Sierra Leone: 20 years after the civil war, Sierra Leone still shunned by tourists
Audio 02:17
View of Tokeh Beach, near Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone.
ISSOUF SANOGO / AFP
By: Jenna Le Bras
6 mins
Sierra Leone is a country best known for the civil war that ravaged it between 1991 and 2002 and the infamous "blood diamonds".
But Sierra Leone is also a country with a very rich ecosystem and many assets that are still too little known.
White sand beaches, crystal clear waters, tropical forests, the country has the most beautiful coasts in West Africa.
But this paradise has been forgotten by tourists for 30 years.
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At first glance Freetown looks like most West African capitals: a lot of traffic, very motley buildings and an obvious disorder.
I am in the district of Godrich with Abdulay.
He is a tourist guide and passionate about the history of this city.
“
There are so many things to see in Freetown… Freetown, for example, is lucky to have hosted the first university in West Africa, the Fourah Bay high school, it is a unique and very beautiful building.
We also have the railway, the national museum… You can also visit the old Krio houses, sublime to see…
”
But for 20 years, the country has suffered from the stigma left by its civil war and tourists have deserted.
Until the end of the 1980s, however, the country was a very popular destination, especially for its beaches.
In Bureh, the setting is always breathtaking: tropical forest, white sand, crystal clear waters.
Ibrahim is the manager of a guest house on the beach.
“
We are at Bureh beach, one of the most famous in Sierra Leone and West Africa, people come from Freetown, because the beach is beautiful, there is the ocean, we also have the forest. and rivers, but we don't have tourists from Europe or Asia or other parts of the world until today.
Most of the people who come here live in Freetown.
"
Pauline is one of them.
She lives in the capital, and spends the weekend here with her family.
“
It really is a beautiful place and that few people know.
people are afraid to come to Sierra Leone and they are missing something, it is really extraordinary.
"
Sierra Leone is trying to attract new investors to boost its tourism sector.
In Tokeh, Vinod Kumar Bahuguna, spent 20 million euros in his hotel.
50 chalets, the largest swimming pool in the country and a top-of-the-range standard.
“
This is the biggest investment in the hospitality sector in Sierra Leone since the end of the war.
You know I've been to Senegal I've been to Gambia I've been to Nigeria and the beauty of what we have here you can't compare with no other place in the world but the people don't know!
"
Sierra Leone also makes many efforts to attract customers: a cheaper visa, better infrastructure, the development of ecotourism too, but the offer remains limited and the prices very high, compared to other destinations in the region. .
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