
In 1953,
Sierra Leone was granted local ministerial powers and Margai was elected Chief Minister of
Sierra Leone.[71]
The new constitution ensured Sierra Leone had a parliamentary system within
the Commonwealth of Nations.[71]
In May 1957, Sierra Leone held its first parliamentary
election. The SLPP, which was then the most popular political party in the colony of Sierra
Leone as well as being supported by the powerful paramount chiefs in the provinces, won the
most seats in Parliament and Margai was re-elected as Chief Minister by a landslide.

Let Travel the Road to out 1960 Independence Conference
On 20 April 1960, Milton Margai led a 24-member Sierra Leonean delegation at constitutional
conferences that were held with the Government of Queen Elizabeth II and British Colonial
Secretary Iain Macleod in negotiations for independence held in London.[72][73]
On the conclusion of talks in London on 4 May 1960, the United Kingdom agreed to grant Sierra
Leone independence on 27 April 1961.[72][73]
Let Travel the Road to our Independence (1961) and Margai Administration (1961–1964)
On 27 April 1961, Sir Milton Margai led Sierra Leone to independence from Great Britain and
became the country's first Prime Minister. Sierra Leone had its own parliament and its own
prime minister, and had the ability to make 100% of its own laws, however, as with countries
such as Canada and Australia, Sierra Leone remained a "Dominion" and Queen Elizabeth was
Queen of the independent Dominion of Sierra Leone.[74][75]
Thousands of Sierra Leoneans took to
the streets in celebration. The Dominion of Sierra Leone retained a parliamentary system of
government and was a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The leader of the main
opposition All People's Congress (APC), Siaka Stevens, along with Isaac Wallace-Johnson,
another outspoken critic of the SLPP government, were arrested and placed under house arrest in
Freetown, along with sixteen others charged with disrupting the independence celebration.[76]
In May 1962, Sierra Leone held its first general election as an independent nation. The Sierra
Leone People's Party (SLPP) won a plurality of seats in parliament, and Milton Margai was re-
elected as prime minister.
Margai was popular among Sierra Leoneans during his time in power, mostly known for his self-
effacement. He was neither corrupt nor did he make a lavish display of his power or status.[77]
He
based the government on the rule of law and the separation of powers, with multiparty political
institutions and fairly viable representative structures. Margai used his conservative ideology to
lead Sierra Leone without much strife. He appointed government officials to represent various
ethnic groups. Margai employed a brokerage style of politics, by sharing political power among
political parties and interest groups; especially the involvement of powerful paramount chiefs in
the provinces, most of whom were key allies of his government
After the death of Milton Margai and Albert Margai's tenure (1964–1967)[
Upon Milton Margai's unexpected death in 1964, his younger half-brother, Sir Albert Margai,
was appointed as Prime Minister by parliament. Sir Albert's leadership was briefly challenged by
Foreign Minister John Karefa-Smart, who questioned Sir Albert's succession to the SLPP
leadership position. Karefa-Smart led a prominent small minority faction within the SLPP party
in opposition of Albert Margai as Prime Minister. However, Karefa-Smart failed to receive broad
support within the SLPP in his attempt to oust Albert Margai as both the leader of the SLPP and
Prime Minister. The large majority of SLPP members backed Albert Margai over Karefa-Smart.
Soon after Albert Margai was sworn in as Prime Minister, he fired several senior government
officials who had served in his elder brother Sir Milton's government, viewing them as a threat to
his administration, including Karefa-Smart.

Sir Albert resorted to increasingly authoritarian actions in response to protests and enacted
several laws against the opposition All People's Congress, whilst attempting to establish a one-
party state.[72][73]
Sir Albert was opposed to the colonial legacy of allowing executive powers to
the Paramount Chiefs, many of whom had been key allies of his late brother Sir Milton.
Accordingly, they began to consider Sir Albert a threat to the ruling houses across the country.
Margai appointed many non-Creoles to the country's civil service in Freetown, in an overall
diversification of the civil service in the capital, which had been dominated by members of the
Creole ethnic group. As a result, Albert Margai became unpopular in the Creole community,
many of whom had supported Sir Milton. Margai was accused of favouring members of his own
Mende ethnic group for prominent positions.
In 1967, riots broke out in Freetown against Margai's policies; in response he declared a state of
emergency across the country. Sir Albert was accused of corruption and of a policy
of affirmative action in favour of his own Mende ethnic group.[78]
Sir Albert Margai took power
and sought to make the army homogeneously Mende.[79]
He also endeavoured to change Sierra
Leone from a democracy to a one-party state.[80]
Although possessing the full backing of the
country's security forces, he called for free and fair elections.
Let Travel the Road to our 1967 General Election and military coups (1967–1968)
The APC, with its leader Siaka Stevens, narrowly won a small majority of seats in Parliament
over the SLPP in a closely contested 1967 general election. Stevens was sworn in as Prime
Minister on 21 March, 1967.
Within hours after taking office, Stevens was ousted in a bloodless military coup led
by Brigadier General David Lansana, the commander of the Sierra Leone Armed Forces. He was
a close ally of Albert Margai, who had appointed him to the position in 1964. Lansana placed
Stevens under house arrest in Freetown and insisted that the determination of the Prime Minister
should await the election of the tribal representatives to the House. Steven was later freed and
fled the country; went into exile in neighbouring Guinea. However, on 23 March 1967, a group
of military officers in the Sierra Leone Army led by Brigadier General Andrew Juxon-Smith,
staged a counter coup against Commander Lansana. They seized control of the government,
arresting Lansana, and suspending the constitution. The group set up the National Reformation
Council (NRC), with Andrew Juxon-Smith as its chairman and Head of State of the country.[81]
On 18 April 1968 a group of low ranking soldiers in the Sierra Leone Army who called
themselves the Anti-Corruption Revolutionary Movement (ACRM), led by Brigadier
General John Amadu Bangura, overthrew the NRC junta. The ACRM junta arrested many senior
NRC members. They reinstated the constitution and returned power to Stevens, who at last
assumed the office of Prime Minister.[82]
Stevens had Bangura arrested in 1970 and charged with conspiracy and treason. He was found
guilty and sentenced to death, despite the fact that it was Bangura whose actions led to Stevens
return to power.[83]
Brigadier Lansana and Hinga Norman, the main army officers involved in the
first coup (1967), were unceremoniously dismissed from the armed forces and made to serve
time in prison. Norman was a guard to Governor-general Sir Henry Lightfoot-
Boston.[19]
Lansana was later tried and found guilty of treason, and sentenced to death in 1975.[19]

Let Travel the Road to our One-party state and dawn of the 'Republic' (1968–1991)
An APC political rally in the northern town of Kabala outside the home of supporters of the
rival SLPP in 1968
Stevens assumed power as Prime Minister again in 1968, following a series of coups, with a
great deal of hope and ambition.[19]
Much trust was placed upon him as he championed multi-
party politics. Stevens had campaigned on a platform of bringing the tribes together
under socialist principles. During his first decade or so in power, Stevens renegotiated some of
what he called "useless prefinanced schemes" contracted by his predecessors, both Albert Margai
of the SLPP and Juxon-Smith of the NRC. Some of these policies by the SLPP and the NRC
were said to have left the country in an economically deprived state.[19]
Stevens reorganised the country's oil refinery, the government-owned Cape Sierra Hotel, and a
cement factory.[84]
He cancelled Juxon-Smith's construction of a church and mosque on the
grounds of Victoria Park (now known as Freetown Amusement Park – since 2017). Stevens
began efforts that would later improve transportation and movements between the provinces and
the city of Freetown. Roads and hospitals were constructed in the provinces, and Paramount
Chiefs and provincial peoples became a prominent force in Freetown.
Under the pressure of several coup attempts, real or perceived, Stevens' rule grew more and
more authoritarian, and his relationship with some of his ardent supporters deteriorated. He
removed the SLPP party from competitive politics in general elections, some believed, through
the use of violence and intimidation. To maintain the support of the military, Stevens retained the
popular John Amadu Bangura as head of the Sierra Leone Armed Forces.

After the return to civilian rule, by-elections were held (beginning in autumn 1968) and an all-
APC cabinet was appointed. Calm was not completely restored. In November 1968, unrest in the
provinces led Stevens to declare a state of emergency across the country. Many senior officers in
the Sierra Leone Army were greatly disappointed with Stevens' policies and his handling of the
Sierra Leone Military, but none could confront Stevens. Brigadier General Bangura, who had
reinstated Stevens as Prime Minister, was widely considered the only person who could control
Stevens. The army was devoted to Bangura, and this made him potentially dangerous to Stevens.
In January 1970, Bangura was arrested and charged with conspiracy and plotting to commit a
coup against the Stevens government. After a trial that lasted a few months, Bangura
was convicted and sentenced to death. On 29 March 1970, Brigadier Bangura was executed by
hanging in Freetown.
After the execution of Bangura, a group of soldiers loyal to the executed general held a mutiny in
Freetown and other parts of the country in opposition to Stevens' government. Dozens of soldiers
were arrested and convicted by a court martial in Freetown for their participation in the mutiny
against the president. Among the soldiers arrested was a little-known army corporal, Foday
Sankoh, a strong Bangura supporter, who would later form the Revolutionary United Front
(RUF). Corporal Sankoh was convicted and jailed for seven years at the Pademba Road Prison in
Freetown.
In April 1971, a new republican constitution was adopted under which Stevens became
president. In the 1972 by-elections, the opposition SLPP complained of intimidation and
procedural obstruction by the APC and militia. These problems became so severe that the SLPP
boycotted the 1973 general election; as a result the APC won 84 of the 85 elected seats.[85]
An alleged plot to overthrow president Stevens failed in 1974 and its leaders were executed. In
mid-1974, Guinean soldiers, as requested by Stevens, were stationed in the country to help
maintain his hold on power, as Stevens was a close ally of then-Guinean president Ahmed Sékou
Touré. In March 1976, Stevens was elected without opposition for a second five-year term as
president. On 19 July 1975, 14 senior army and government officials, including David Lansana,
former cabinet minister Mohamed Sorie Forna (father of writer Aminatta Forna), Brigadier
General Ibrahim Bash Taqi and Lieutenant Habib Lansana Kamara were executed after being
convicted of attempting a coup to topple president Stevens' government.
In 1977, a nationwide student demonstration against the government disrupted Sierra Leone
politics. The demonstration was quickly put down by the army and Stevens' own personal
Special Security Division (SSD), a heavily armed paramilitary force he had created to protect
him and maintain his hold on power.[86]
SSD officers were loyal to Stevens and were deployed
across the country to clamp down on any rebellion or protest against Stevens' government. A
general election was called later that year in which corruption was again endemic; the APC won
74 seats and the SLPP 15. In 1978, the APC-dominant parliament approved a new constitution
making the country a one-party state. The 1978 constitution made the APC the only legal
political party in Sierra Leone.[87]
This move led to another major demonstration against the
government in many parts of the country, but it was also put down by the army and Stevens' SSD
force.

Stevens is generally criticised for dictatorial methods and government corruption, but on a
positive note, he kept the country stable and from collapsing into civil war. He created several
government institutions that are still in use today.[citation needed]
Stevens also reduced ethnic
polarisation in government by incorporating members of various ethnic groups into his all-
dominant APC government.
Siaka Stevens retired from politics in November 1985 after being in power for eighteen years.
The APC named a new presidential candidate to succeed Stevens at party's last delegate
conference, held in Freetown in November 1985. The candidate was Major General Joseph Saidu
Momoh, head of the Sierra Leone Armed Forces and Stevens' own choice to succeed him. As
head of the armed forces, General Momoh had been loyal to Stevens, who had appointed him to
the position. Like Stevens, Momoh was also a member of the minority Limba ethnic group.
As the sole candidate, Momoh was elected president without opposition and sworn in as Sierra
Leone's second president on 28 November 1985 in Freetown. A one-party parliamentary election
between APC members was held in May 1986. President Momoh appointed his former military
colleague and key ally, Major General Mohamed Tarawalie to succeed him as the head of the
Sierra Leone Military. General Tarawalie was also a strong loyalist and key Momoh supporter.
President Momoh named James Bambay Kamara as the head of the Sierra Leone Police. Bambay
Kamara was also a strong Momoh loyalist and supporter. Momoh broke from former President
Siaka Stevens by integrating the powerful SSD into the Sierra Leone Police as a
special paramilitary force. Under President Stevens, the SSD had been a powerful personal force
used to maintain his hold on power, independent from the Sierra Leone Military and Sierra
Leone Police Force. The Sierra Leone Police under Bambay Kamara's leadership was accused of
physical violence, arrest and intimidation against critics of President Momoh's government.
President Momoh's strong links with the army and his verbal attacks on corruption earned him
much-needed initial support among Sierra Leoneans. With the lack of new faces in the new APC
cabinet under president Momoh and the return of many of the old faces from Stevens'
government, criticisms soon arose that Momoh was simply perpetuating the rule of Stevens.
The next few years under the Momoh administration were characterised by corruption, which
Momoh defused by sacking several senior cabinet ministers. To formalise his war against
corruption, President Momoh announced a "Code of Conduct for Political Leaders and Public
Servants". After an alleged attempt to overthrow President Momoh in March 1987, more than 60
senior government officials were arrested, including Vice-President Francis Minah, who was
removed from office, convicted of plotting the coup, and executed by hanging in 1989, along
with five others.

Let Travel the Road to our Sierra Leone Civil War (1991–2002) and the NPRC regime
(1992–1996)]
Sierra Leone Civil War
A school in Koindu destroyed during the Civil War; in total 1,270 primary schools were
destroyed in the War.
In October 1990, owing to mounting pressure from both within and outside the country for
political and economic reforms, president Momoh set up a constitutional review commission to
assess the 1978 one-party constitution. Based on the commission's recommendations, a
constitution re-establishing a multi-party system was approved by the exclusive APC Parliament
by a 60% majority vote, becoming effective on 1 October 1991. There was great suspicion that
president Momoh was not serious about his promise of political reform, as APC rule continued to
be increasingly marked by abuses of power.
The brutal civil war that was going on in neighbouring Liberia played a significant role in the
outbreak of fighting in Sierra Leone. Charles Taylor – then leader of the National Patriotic Front
of Liberia – reportedly helped form the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) under the command
of former Sierra Leonean army corporal Foday Saybana Sankoh, an ethnic Temne from Tonkolili
District in Northern Sierra Leone. Sankoh was a British trained former army corporal who had
also undergone guerrilla training in Libya. Taylor's aim was for the RUF to attack the bases of
Nigerian dominated peacekeeping troops in Sierra Leone who were opposed to his rebel
movement in Liberia.
On 29 April 1992, a group of young soldiers in the Sierra Leone Army, led by seven army
officers—Lieutenant Sahr Sandy, Captain Valentine Strasser, Lieutenant Solomon "SAJ" Musa,
Captain Komba Mondeh, Lieutenant Tom Nyuma, Captain Julius Maada Bio and Captain
Komba Kambo[89]
—staged a military coup that sent president Momoh into exile in Guinea, and
the young soldiers established the National Provisional Ruling Council (NPRC), with 25-year-
old Captain Valentine Strasser as its chairman and Head of State of the country.[90]
The NPRC

Junta immediately suspended the constitution, banned all political parties, limited freedom of
speech and freedom of the press and enacted a rule-by-decree policy, in which soldiers were
granted unlimited powers of administrative detention without charge or trial, and challenges
against such detentions in court were precluded.
SAJ Musa, a childhood friend of Strasser, became the deputy chairman and deputy leader of the
NPRC government. Strasser became the world's youngest Head of State when he seized power
just three days after his 25th birthday. The NPRC junta established the National Supreme
Council of State as the military highest command and final authority in all matters and was
exclusively made up of the highest-ranking NPRC soldiers, included Strasser himself and the
original soldiers who toppled president Momoh.[90]
One of the top-ranking soldiers in the NPRC Junta, Lieutenant Sahr Sandy, a trusted ally of
Strasser, was assassinated, allegedly by Major S.I.M. Turay, a key loyalist of ousted president
Momoh. A heavily armed military manhunt was carried out across the country to find Lieutenant
Sandy's killer. However, the main suspect, Major S.I.M. Turay, went into hiding and fled the
country to Guinea, fearing for his life. Dozens of soldiers loyal to the ousted president Momoh
were arrested, including Colonel Kahota M. Dumbuya and Major Yayah Turay. Lieutenant
Sandy was given a state funeral and his funeral prayers service at the cathedral church in
Freetown was attended by many high-ranking soldiers of the NPRC junta, including Strasser
himself and NPRC deputy leader Sergeant Solomon Musa.
The NPRC Junta maintained relations with ECOWAS and strengthened support for Sierra
Leone-based ECOMOG troops fighting in the Liberian war. On 28 December 1992, an alleged
coup attempt against the NPRC government of Strasser, aimed at freeing the detained Colonel
Yahya Kanu, Colonel Kahota M.S. Dumbuya and former inspector general of police Bambay
Kamara, was foiled. Several Junior army officers led by Sergeant Mohamed Lamin Bangura
were identified as being behind the coup plot. The coup plot led to the execution of seventeen
soldiers by firing squad. Some of those executed include Colonel Kahota Dumbuya, Major
Yayah Kanu and Sergeant Mohamed Lamin Bangura. Several prominent members of the
Momoh government who had been in detention at the Pa Demba Road prison, including former
inspector general of police Bambay Kamara, were also executed.[91]
On 5 July 1994 SAJ Musa, who was popular among the general population, particularly in
Freetown, was arrested and sent into exile after he was accused of planning a coup to topple
Strasser, an accusation SAJ Musa denied. Strasser replaced Musa as deputy NPRC chairman
with Captain Bio, who was instantly promoted by Strasser to brigadier.
The NPRC's efforts proved to be nearly ineffective as the ousted Momoh administration in
repelling the RUF rebels. More and more of the country fell into the hands RUF fighters, and by
1994 they had gotten control of much of the diamond-rich Eastern Province and were getting
close toward the capital Freetown. In response, the NPRC hired the services of South African-
based private military contractor Executive Outcomes for several hundred mercenary fighters in
order to strengthen the response to the advances of the RUF rebels. Within a month they had
driven RUF fighters back to enclaves along Sierra Leone's borders and cleared the RUF from the
Kono diamond-producing areas of Sierra Leone.
With Strasser's two most senior NPRC allies and commanders Lieutenant Sahr Sandy and
Lieutenant Solomon Musa no longer around to defend him, Strasser's leadership within the
NPRC's Supreme Council of State became fragile. On 16 January 1996, after about four years in

power, Strasser was arrested in a palace coup staged by his fellow NPRC soldiers led by
Brigadier Bio at the Defence Headquarters in Freetown.[92]
Strasser was immediately flown into
exile in a military helicopter to Conakry, Guinea. In his first public broadcast to the nation
following the 1996 coup, Brigadier Bio stated that his support for returning Sierra Leone to a
democratically elected civilian government and his commitment to ending the civil war were his
motivations for the coup.[93]
Let Travel the Road to our Democratic Leadership-Kabbah's tenure: government, "dawn
of a new republic", the AFRC and end of the Civil War (1996–2007)
Promises of a return to civilian rule were fulfilled by Bio. Prior to conducting the election, Sierra
Leoneans and international stakeholders were involved in a major debate on whether the nation
should focus on trying to end the long running civil war, or to conduct elections and hence
returning governance back to a civilian-led administration with a multi-party system of
parliament that would provide the foundation for long-lasting peace and national prosperity.
Following the 1995 National Consultative Conference at the Bintumani Hotel in Freetown,
dubbed "Bintumani I", which was a Strasser-led initiative, another National Consultative
Conference at the same Bintumani Hotel in Freetown, dubbed "Bintumani II", was initiated by
the Bio administration that involved both national and international stakeholders, in an effort to
find a viable solution to the issues plaguing the country.[20]
"Peace before Elections vs Elections
before Peace" became a key debate topic and this quickly became a point of national discussion.
The discussions eventually concluded with key stakeholders, including Bio's administration and
the UN, agreeing that while efforts in finding a peaceful solution to ending the war should
continue, a general election should be held as soon as possible.[20]
Bio handed power over to
Ahmad Tejan Kabbah of the SLPP, after the conclusion of elections in early 1996 which Kabbah
won. President Kabbah took power with a great promise of ending the civil war. After taking
over, President Kabbah immediately opened dialogue with the RUF and invited their leader
Foday Sankoh for peace negotiations.[21]
On 25 May 1997, 17 soldiers in the Sierra Leone army led by Corporal Tamba Gborie, loyal to
the detained Major Johnny Paul Koroma, launched a military coup which sent President Kabbah
into exile in Guinea and they established the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC).
Corporal Gborie quickly went to the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Services headquarters in New
England, Freetown to announce the coup to a shocked nation and to alert all soldiers across the
country to report for guard duty. The soldiers immediately released Koroma from prison and
installed him as their chairman and Head of State.
Koroma suspended the constitution, banned demonstrations, shut down all private radio stations
in the country and invited the RUF to join the new junta government, with its leader Foday
Sankoh as the Vice-Chairman of the new AFRC-RUF coalition junta government. Within days,
Freetown was overwhelmed by the presence of the RUF combatants who came to the city in
thousands. The Kamajors, a group of traditional fighters mostly from the Mende ethnic group
under the command of deputy Defence Minister Samuel Hinga Norman, remained loyal to
President Kabbah and defended the Southern part of Sierra Leone from the soldiers.
After nine months in office, the junta was overthrown by the Nigerian-led ECOMOG forces, and
the democratically elected government of president Kabbah was reinstated in February 1998. On
19 October 1998, 24 soldiers in the Sierra Leone army—including Gborie, Brigadier Hassan
Karim Conteh, Colonel Samuel Francis Koroma, Major Kula Samba and Colonel Abdul Karim

Sesay—were executed by firing squad after they were convicted in a court martial in Freetown,
some for orchestrating the 1997 coup that overthrew President Kabbah and others for failure to
reverse the mutiny.[94]
In October 1999, the United Nations agreed to send peacekeepers to help restore order and
disarm the rebels. The first of the 6,000-member force began arriving in December, and the UN
Security Council voted in February 2000 to increase the force to 11,000, and later to 13,000. But
in May, when nearly all Nigerian forces had left and UN forces were trying to disarm the RUF in
eastern Sierra Leone, Sankoh's forces clashed with the UN troops, and some 500 peacekeepers
were taken hostage as the peace accord effectively collapsed. The hostage crisis resulted in more
fighting between the RUF and the government as UN troops launched Operation Khukri to end
the siege. The Operation was successful with Indian and British Special Forces being the main
contingents.
The situation in the country deteriorated to such an extent that British troops were deployed
in Operation Palliser, originally simply to evacuate foreign nationals. However, the British
exceeded their original mandate and took full military action to finally defeat the rebels and
restore order. The British were the catalyst for the ceasefire that ended the civil war. Elements of
the British Army, together with administrators and politicians, remained after withdrawal to help
train the armed forces, improve the infrastructure of the country and administer financial and
material aid. Tony Blair, the Prime Minister of Britain at the time of the British intervention, is
regarded as a hero by the people of Sierra Leone, many of whom are keen for more British
involvement.[95]
Between 1991 and 2001, about 50,000 people were killed in Sierra Leone's civil war. Hundreds
of thousands of people were forced from their homes and many became refugees
in Guinea and Liberia. In 2001, UN forces moved into rebel-held areas and began to disarm rebel
soldiers. By January 2002, the war was declared over. In May 2002, Kabbah was re-elected
president by a landslide. By 2004, the disarmament process was complete. Also in 2004, a UN-
backed war crimes court began holding trials of senior leaders from both sides of the war. In
December 2005, UN peacekeeping forces pulled out of Sierra Leone.
Let Travel the Road to our 2007 General Election and the re-emergence of APC
In August 2007, Sierra Leone held presidential and parliamentary elections. However, no
presidential candidate won the 50% plus one vote majority stipulated in the constitution on the
first round of voting. A runoff election was held in September 2007, and Ernest Bai Koroma, the
candidate of the main opposition APC, was elected president. Koroma was re-elected president
for a second (and final) term in November 2012.
Let Travel the Road to our Struggle with the Ebola epidemic (2014–2016)
In 2014, an Ebola virus epidemic in Sierra Leone began that widely affected the
country,[96]
including forcing Sierra Leone to declare a state of emergency.[97]
By the end of 2014
there were nearly 3000 deaths and about 10,000 cases of the disease in Sierra Leone.[96]
The
epidemic also led to the Ouse to Ouse Tock in September 2014, nationwide three-day
quarantine.[98]
The epidemic occurred as part of the wider Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa.
In early August 2014 Sierra Leone cancelled league football (soccer) matches because of the
Ebola epidemic.[99]
On 16 March 2016, the World Health Organization declared Sierra Leone to
be free from Ebola.[100]

14 August 2017 mudslides
2017 Sierra Leone mudslides
Several mudslides occurred in the early hours of 14 August 2017 in and near the country's
capital Freetown.
2018 General election
2018 Sierra Leonean general election
In 2018, Sierra Leone held a general election. The presidential election, in which neither
candidate reached the required threshold of 55%, went to a second round of voting, in
which Julius Maada Bio was elected with 51% of the vote.[101]
Geography
Geography of Sierra Leone

A map of Sierra Leone Sierra Leone map of Köppen climate
classification
Let Travel the Road to our Location-
Sierra Leone is located on the southwest coast of West Africa, lying mostly between
latitudes 7° and 10°N (a small area is south of 7°), and longitudes 10° and 14°W. The country is
bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the
west and southwest.[102]
Sierra Leone has a total area of 71,740 km2
(27,699 sq mi), divided into a land area of
71,620 km2
(27,653 sq mi) and water of 120 km2
(46 sq mi).[103]
The country has four distinct
geographical regions. In eastern Sierra Leone the plateau is interspersed with high mountains,
where Mount Bintumani reaches 1,948 m (6,391 ft), the highest point in the country. The upper
part of the drainage basin of the Moa River is located in the south of this region.
The centre of the country is a region of lowland plains, containing
forests, bush and farmland,[102]
that occupies about 43% of Sierra Leone's land area. The northern
section of this has been categorised by the World Wildlife Fund as part of the Guinean forest-
savanna mosaic ecoregion, while the south is rain-forested plains and farmland.
In the west, Sierra Leone has some 400 km (249 mi) of Atlantic coastline, giving it both
bountiful marine resources and attractive tourist potential. The coast has areas of low-
lying Guinean mangroves swamp. The national capital Freetown sits on a coastal peninsula,
situated next to the Sierra Leone Harbour.
The climate is tropical, with two seasons determining the agricultural cycle: the rainy
season from May to November, and a dry season from December to May, which
includes harmattan, when cool, dry winds blow in off the Sahara Desert and the night-time
temperature can be as low as 16 °C (60.8 °F). The average temperature is 26 °C (78.8 °F) and
varies from around 26 to 36 °C (78.8 to 96.8 °F) during the year.[104][105]

Let Travel the Road to our Biodiversity
Wildlife of Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone is home to four terrestrial ecoregions: Guinean montane forests, Western Guinean
lowland forests, Guinean forest-savanna mosaic, and Guinean mangroves.[106]
Human activities claimed to be responsible or contributing to land degradation in Sierra Leone
include unsustainable agricultural land use, poor soil and water management practices,
deforestation, removal of natural vegetation, fuelwood consumption and to a lesser extent
overgrazing and urbanisation.[107]
Deforestation, both for commercial timber and to make room for agriculture, is the major
concern and represents an enormous loss of natural economic wealth to the nation.[107]
Mining
and slash and burn for land conversion – such as cattle grazing – dramatically diminished
forested land in Sierra Leone since the 1980s. It is listed among countries of concern for
emissions, as having Low Forest Cover with High Rates of Deforestation (LFHD).[108]
There are
concerns that heavy logging continues in the Tama-Tonkoli Forest Reserve in the north. Loggers
have extended their operations to Nimini, Kono District, Eastern Province; Jui, Western Rural
District, Western Area; Loma Mountains National Park, Koinadougu, Northern Province; and
with plans to start operations in the Kambui Forest reserve in the Kenema District, Eastern
Province.[108]
The country had a 2019 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 2.76/10,
ranking it 154th globally out of 172 countries.[109]
Overfishing is also an issue in Sierra Leone.
Habitat degradation for the African wild dog, Lycaon pictus, has been increased, such that
this canid is deemed to have been extirpated in Sierra Leone.[110]
Until 2002, Sierra Leone lacked a forest management system because of the civil war that caused
tens of thousands of deaths. Deforestation rates have increased 7.3% since the end of the civil
war.[111]
On paper, 55 protected areas covered 4.5% of Sierra Leone as of 2003. The country has
2,090 known species of higher plants, 147 mammals, 626 birds, 67 reptiles, 35 amphibians, and
99 fish species.[111]
The Environmental Justice Foundation has documented how the number of illegal fishing vessels
in Sierra Leone's waters has multiplied in recent years. The amount of illegal fishing has
significantly depleted fish stocks, depriving local fishing communities of an important resource
for survival. The situation is particularly serious as fishing provides the only source of income
for many communities in a country still recovering from over a decade of civil war.[112]
In June 2005, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and BirdLife International
agreed to support a conservation-sustainable development project in the Gola Forest in south
eastern Sierra Leone,[113]
an important surviving fragment of rainforest in Sierra Leone.

Let Travel the Road to our Government and politics
Politics of Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone is a constitutional republic with a directly elected president and a unicameral
legislature. The current system of the Government of Sierra Leone is based on the 1991 Sierra
Leone Constitution. Sierra Leone has a dominant unitary central government and a weak local
government. The executive branch of the Government of Sierra Leone, headed by the president
of Sierra Leone has extensive powers and influences. The president is the most powerful
government official in Sierra Leone.[114]
Within the confines of the 1991 Constitution, supreme legislative powers are vested
in Parliament, which is the law-making body of the nation. Supreme executive authority rests in
the president and members of his cabinet and judicial power with the judiciary of which
the Chief Justice of Sierra Leone is the head.
The president is the head of state, the head of government and the commander-in-chief of
the Sierra Leone Armed Forces. The president appoints and heads a cabinet of ministers, which
must be approved by the Parliament. The president is elected by popular vote to a maximum of
two five-year terms. The president is the highest and most influential position within the
government of Sierra Leone.
To be elected president of Sierra Leone, a candidate must gain at least 55% of the vote. If no
candidate gets 55%, there is a second-round runoff between the top two candidates.
The current president of Sierra Leone is former military junta leader Julius Maada Bio. [115]
Bio
defeated Samura Kamara of the ruling All People's Congress (APC) in the country's tightly
contested 2018 presidential election. Bio replaced outgoing President Ernest Bai Koroma after
Bio was sworn into office on 4 April 2018 by Chief Justice Abdulai Cham. Bio is the leader of
the Sierra Leone People's Party, the current ruling party in Sierra Leone.
Next to the president is the vice-president, who is the second highest-ranking government official
in the executive branch of the Sierra Leone Government. As designated by the Sierra Leone
Constitution, the vice-president is to become the new president of Sierra Leone upon the death,
resignation, or removal of the President.

Let Travel the Road to our Parliamentary Democratic Leadership
The Parliament of Sierra Leone is unicameral, with 146 seats. Each of the country's 14 districts is
represented in parliament. 132 members are elected concurrently with the presidential elections;
the other 16 seats are filled by paramount chiefs from the country's 16 administrative
districts.[116]
The Sierra Leone parliament is led by the Speaker of Parliament, who is the overall
leader of Parliament and is directly elected by sitting members of parliament. The current
speaker of the Sierra Leone parliament is Abass Bundu, who was elected by members of
parliament on 21 January 2014.
The current members of the Parliament of Sierra Leone were elected in the 2012 Sierra Leone
parliamentary election. The APC currently has 68 of the 132 elected parliamentary seats and
the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) has 49 of the elected 132 parliamentary seats. Sierra
Leone's two most dominant parties, the APC and the SLPP, collectively won every elected seat
in Parliament in the 2012 Sierra Leone parliamentary election. To be qualified as a Member of
Parliament, the person must be a citizen of Sierra Leone, must be at least 21 years old, must be
able to speak, read and write the English language with a degree of proficiency to enable him to
actively take part in proceedings in Parliament; and must not have any criminal conviction.[114]
Since independence in 1961, Sierra Leone's politics has been dominated by two major political
parties: the SLPP and the APC. Other minor political parties have also existed but with no
significant support.[117]
Let Travel the Road to our Judiciary
Judiciary of Sierra Leone
The Sierra Leone Supreme Court in the capital Freetown, the highest and most powerful court in
the country.

The judicial power of Sierra Leone is vested in the judiciary, headed by the Chief Justice of
Sierra Leone and comprising the Supreme Court of Sierra Leone, which is the highest court in
the country, meaning that its rulings, therefore, cannot be appealed against. Other courts include
the High Court of Justice, the Court of Appeal, the magistrate courts, and traditional courts in
rural villages. The president appoints and parliament approves Justices for the three courts. The
Judiciary have jurisdiction in all civil and criminal matters throughout the country. The current
acting chief justice of Sierra Leone is Desmond Babatunde Edwards.
Let Travel the Road to our foreign relations
Foreign relations of Sierra Leone
The Sierra Leonean Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation is responsible for
foreign policy of Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone has diplomatic relations that include China,
Russia,[118]
Libya, Iran, and Cuba.
Sierra Leone has good relations with the West, including the United States, and has maintained
historical ties with the United Kingdom and other former British colonies through its
membership of the Commonwealth of Nations.[119]
The United Kingdom has played a major role
in providing aid to the former colony, together with administrative help and military training
since intervening to end the Civil War in 2000.
Former President Siaka Stevens' government had sought closer relations with other West
African countries under the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) a policy
continued by the current government. Sierra Leone, along with Liberia, Ivory Coast and Guinea,
form the Mano River Union (MRU). It is primarily designed to implement development projects
and promote regional economic integration between the four countries.[120]
Sierra Leone is also a member of the United Nations and its specialised agencies, the African
Union, the African Development Bank (AFDB), the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC),
and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).[121]
Sierra Leone is a member of the International
Criminal Court with a Bilateral Immunity Agreement of protection for the US military (as
covered under Article 98).
Let Travel the Road to our Military
Military of Sierra Leone
The Military of Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF),
are the unified armed forces of Sierra Leone responsible for the territorial security of Sierra
Leone's border and defending the national interests of Sierra Leone within the framework of its
international obligations. The armed forces were formed after independence in 1961, based on
elements of the former British Royal West African Frontier Force present in the country. The
Sierra Leone Armed Forces consist of around 15,500 personnel, comprising the largest Sierra
Leone Army,[122]
the Sierra Leone Navy and the Sierra Leone Air Wing.[123]
The president of Sierra Leone is the Commander in Chief of the military, with the Minister of
Defence responsible for defence policy and the formulation of the armed forces. The current
Sierra Leonean Defence Minister is retired Major Alfred Paolo Conteh. The Military of Sierra
Leone also has a Chief of the Defence Staff who is a uniformed military official responsible for

the administration and the operational control of the Sierra Leone military.[124]
Brigadier
General Alfred Nelson-Williams who was appointed by president Koroma succeeded the
retired Major General Edward Sam M'boma on 12 September 2008 as the Chief of Defence Staff
of the Military.[125]
When Sierra Leone gained independence in 1961, the Royal Sierra Leone Military Force was
created from the Sierra Leone Battalion of the West African Frontier Force.[126]
The military
seized control in 1968, bringing the National Reformation Council into power. On 19 April
1971, when Sierra Leone became a republic, the Royal Sierra Leone Military Forces were
renamed the Republic of Sierra Leone Military Force (RSLMF).[126][127]
The RSLMF remained a
single-service organisation until 1979, when the Sierra Leone Navy was established. In 1995
Defence Headquarters was established, and the Sierra Leone Air Wing formed. The RSLMF was
renamed as the Armed Forces of the Republic of Sierra Leone (AFRSL).
Let Travel the Road to our Law enforcement
Law enforcement in Sierra Leone is primarily the responsibility of the Sierra Leone
Police (SLP), which is accountable to the Minister of Internal Affairs (appointed by the
president). Sierra Leone Police was established by the British colony in 1894; it is one of the
oldest police forces in West Africa. It works to prevent crime, protect life and property, detect
and prosecute offenders, maintain public order, ensure safety and security, and enhance access to
justice. The Sierra Leone Police is headed by the Inspector General of Police, the professional
head of the Sierra Leone Police force, who is appointed by the president of Sierra Leone.
Each one of Sierra Leone's 14 districts is headed by a district police commissioner who is the
professional head of their respective district. These Police Commissioners report directly to the
Inspector General of Police at the Sierra Leone Police headquarters in Freetown. The current
Inspector General of Police is Brima Acha Kamara, who was appointed to the position by former
president Ahmad Tejan Kabbah.
Let Travel the Road to our Human rights
Human rights in Sierra Leone
Male same-sex sexual activity is illegal under Section 61 of the Offences against the Person Act
1861, and imprisonment for life is possible.[128][129]
Excessive police brutality is also a frequent problem. Protesters have been killed by security
forces, as have prison rioters (in one incident at Pademba Road Prison, 30 inmates and
one correction officer were killed). Multiple allegations were made during the COVID-19
lockdown period of police attacking people trying to obtain basic necessities.[130]
Leadership in World governance initiatives
Sierra Leone has been one of the signatories of the agreement to convene a convention for
drafting a world constitution.[131][132]
As a result, in 1968, for the first time in human history,
a World Constituent Assembly convened to draft and adopt the Constitution for the Federation of
Earth.[133]
Milton Margai, then president of Sierra Leone signed the agreement to convene a
World Constituent Assembly.[134]

Administrative divisions
Administrative divisions of Sierra Leone
The 14 districts and 2 areas of Sierra Leone
The Republic of Sierra Leone is composed of five regions: the Northern Province, North West
Province, Southern Province, the Eastern Province, and the Western Area. Four provinces are
further divided into 14 districts; the Western Area is divided into two districts.
The provincial districts are divided into 186 chiefdoms, which have traditionally been led
by paramount chiefs, recognised by the British administration in 1896 at the time of organising
the Protectorate of Sierra Leone. The Paramount Chiefs are influential, particularly
in villages and small rural towns.[135]
Each chiefdom has ruling families that were recognised at
that time; the Tribal Authority, made up of local notables, elects the paramount chief from the
ruling families.[135]
Typically, chiefs have the power to "raise taxes, control the judicial system,
and allocate land, the most important resource in rural areas".[136]
Within the context of local governance, the districts are governed as localities. Each has a
directly elected local district council to exercise authority and carry out functions at a local
level.[137][138]
In total, there are 19 local councils: 13 district councils, one for each of the 12
districts and one for the Western Area Rural, and six municipalities also have elected local
councils. The six municipalities include Freetown, which functions as the local government for
the Western Area Urban District, and Bo, Bonthe, Kenema, Koidu, and Makeni.[137][139][140]

While the district councils are under the oversight of their respective provincial administrations,
the municipalities are directly overseen by the Ministry of Local Government & Community
Development and thus administratively independent of district and provincial administrations.
District Capital
Area
(km2
)
Province
Population
(2004
census)[141]
Population
(2015
census)[142]
Bombali District Makeni 7,985
Northern
Province
408,390 606,183[143]
Koinadugu District Kabala 12,121 265,758 408,097[144]
Port Loko District Port Loko 5,719 453,746 614,063[144]
Tonkolili District Magburaka 7,003 347,197 530,776[145]
Kambia District Kambia 3,108 270,462 343,686[146]
Kenema District Kenema 6,053
Eastern
Province
497,948 609,873[147]
Kono District
Koidu
Town
5,641 335,401 505,767[148]
Kailahun District Kailahun 3,859 358,190 525,372[148]
Bo District Bo 5,219
Southern
Province
463,668 574,201[149]
Bonthe District Mattru Jong 3,468 139,687 200,730[150]
Pujehun District Pujehun 4,105 228,392 345,577

Moyamba District Moyamba 6,902 260,910 318,064
Western Area Urban
District
Freetown 13
Western
Area
772,873 1,050,301
Western Area Rural
District
Waterloo 544 174,249 442,951
Let Travel the Road to our Economy
Economy of Sierra Leone
Historical GDP per capita developme

nt
A proportional representation of Sierra Leone exports, 2019
By the 1990s, economic activity was declining and economic infrastructure had become
seriously degraded. Over the next decade, much of the formal economy was destroyed in the
country's civil war. Since the end of hostilities in January 2002, massive infusions of outside
assistance have helped Sierra Leone begin to recover.[151]
Much of the recovery will depend on the success of the government's efforts to limit corruption
by officials, which many feel was the chief cause of the civil war. A key indicator of success will
be the effectiveness of government management of its diamond sector.
There is high unemployment, particularly among the youth and ex-combatants. Authorities have
been slow to implement reforms in the civil service, and the pace of the privatisation programme
is also slackening and donors have urged its advancement.
The currency is the Leone. The central bank is the Bank of Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone operates a
floating exchange rate system, and foreign currencies can be exchanged at any of the commercial
banks, recognised foreign exchange bureaux and most hotels. Credit card use is limited in Sierra
Leone, though they may be used at some hotels and restaurants. There are a few internationally
linked automated teller machines that accept Visa cards in Freetown operated by ProCredit Bank.

Let Travel the Road to our Agriculture
Agriculture in Sierra Leone
A farmer with his rice harvest in Sierra Leone. Two-thirds of Sierra Leone's population are
directly involved in subsistence agriculture.[152]
Two-thirds of the populations of Sierra Leone are directly involved in subsistence
agriculture.[152]
Agriculture accounted for 58 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in
2007.[153]
Agriculture is the largest employer with 80 per cent of the population working in the
sector.[154]
Rice is the most important staple crop in Sierra Leone with 85 per cent of farmers
cultivating rice during the rainy season[155]
and an annual consumption of 76 kg per person.[156]
Let Travel the Road to our Mining
Mining in Sierra Leone
Rich in minerals, Sierra Leone has relied on mining, especially diamonds, for its economic base.
The country is among the top ten diamond producing nations. Mineral exports remain the
main currency earner. Sierra Leone is a major producer of gem-quality diamonds. Though rich in
diamonds, it has historically struggled to manage their exploitation and export.
Sierra Leone is known for its blood diamonds that were mined and sold to diamond
conglomerates during the civil war, to buy the weapons that fuelled its atrocities.[157]
In the 1970s
and early 1980s, economic growth rate slowed because of a decline in the mining sector and
increasing corruption among government officials.

Percentage of GDP by sector (2007)[153]
Rank Sector Percentage
of GDP
1 Agriculture 58.5
2 Other services 10.4
3 Trade and tourism 9.5
4 Wholesale and retail trade 9.0
5 Mining and quarrying 4.5
6 Government Services 4.0
7 Manufacturing and handicrafts 2.0
8 Construction 1.7
9 Electricity and water 0.4
Annual production of Sierra Leone's diamond estimates range between US$250 million–
$300 million. Some of that is smuggled, where it is possibly used for money laundering or
financing illicit activities. Formal exports have dramatically improved since the civil war, with
efforts to improve the management of them having some success. In October 2000, a UN-
approved certification system for exporting diamonds from the country was put in place and led
to a dramatic increase in legal exports. In 2001, the government created a mining community
development fund (DACDF), which returns a portion of diamond export taxes to diamond
mining communities. The fund was created to raise local communities' stake in the legal
diamond trade.
Sierra Leone has one of the world's largest deposits of rutile, a titanium ore used
as paint pigment and welding rod coatings.

Let travel the Road to our Transport infrastructure
Transport in Sierra Leone
The road from Kenema to Kailahun District
There are several systems of transport in Sierra Leone, which has a road, air and water
infrastructure, including a network of highways and several airports. There are 11,300 kilometres
(7,000 miles) of highways in Sierra Leone, of which 904 km (562 mi)[103]
are paved (about 8% of
the roads). Sierra Leone's highways are linked to Conakry, Guinea, and Monrovia, Liberia.
Sierra Leone has the largest natural harbour on the African continent, allowing international
shipping through the Queen Elizabeth II Quay in the Cline Town area of eastern Freetown or
through Government Wharf in central Freetown. There are 800 km (497 mi) of waterways in
Sierra Leone, of which 600 km (373 mi) are navigable year-round. Major port cities
are Bonthe, Freetown, Sherbro Island and Pepel.
There are ten regional airports in Sierra Leone, and one international airport. The Freetown
International Airport located in the coastal town of Lungi in Northern Sierra Leone is the
primary airport for domestic and international travel to or from Sierra Leone. Passengers cross
the river to Aberdeen Heliports in Freetown by hovercraft, ferry or a helicopter. Helicopters are
also available from the airport to other major cities in the country. The airport has paved runways
longer than 3,047 metres (9,997 feet). The other airports have unpaved runways, and seven have
runways from 914 to 1,523 metres (2,999 to 4,997 feet) long; the remaining two have shorter
runways.
Sierra Leone appears on the EU list of prohibited countries with regard to the certification of
airlines. This means that no airline registered in Sierra Leone may operate services of any kind
within the European Union. This is due to substandard safety standards.[158]
As of March 2023, the country's only international airport had regularly scheduled direct flights
to Istanbul, Paris, Brussels and most major cities in West Africa.

In September 2014 there were many Districts with travel restrictions including Kailahun,
Kenema, Bombali, Tonkolili, and Port Loko because of Ebola.[159]
Let Travel the Road to our Energy in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone electricity production by source
Overview
As of 2016, about 12% of the population of Sierra Leone had access to electricity. Of that 12%,
10% was in the capital Freetown, and the remaining 90% of the country used 2% of the nation's
electricity.[160]
The majority of the population relies on biomass fuels for their daily survival,
with firewood and coal used most prevalently.[161]
The burning of these sources has been
reported to have adverse health effects on women and children.[161]
A 2012 study was done on
the correlation between Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI), and burning biomass fuels in the
home. The results were that 64% of children were diagnosed with ARI where firewood stoves
were used, and 44% where charcoal stoves were used.[161]
The use of coal and firewood has also
posed environmental concerns as they are both in conflict with the push for more sustainable
sources of energy.[162]
As a result, the commercialisation of firewood and coal has been a point of
contention with aid donors and government agencies such as the Ministry of Energy and Water
Resources and the Forestry Division.[162]
There have been strong pushes for both solar and
hydropower to become the dominant sources of energy in Sierra Leone because of the
UN's Sustainable Development Goals, particularly goal number seven (affordable and clean
energy). Sierra Leone's tropical climate, heavy annual rainfall, and abundance of rivers give it
the potential to realistically pursue more solar and hydropower alternatives.[163]

Let Travel the Road to our Solar energy
In conjunction with the UK's Department for International Development (DFID), Sierra Leone
has set the goal to provide solar power to all of its citizens by 2025.[164]
This overarching goal
has been broken down into smaller goals as well. The first of these goals is to provide solar
power to at least 50,000 homes in 2016, the second is 250,000 homes by 2017, and finally to
provide power to 1,000,000 people by 2020.[164]
This initiative falls under the Energy
Africa access campaign which seeks to provide electricity to 14 different African countries by
2030.[160]
Previous to this compact agreement, Sierra Leone's private sector for solar energy was
weak, as it provided energy to less than 5% of the target population.[160]
Part of the reason for
this was due to the import duties and taxes and the lack of quality control.[160]
To ensure that the
Energy Africa goal is met, Sierra Leone has agreed to remove its import duties and Value Added
Tax (VAT) on certified solar products.[164]
This change will attempt to encourage foreign
investment while providing affordable, quality solar products to its citizens. It is estimated that
there will be a 30% to 40% cost reduction on solar products with the lack of duties and taxes.[160]
Let Travel the Road to our Hydroelectric power
As of 2012, Sierra Leone has 3 main hydroelectric plants. The first is the Guma plant which was
decommissioned in 1982; the second is the Dodo Plant which is located in the Eastern Province,
and finally the Bumbuna plant.[163]
There is also potential for several new hydroelectric plants to
be opened on the Sewa River, Pampana River, Seli River, Moa River, and Little
Scarcies.[163]
Amongst all these projects, both finished and potential, the Bumbuna dam still
remains the largest of the hydroelectric projects in Sierra Leone.[163]
It is located near the Seli
River and Freetown and was estimated to produce about 50 megawatts of electricity.[165]
There
were plans to increase its capacity 400 megawatts by 2017 which would cost around $750
million.[166]
It has been projected that the Bumbuna dam could potentially reduce the amount of
spending on foreign fuel and save the country at least $2 million a month.[167]
In the past this
project received its funding of over $200 million from a combination of the World Bank,
the African Development Bank, and the Italian company Salini Impregilo.[165]

Let Travel the Road to our Demographics
Demographics of Sierra Leone and Languages of Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone's total population, from 1961 to 2013
In 2019 Sierra Leone had a population of 7,813,215[168]
and a growth rate of 2.216% a
year.[103]
The country's population is mostly young, with an estimated 41.7% under 15, and rural,
with an estimated 62% of people living outside the cities.[103]
As a result of migration to cities,
the population is becoming more urban with an estimated rate of urbanisation growth of 2.9% a
year.[103][169]
Population density varies greatly within Sierra Leone. The Western Area Urban District,
including Freetown, the capital and largest city, has a population density of 1,224 persons per
square km. The largest district geographically, Koinadugu, has a much lower density of 21.4
persons per square km.[169]
English is the official language,[170]
spoken at schools, government administration and in the
media. Krio (derived from English and several indigenous African languages, and the language
of the Sierra Leone Creole people) is the most widely spoken language in virtually all parts of
Sierra Leone. As the Krio language is spoken by 96% of the country's population,[103][171]
it
unites all the different ethnic groups, especially in their trade and interaction with each
other.[172]
Krio is the primary language of communication among Sierra Leoneans at home and
abroad,[173]
and has also heavily influenced Sierra Leonean English.[174]
After the contribution made by the Bangladesh UN Peacekeeping Force in the Sierra Leone Civil
War under the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone, the government of Ahmad Tejan Kabbah
declared Bengali an honorary official language in December 2002.[175][176]
According to the World Refugee Survey 2008, published by the US Committee for Refugees and
Immigrants, Sierra Leone had a population of 8,700 refugees and asylum seekers at the end of
2007. Nearly 20,000 Liberian refugees voluntarily returned to Liberia over the course of 2007.
Of the refugees remaining in Sierra Leone, nearly all were Liberian.[177]

Largest cities or towns in Sierra Leone
Government of Sierra Leone 2004 Census[178]
Rank Name District Pop.
Freetown
Bo
1 Freetown
Western Area Urban
District
853,651
Kenema
Makeni
2 Bo Bo District 149,957
3 Kenema Kenema District 128,402
4 Makeni Bombali District 82,940
5 Koidu Town Kono District 80,025
6 Lunsar Port Loko District 24,450
7 Port Loko Port Loko District 23,195
8
Pandebu-
Tokpombu
Kenema District 20,219
9 Kabala Koinadugu District 19,074
10 Waterloo
Western Area Urban
District
18,579
The populations quoted above for the five largest cities are from the 2004 census. The figure for
Freetown is for the Western Urban Area (Greater Freetown). Other figures are estimates from the
source cited. Different sources give different estimates. Some claim that Magburaka should be
included in the above list, but there is considerable difference among sources. One source
estimates the population at 14,915,[179]
whilst another puts it as high as 85,313.[180]
"Pandebu-
Tokpombu" is presumably the extended town of Torgbonbu, which had a population of 10,716 in
the 2004 census. "Gbendembu" had a larger population of 12,139 in that census. In the 2004
census, Waterloo had a population of 34,079.
Let Travel the Road to our Religion
Religion in Sierra Leone
Religion in Sierra Leone (2020)[2]
Religion percent
Islam 78.5%
Christianity 20.4%
Other faiths 1.1%

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