We headed out of western Freetown mid-morning, driving past the roundabout and vegetable stands at Congo Cross and up Signal Hill into the low mountains that cradle downtown Freetown.  As we progressed up the mountain, the road became steeper and rougher, eventually transforming into a full-fledged dirt road, massive potholes and all.  We continued on this road, through hamlets and small terraced agricultural areas, until the track merged with the main road and we continued to a quiet beach populated by other expats and Lebanese businesspeople and their families. 

It is obvious to any visitor that Sierra Leone has a wealth of potential tourist attractions: idyllic beaches, lush green scenery, exotic wildlife.  Like the rest of the country’s economy, however, the tourist sector lacks the infrastructure it needs to really take off.  The country’s best beaches lie about a half an hour drive outside of Freetown, but getting out of the city means either navigating the clogged downtown streets (which lack a meaningful traffic control system) or driving over the mountain and dealing with the pot hole-filled dirt roads.  Once out of the city the roads become smooth and traffic dies down, but you still need a 4x4 to get down the rough dirt paths that lead from the main roads to the beaches.  There does seem to be some development, however; guesthouses are being built along select beaches to accommodate overnight guests, according to some local residents.  I’m looking into interviews with people in the tourism industry here in Sierra Leone so stay tuned for further updates!

I walk past gas stations and street stalls advertising services ranging from tailoring to concrete block-making.  The largest building I pass is the Comium Building—one of the major cell phone providers in Sierra Leone.  A group of boys and young men loiter on the low walls surrounding the building.  As a foreigner, they call out to me as I walk past them in the morning and then again when I walk home in the evening.  Sometimes they even grab my hand, asking for money.  It’s a disconcerting experience.  But it’s also disconcerting how quickly I’ve learned to shake them off and tune them out.

Mixed into the jumble of small businesses and residences on Wilkinson Road are the NGO offices.  Like me, many of the expats I have met also work for non-profits, whether they are large, international organizations like Save the Children or small Sierra Leonean ventures.  Either way, many of us spend a significant amount of time trying to secure money from Western donors to support a range of health, education and development projects.  At my office, most of my co-workers are Sierra Leoneans, and this is even truer of our field offices in eastern Sierra Leone where most of our projects are implemented.  Expats bring access to money and experience and Sierra Leoneans bring expertise and connections in the country.  We work together in the hopes that our combined resources will contribute to rebuilding the country’s shattered infrastructure and institutions.  Right now, though, I am mostly preoccupied with finding my way around the area and learning enough Krio to catch the office jokes!

So far I am enjoying the challenge of being in a new place and meeting new people.  I clearly still have a lot to learn.  Stay turned for some of my thoughts on emerging businesses here—especially tourism—and in two weeks, my reporting from upcountry in Kenema!

I have come to Sierra Leone to work with the International Rescue Committee, a leading international humanitarian NGO that works on post-conflict development projects across the country. My year-long position was arranged by Princeton in Africa, a program that seeks to engage young Princeton alumni in Africa through workplace fellowships.

I am living in an IRC-rented apartment building in western Freetown, which I have been told suffered comparatively less harm during the war than central and eastern Freetown. But even with only a few days under my belt it is clear that the country bears more than just the scars of its decade-long civil war. Young people in wheelchairs—hands, arms, feet, legs amputated—cluster around expats begging for a pittance. Fresh vegetables are hard to come by since the war devastated the country’s once-vibrant agricultural sector. And electricity is sporadic (though, according to a friend, it is now supplied 24-hours a day to the incoming president’s section of town, meaning that the power in Freetown has, quite literally, shifted).

At the same time, I have arrived at an auspicious moment. The country’s incoming president, Ernest Koroma, won election over incumbent vice-president Solomon Berewa, in a free and fair election last month. So far, preparations for the transition have been peaceful. The country has a vibrant civil society, with initiatives springing up to meet social and economic needs. And many Sierra Leonans are having fun. Just ask the people at the hopping nightclub across the street from my apartment.

This blog is my attempt to tell stories that capture both Sierra Leone’s struggles and its successes. I am sure this will also be a personal journey for me this year.  I hope that this blog will allow you to share a piece of that journey with me!