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My name is Inyilla Borteh Conteh. I was born in Sierra Leone to Fula and Susu parents, who are both Muslims.  I'm a 20-year-old mass communications student at Fourah Bay College.  Over the years I've tried to understand what it means to be a girl child growing up as a Muslim in a small and peaceful African community. Here's my experience.  When I was five, I was told in many different ways that I couldn't dress like a boy. My mother would often say, "you're not a boy; walk gently; don't sit with your legs spread apart." When I celebrated my tenth birthday, my dream was to make lots of friends, be it a pack of boys or a yoke of girls. One day I tried to play football at school, and my teacher said " football is a game for boys. From now on, you must stop playing with boys and start being cordial with the girls. I shouldn't have to tell you that liquids find their levels."  I wanted to try lots of things, like climbing trees to p...

Foday Melvin Kamara is the Sierra Leonean inventor you've never heard of. One of Kamara’s most recent inventions is a multi-purpose dryer. “The invention help(s) farmers to dehydrate produce before storage,” he told 9RiverMedia. “Over a year ago, we designed and constructed an electrically powered version that was installed at Lion Mountain Company in Bo and has been in operation for over a year,” he added. “The technology is adaptable for drying of produce such as cacao, coffee, ginger, etc... Before now, a dryer of the same magnitude was imported,” he said. During the raining season, when there's little sunshine, Sierra Leonean farmers face lots of problems in drying rice, corn, cacao, cashew nuts, pepper, cassava chips, onions, groundnuts, soybeans, corn/maize, and Moringa leaves. “The FINIC invention will meet the pockets of the farmers. Instead of diesel fuel to generate the heat required for the dehydration process, our technology uses burn oil, which is five ...

The rain in Freetown fell all day Sunday, 21st of May. There was so much rain it was difficult for cars and people to get around.  The video shows a minibus, also known as a "poda poda” at Congo Cross, struggling to make its way through the high water. Normally, Freetown does not experience such rains in May. Definitely not as heavy as those in July and August. But the driving rain that pelted down on Sunday came with lots of wind, lightning, and thunder. Most of the low-lying Western areas were flooded with runoff from Freetown's surrounding hills, which don’t have as many trees as they used to. Flooding is not unusual during the rainy season, but not many people can remember the flooding in the month of May.  Now, people are worried about what will happen in July and August, which have the heaviest rains. According to collected data, the wettest weather is in July when an average of 1190 mm (46.9 in) of rainfall (precipitation) occurs. For Young Life in Free...

S ince Monday April 3rd, when fire raced through Susan's Bay, hundreds are still coming to terms with the disaster. Thanks to the World Food Program (WFP) in Sierra Leone, survivors have gotten by on donations of rice and cooking oil. The WFP also helped put up makeshift tents.   Sanoh Yasaneh said she’s grateful to the WFP for giving whatever support they can. However, she said, not everyone got supplies. There also aren’t enough tents, according to Sanoh. "We're over fifty, sharing a tent,” she said. “What if there's disease, wouldn't we all fall victim? Eyes need to be drawn here or else, we might not survive this crisis," she said.   Momodu Turay complained that his family didn't receive supplies either. Momodu said getting a bed in the tents is difficult because they are so overcrowded. “We need help. It is not safe.  My family and I have given up,” he said.   Nancy Sowa said Susan's Bay  is a mess because there are no public toilets. ...

The death of a 33-year-old Sierra Leonean journalist has put healthcare under the spotlight. Arthur Ben Tucker, whose articles have been published in local and international newspapers, died Saturday while being treated for an unknown illness by a traditional healer, according to social media reports. A former reporter for The New Vision Newspaper, Tucker specialized in court reporting but covered politics, community and human-interest stories, a colleague said in an obituary posted in Native Think Tank’s WhatsApp group. Tucker’s death sent shock waves through the Native Think Tank (NTT) community and was trending on WhatsApp, where he used the handle @NativeIsatu. “Arthur hid behind a veil,” noted one obituary. “This veil turned out to be the most ignored of species— the female. In death, that decision has only enlarged his status.” Isatu is one of the most popular girl names in Sierra Leone. @Peebeck said in a news release that he watched Tucker grow from a young Four...

John Keita will vote for the first time in 2018 March 20 was the date set by Sierra Leone’s National Electoral Commission, or NEC, to begin registration for the 2018 Elections. All citizens of Sierra Leone who are 17 years or older have been asked to register. Only those people who are on the Voters’ Register and present a Voters ID Card will be able to vote in the 2018 Elections. Young Life spoke to young people in one electoral ward. Some of them voted in the last elections. Others are looking forward to voting for the first time.   Juliet Thomas voted in 2012 and she's hoping to vote again in 2018. She had just turned eighteen when she voted in the last elections. Almost six years on, is she better off? Juliet says she had plans to go to college but couldn't because her mother was out of work. Juliet still hasn’t been able to raise enough money to pay her college fees. She also said things were much cheaper five years ago. For example, a cup of rice used to b...

Many people sustain their lives through small business ventures. In Freetown, young people are starting their own businesses with little capital. Christiana Coker sells medicine around the city.  One of her products is Kofsil, which is good for whooping cough and sore throats. She also sells Alafia Bitters for Le2, 000.  Bitters are a tonic used as a cure-all for malaria, constipation, body aches, and pains. Christiana has a permit to sell drugs issued by the Pharmacy Board of Sierra Leone. The board is a regulatory agency and it ensures the protection of public health.  As a legal vendor, Christiana is able to advise her customers on the right dose for children and adults, and possible effects on the body. She said business is not always good. Sometimes she doesn’t make any sales because there are a lot of other vendors so there’s always competition. She has been trading for two years and makes about Le200, 000 a week. Her taxes average Le5, 000 each month. Christi...