Riskline / Country Report / 29 August 2021 SIERRA LEONE Overall risk level High Reconsider travel Can be dangerous and may present unexpected security risks Travel is possible, but there is a potential for disruptions Overview Upcoming Events There are no upcoming events scheduled Riskline / Country Report / 29 August 2021 / Sierra Leone 2 Travel Advisories Riskline / Country Report / 29 August 2021 / Sierra Leone 3 Summary Sierra Leone is a High Risk destination: reconsider travel. High Risk locations can be dangerous and may present unexpected security risks. Travel is possible, but there is a potential for severe or widespread disruptions. Covid-19 Medium Risk The country is currently battling a dramatic rise in infections and deaths related to the virus, particularly in western areas and Freetown. Authorities re-imposed some measures from amid a third wave of infections, remaining in place through August. Political Instability Medium Risk Sierra Leone is increasingly stable following a devastating civil war from 1991-2002. Democratic elections were held in 2018 with an 84.6 percent turn out. However, state institutions remain weak, and social integration is still strongly influenced by the rehabilitation of fighters from the civil war. Conflict Medium Risk The army has been rebuilt with considerable military aid from the United Kingdom and now sends peacekeepers to serve in United Nations missions around the world. Insecurity persists along the country's porous borders with Liberia and Guinea, where government control is weak and remnants of Liberian and Sierra Leonean militias remain active. Riskline / Country Report / 29 August 2021 / Sierra Leone 4 Terrorism Moderate Risk Following the March 2016 al-Qaeda in the Islamic Magreb (AQIM) attack in Côte d'Ivoire, the militant group vowed to retaliate against France and its allies operating in northern Mali. While militant groups in the Sahel region have not explicitly threatened to attack the country, Sierra Leone's contribution of troops to the French-led military operation means that the country is a potential target. Likely targets include hotels, restaurants, cafés, shopping centres and other locations – where security measures are lax or non-existent – that are frequented by foreigners or Sierra Leonean elites. Unrest Medium Risk Strikes and demonstrations are known to occur around diamond mines in Eastern Province, including in Kono district, and have previously triggered heavy handed responses from security services. Protests occur semi-frequently in Freetown and are most often triggered by social and political issues. On occasion, protests may result in violent clashes with security forces. Crime Medium Risk The high rate of unemployment and poor prospects for employment have forced many young people into informal criminal gangs that operate in Freetown and the surrounding areas. Violent crime does occur, but foreign travellers are more likely to be affected by non-violent, opportunistic crimes such as petty theft and pickpocketing, especially in Freetown. Natural and Environmental Medium Risk Flooding during the rainy season (May to November) poses the most serious natural risk facing foreign visitors to Sierra Leone. Mudslides often accompany severe floods. Riskline / Country Report / 29 August 2021 / Sierra Leone 5 Health and Medical High Risk Medical care is limited and virtually non-existent outside of Freetown. An outbreak of Ebola between March 2014 and November 2015 had a severe impact on health facilities and medical personnel. There is a lack of trained doctors and nurses, and hospitals lack modern equipment. Healthcare facilities in rural areas lack even the most basic medicines, and staff are poorly trained. There are regular shortages of essential medicines in hospitals, clinics and pharmacies. Malaria, cholera and lassa fever pose a risk to travellers in Sierra Leone. Local Travel Medium Risk Road travel is hazardous due to high accident rates, poor road conditions and unroadworthy vehicles throughout the country. Police and military roadblocks are common, located at district boundaries as well as at country borders with Guinea and Liberia, and are often used to extract bribes from drivers. Public buses are relatively safe and offer daily services to and from the main cities, namely Bo, Kenema, Makeni, Kabala, Kono and Conakry. Motorcycle taxis, minibuses and private taxis for intercity travel are often poorly maintained and erratically driven. Riskline / Country Report / 29 August 2021 / Sierra Leone 6 Political Overview : Medium Risk Presidential, parliament and local council elections held on 7 March 2018 witnessed a historic turnout of 84 percent. In the Parliament elections, the ruling All People's Congress (APC) party won 63 out of 132 seats ahead of its rival, the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), which won 46 seats. In the presidential election, no candidate received the 55 percent of votes required to win in the first round, and a second round of voting was held on 31 March. On 4 April, the National Electoral Commission announced that Julius Maada Bio of the opposition SLPP won the presidential run-off election by securing 51.81 percent of the vote, with around 2.5 million ballots cast, ahead of his rival Samura Kamara of the ruling APC with 48.19 percent. The APC party candidate, former President Ernest Bai Koroma, had won presidential and legislative elections in 2007 and was re-elected in 2012, making Bio’s victory an important milestone on Sierra Leone’s democratic path. There is a vibrant and active civil society in the country and a distinct political openness among Sierra Leoneans who freely discuss and criticise politics and the government. The war did much to foster a strong sense of nationalism among ordinary Sierra Leoneans, and the majority actively participate in the political process. State institutions and the rule of law are weak, and the government has only limited control over outlying areas and border regions with Guinea and Liberia, which function as safe-havens for would-be rebels, militias and traffickers. Religious tensions are negligible between the Muslim, Christian and animist communities of Sierra Leone. The Mende and the Temne are the largest of the country's 18 ethnic groups and are broadly aligned with opposing political factions. The SLPP is typically supported by the Mende and other southern tribes. The APC is favoured by the Temne tribe and others in the north and west. This rivalry rarely escalates to violence. There are no recent incidents Riskline / Country Report / 29 August 2021 / Sierra Leone 7 Conflict : Medium Risk The army – once an undisciplined force containing a large number of rebels – has been rebuilt with considerable military aid from the United Kingdom and now sends peacekeeping soldiers to serve in United Nations missions around the world. Insecurity persists along the country's porous borders with Liberia and Guinea, where government control is weak and remnants of Liberian and Sierra Leonean militias remain active. All non-essential travel to these regions should be avoided. Border Conflicts: There is a risk of conflict in the Yenga region, along the Guinean border. Sierra Leone has a long standing territorial dispute with neighbouring Guinea over the diamond rich Yenga region, Kailahun district, western Sierra Leone. The dispute over the 640km (398 miles) border dates back to colonial times when Britain and France demarcated the border in 1912 between British-controlled Sierra Leone and French-controlled Guinea. During Sierra Leone’s 1991-2002 civil war, Guinea sent troops into the Yenga region to help Sierra Leone’s national army suppress the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) armed rebels uprising. Following the rebels’ defeat in 2002, Sierra Leone and Guinean officials signed an agreement stating that Guinean troops would remain in the area and that the Yenga region would return to Sierra Leone when the border was secured. In July 2012, following the signing of a joint declaration between the two nations, Guinean troops left the region and the border was fully demilitarized. Since 2013, continued talks between Sierra Leone's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and Guinean President Alpha Condé have reduced tensions in the area, with both sides agreeing to focus on economic and social developments in the region. Militias/Warlords: There exists a risk of Sierra Leone relapsing into conflict in the medium- to long-term. Although demobilised, many former rebel and militia fighters have not been fully reintegrated into society and remain unemployed. Rising disillusionment with the peace among former fighters poses a serious security threat, and discontent among diamond miners at ongoing corruption and poor working conditions is of particular concern in this regard. Many miners were of the first and most ardent recruits to the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) in the early years of the war due to perceived corruption and unfair distribution of resources by the pre-war Riskline / Country Report / 29 August 2021 / Sierra Leone 8 regime. These former fighters could readily be mobilised for war again if current corruption and unemployment levels are left unaddressed. Remnants of Sierra Leonean and Liberian militias also remain active along the Liberian border. The border is largely porous and effectively lawless, remaining beyond the reach of both the Sierra Leonean and Liberian governments. Significantly, it was within this lawless region from which the RUF organised, launched and waged its campaign against the state, and while beyond the reach of the Freetown government, it remains an ideal haven for would-be challengers to the state. With a limited to non-existent security presence, the area has become a thoroughfare for all manner of illegal trafficking and smuggling, including diamonds, wildlife and guns. Travel to Sierra Leone's border region with Liberia is high risk, especially for female visitors, and travel should be avoided. If travel is necessary, foreign visitors should do so only if accompanied by permanent, armed security personnel. Remnants of militia fighters still active in the border areas are to be considered dangerous.