Vol 50 No 6 | SIERRA LEONE Paying off grudges 20th March 2009 Riots and old resentments bring fighting back to Freetown The worst political violence to hit Sierra Leone since the 2007 election left dozens wounded this week, when supporters of the governing All People’s Congress and the opposition Si...
Vol 50 No 5 | SIERRA LEONE See you in the court 6th March 2009 Some kind of justice has been done but the Special Court has not set a good precedent for international justice The Special Court for Sierra Leone completed its last trial on 25 February, convicting the three most senior leaders of the reviled Revolutionary United Front (RUF) of a series of ...
Vol 50 No 5 | SIERRA LEONE Shake-up in Freetown 6th March 2009 President Ernest Bai Koroma has finally shaken up his government, before a vote to determine if he will continue to lead the All People's Congress (APC). In all, nine of 20 posts w...
Vol 50 No 4 | SIERRA LEONE Peace and the looming crisis 20th February 2009 The government in Freetown has to tackle growing financial pressures as it struggles to create jobs and to improve health and education services. Time is running out for the small group of reform-minded ministers around President Koroma, if they are not to lose the battle against the criminal and corrupt elements. The growth...
Vol 50 No 4 | SIERRA LEONE Rich resources, little investment 20th February 2009 Sierra Leone's rumour mill is dependably strong and outrageous, but the case of African Minerals is impressive even without its wrapping of gossip. The Chairman of the company, lis...
Vol 49 No 14 | SIERRA LEONE Slow turnaround 4th July 2008 Slow progress on the economy and against corruption is rubbing the sheen off last year's free elections On election, President Ernest Bai Koroma gave himself three years to turn Sierra Leone around, but the first year has been unimpressive, and the smart performance of President Elle...
Vol 49 No 14 | SIERRA LEONE Time to reshuffle 4th July 2008 Finance Minister David Carew, Foreign Minister Zainab Bangura and Lands Minister Benjamin Davies are generally held in high esteem. Other ministers are less appreciated. Rumours of...
Vol 49 No 3 | SIERRA LEONE Bring in the money 1st February 2008 The President's trip to London produced some useful aid and gave him a chance to encourage investors Links to the former colonial power serve Sierra Leone well. On a trip this week to meet British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the Prince of Wales, the new President of one of the...
Vol 48 No 25 | SIERRA LEONE With a little help from his friends 14th December 2007 Election fever is over and President Koroma must start to deliver With new promises of debt relief, road-building deals, new power stations and Chinese credit, President Ernest Bai Koroma's government has been buoyed by overseas support since his...
Vol 48 No 24 | SIERRA LEONE Koroma's Christmas present 30th November 2007 Two months after his election, life for Sierra Leone's new President Ernest Bai Koroma has been full of pageantry and confusion. Three hours late for his own inauguration, he kept ...
