Life 5 - Back In Business?
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- Reviews
- Citation
- Cataloging
- Transcript
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Eleven years of civil war between 1991 and 2002 has left Sierra Leone in ruins. According to the United Nations it's the second poorest country in the world. Tens of thousands of people were killed and many more injured and displaced during the war. In May 2002, stability was restored when the former ruling party was returned to power in democratic elections.
Now, after three years of peace, the rebuilding has begun, and Sierra Leone is looking for outside investment to kick-start its economy. Until now, most of Sierra Leone's foreign earnings have come from exporting diamonds. But it's rich in other natural resources. Apart from diamonds, there is titanium ore, gold and fisheries. Tourism, on the other hand, offers the promise of revenue with a far quicker turnaround time. Sierra Leone has miles of beautiful beaches. In a country that was once a war-zone, could tourism be one of the new industries that moves the country into the future?
'The visual impact of the gripping documentaries in the Life 5 series make them extremely powerful teaching tools for university, and indeed, other classrooms. In succinct episodes they raise and contextualise some of the most critical issues in the world today. These episodes are produced in an extremely objective manner and allow an audience easily to come to grips with an array of complex problems. They ought to be an indispensable part of the teaching curriculum.' Dr. Jeremy Sarkin, Visiting Professor of International Human Rights, Tufts University
'The importance of these films is that they are intended to raise awareness about global issues in young people, and can be used by anyone for this purpose. The quality of the films is excellent. They are documentaries about the U.N. Millennium Development Goals and include brief interviews with people who are actually involved in MDG programs, from various institutions and from the grassroots to executive level...The objective evidence about the current global crisis of insecurity, poverty, gender inequalities, environmental degradation, and lack of international cooperation is presented in a way that is both realistic and non-inflammatory.
Children are the future. Educational materials such as the Bullfrog Films are very important for the future of both humanity and the human habitat...The Bullfrog Films certainly can and should be shown to children, especially to high school students. But these films are most appropriate for those who prepare the children for responsible citizenship, including global citizenship. They are certainly appropriate for parents who want their children to know about the need for human solidarity and environmental sustainability. And, they are most appropriate for training teachers to plant the seed of global concerns in their students' minds and hearts.' Luis Gutierrez, Editor, Solidarity, Sustainability, and Non-Violence Research Newsletter
Citation
Main credits
Marlow, Emily (film producer)
Malde, Smita (editor of moving image work)
Kelly, Brenda (film producer)
Bower, Dick (film producer)
Briers, Lucy (narrator)
Other credits
Editor, Smita Malde; executive producer, Brenda Kelly; series producer, Dick Bower.
Distributor subjects
African Studies; Anthropology; Conflict Resolution; Developing World; Economics; Geography; Globalization; Humanities; International Studies; Local Economies; Marketing and Advertising; Millennium Development Goals; Natural Resources; Oceans and Coasts; Poverty; Recreation; Sociology; United Nations; War and PeaceKeywords
WEBVTT
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[sil.]
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[music]
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Eleven years of Civil War
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has left Sierra Leone in ruins.
According to the United Nations,
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it\'s the second poorest
country in the world.
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It doesn\'t have to be.
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After three years of peace,
the rebuilding has begun.
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And Sierra Leone\'s looking for new private
investment to kick-start its economy.
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Miles of beautiful beaches in a country
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that was once a war zone, could tourism be one of
the new industries that moves the country forward.
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[music]
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Tens of thousands of people were killed
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and many more injured and displaced during the
war. One of the largest UN peacekeeping forces
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helped to end the fighting disarming
thousands of rebel militia.
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In May 2002,
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stability was restored when the former ruling party
were returned to power in democratic elections.
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Today Sierra Leone is at a critical point
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with elections scheduled for 2007, the
country\'s leaders are keen to show,
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they can increase economic
activity and reduce poverty
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by encouraging new
private-sector development.
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Bimbola Carrol is Sierra
Leonean but lives in England.
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He left his home during the war. He\'s now determined
to change the perceptions of his homeland.
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Okay. That would be… You might…
Let me it is hyphenated…
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He set up a website focusing on travel, tourism,
and investment opportunities to do just that.
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Last year alone, it had 40 million hits.
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Bimbola Carrol is traveling back to Sierra Leone with Derek
Moore, founder of the international travel company, \"Explore\".
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Their agenda to investigate Sierra
Leone\'s potential for tourism,
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and the barriers stopping the industry getting
back on its feet. So the information…
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The website umm… was set up to show
people another side of Sierra Leone,
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a more positive side which is not often seen in the media.
It also highlights the toys and potential of Sierra Leone,
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but the initial mission is actually to change
people\'s perceptions to stimulate investment -
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Sierra Leone as a whole. Umm… It\'s
not just about terms for yeah.
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Right now it depends
what you\'re looking for.
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Okay. I\'m going to Sierra Leone because I don\'t really know what I\'m
gonna find there. Umm… I\'ve read that it\'s got wonderful beaches.
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It\'s got wildlife reserves. It\'s got mountains, and there\'s
trekking there. But I don\'t know anything about it.
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And I feel it\'s a bit of an open book for a
tour operator with some strategic planning
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and some looking at what can be developed. I think
it could be the start of a great adventure.
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I\'d expect you to be impressed with the Sierra Leone beaches
because it\'s among the most beautiful in sub-region.
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And the landscape is just
fantastic umm… but not only that,
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but maybe with your experience say
well or on the administratives side,
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some of the barriers that maybe you could be taken down. So I
encourage investment search you to move into Sierra Leone.
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[music]
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Until now most of Sierra Leone\'s foreign
earnings have come from exporting diamonds.
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But it\'s rich in other natural resources
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including titanium ore and bauxite.
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Agriculture could also be developed.
The land is fertile.
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And at the moment only 1/5 is farmed,
but it needs long-term investment.
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Tourism on the other hand,
offers the promise of revenue
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on a far quicker turnaround.
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I think there is a need for us to create uh… an
environment that will attract investments in…
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in areas that will provide a
lot of jobs for young people.
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And this is going to create a required
stability for this country to move forward.
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There is a need for us
to give the assurance
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to the private sector to address
the concerns of the private sector
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and as well as the government. We are willing to
provide the necessary support to any investors
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that may want to come to this country.
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The Sierra Leonean government
wants to cut through the red tape
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that stops the private sector creating jobs. So
in May 2005, they organized a business forum
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to debate and agree on an action
plan for business friendly reforms.
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It was advised by fierce, a joint program of the
World Bank and the International Finance Corporation
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supported by the UK government.
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Let me add my words of
welcome to all of you.
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You\'ll start a new businesses.
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You pay an income (inaudible). Looking at the
landlords to make sure that when titling is properly…
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So emphasize all the (inaudible).
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Has financial implications, it has…
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There\'s no doubt that they are
huge barriers on the ground
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that impedes investment. And
our attention as a government
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is now focusing on those barriers.
Those barriers include
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changes to the tax system. Businesses are
required to pay their taxes a year in advance.
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Company regulations are bureaucratic and
out-of-date so is the Land Registration system.
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Sierra Leone\'s government claims,
it wants to introduce reforms
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to remove these barriers
in key economic areas.
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There are two or three economic
sectors that are critical
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for development and for promoting employment. One is
agriculture, and particularly commercial agriculture,
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but we are also looking at fisheries
for instance and also tourism.
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And we have to make sure that the three or
four sectors that have the most potential
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and can rapidly bring in results are the ones
when we invest in a country that needs to develop
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the economy very rapidly. Tourism
is said to me the sector that could
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provide that kind of turnaround.
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Sam King is one of Sierra Leone\'s few
successful homegrown entrepreneurs.
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He made his money in the stationery
business buying equipment from the UK.
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Good morning, ladies. You
are ready for work today.
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In 2004, he decided to move into tourism
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and built the Kimbima Hotel named after
the small village where he grew up.
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Sam King\'s aware that before the war
tourism brought in a lot of money.
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Looking at the history and the figures,
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the tourism generated from statistically
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over couple of million
dollars uh… per month.
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If you look at a minor sector within
the given period, a same period,
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there was nothing to report on.
Everything came out of that sector,
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the mining sector was (inaudible)
more good or not accounted for.
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So I think tourism is even has a bigger
potential than the mining industry.
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[sil.]
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Sam wants to expand his hotel, but
acquiring the right to the land next door
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is a major problem. Land registration
was discussed at the Business Forum
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and is now one of the government\'s
top priorities. The land you see,
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I guess, into this hotel
was a land I am at.
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And I applied to the Ministry of Lands
for the expansion process of this hotel.
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Now that was granted in principle. It
came to survey the land and little,
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nobody knew that as piece of land
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was allocated for six different people.
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Investors coming here have to meet several
landlords for a small piece of land
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which if you look at our competitors in the sub-region,
it does not exist. That again has to be looked at
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because of the various laws affecting
land ownership in the western area
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and that of the provinces. So it\'s very
important because that\'s the starting point.
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[music]
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Derek Moore and Bimbola Carrol\'s first stop
the beaches on the Freetown, Peninsula.
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[sil.]
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Wow!
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Oh, Jesus. You know, you know these people?
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Yes, they come here to study. Hello.
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This is phenomenal.
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This is so far away from the
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popular image of Sierra Leone and that\'s the
good news. To me, the potential bad news
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is who owns the waterfront land.
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Because depending on who owns that land, we could end
up here with a beautifully managed tourist area.
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Or in 10 years time, we could end up with a series
of beachfront hotels with completely ruining.
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When there\'s a fantastic
chance here to get it right,
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I mean, the good thing about Sierra Leone emerging
into the tourist world a little bit later
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than many other parts of Africa could be, they
can learn from what the other state along.
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And I\'d like to feel that if the
government controls things properly,
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this beautiful beach could be just as good as
this but earning a living and an economic income
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for the country in years to come.
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Derek Moore and Bimbola
Carrol meet Cecil Williams
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from the Sierra Leone National Tourist Board. This is Derek Moore from Export. Hi, Derek Moore.
I\'m Derek Moore, good to meet you, Cecil Williams. I\'ve been looking forward to see you.
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Is this being driven? Are you looking actively
looking for entrepreneurs, investors,
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and going out and trying to find them, or they\'re just falling into
your land? This time people were actually falling into our land.
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At the moment. Yeah, we have
not been able to go out
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and source the type of investors who
fulfill some of our aspirations.
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Yeah, people who\'ve come here, who\'s seen the
potential at… Okay. That we have available.
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So it\'s going to be very difficult to… to control
an investor coming here, doing some work,
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and stalking out him not to… He needs
most of their… their capital out.
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Okay, another point, uh… if the ecologists
are going to be in places such as Collini…
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Cecil Williams is only too aware that
Sierra Leone\'s legislation on tourism
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needs urgent updating. Our last
policy was done some 15 years ago
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and quite a lot of things have happened.
There\'s been a lot of changes.
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I would like to see how we can get
assistance to review the legislation
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because there is legislation that prevents the tourism
industry refer to an tourism development at 1990.
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And you will appreciate that. Since that time to
now, quite a lot of changes have taken place.
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Right, that\'s so that where we set up
from this morning, where we\'re going to.
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Right, we are set up from the south, not far from
the Liberian border. Okay, there\'s Liberia. Yeah.
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Here (inaudible) spend a
night at (inaudible). Right.
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And then we\'re heading northwards to Kilimi. Oh, (inaudible). Just
holding at there, right close a bit Guinea border in the North.
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Oh, yeah, so it\'s real border to border
trip Liberian border in the south straight
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through the middle of Sierra Leone.
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After the years of Civil War,
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Sierra Leone\'s infrastructure
is in tatters.
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Many rivers have no bridges.
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[music]
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The roads are appalling.
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It takes several hours to travel south to
their second destination Tiwai Island.
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[music]
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After traveling for nine hours,
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Derek Moore and Bimbola
Carrol get close to Tiwai.
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[music]
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They finally arrive at the boat that will take them
to the island where they will camp for the night.
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Do you see a boat? Yes, we do see a boat.
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It\'s a (inaudible) crocodile. Is that, is that
crocodile? It\'s a (inaudible) crocodile. (inaudible).
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Yeah.
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[sil.]
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Tiwai is a designated Nature Reserve, famous for
its rare birds, and monkeys, and jungle walks.
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[sil.]
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I haven\'t been here before. Umm… I do
carry the information on the site,
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but it\'s… it\'s quite an experience
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umm… walking through the jungle is unlike
anything that I\'ve ever done before even.
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I understand there\'s a colorful
wildlife out here to be seen.
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We understand in the dry season, we
can spot some pygmy hippos as well.
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Yeah, yeah, yeah. But now is not the ideal time.
We\'re not really. There may be difficult to see now.
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So we\'re hoping to spot some, you see,
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Diana monkeys, and colobus monkeys.
Right, colobus.
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[music]
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The Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary is just
40 minutes outside the capital Freetown.
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It\'s currently the most popular
tourist destination in the country.
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[sil.]
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It was set up by Bala
Amarasekaran 10 years ago.
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It\'s home to about a 100 chimps.
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Bala Amarasekaran is trying
hard to tackle poaching.
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There are people who are actually going for
chimps, the poachers going, looking for chimps.
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So sometimes it can be only for bushmeat. But there
may be some people trying to get a tiny chimp,
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so they can come into one of the major towns and sell it
as a pet to some. In both ways, pet trade and bushmeat.
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Okay. Yeah, and pet trade actually,
basically follows to bushmeat into it.
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The average income in Sierra Leone
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is $150 a year.
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One chimp can earn a poacher up to $300.
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Education is the key.
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I mean, it\'s very easy to give up so,
I think, we have to stay focused.
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We spend a lot of time educating not just tourists about Sierra Leoneans
themselves. We\'ve got over 50, 60 kids visiting here every month.
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This sanctuary demonstrates
that well-managed sites
00:16:35.000 --> 00:16:39.999
can educate and generate
interest and income.
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[sil.]
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The government estimates a
booming tourist industry
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could earn the country up
to $150 million per year.
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In terms of tourism, I know,
the multiplier effect it has
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on this is the economic
development of any country.
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You… If you just think that with a vibrant tourism
industry, the government stands to benefit
00:17:10.000 --> 00:17:14.999
through tax revenue it generates, the
country generates also foreign currency.
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Employment opportunity that are
there, it helps a lot the fisherman,
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and the vegetable seller, the
souvenir sellers, the taxi driver,
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everybody, everybody is a
major player in the industry.
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And it\'s not just new jobs,
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homegrown businessmen like Sam King are
helping regenerate their local communities.
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In order to inject
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and project a multiplier
effect in my own success,
00:17:50.000 --> 00:17:54.999
you cannot be a successful man.
And everything else you have,
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you have not created an impact
on the lives of other people.
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He\'s seen as a local hero
when he returns home.
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And today, he supports over a 150 people
in the Kimbima village where he grew up
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and pays for all the
children to go to school.
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In the traditional setting, if
you are a successful profession
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or more successful than the others, their
service, their… their social responsibility,
00:18:25.000 --> 00:18:29.999
it\'s about what you could do to improve
the quality of life of other people.
00:18:30.000 --> 00:18:34.999
It\'s just about making money
and keeping it ourselves.
00:18:35.000 --> 00:18:39.999
[sil.]
00:18:40.000 --> 00:18:44.999
Derek Moore and Bimbola
Carrol\'s final destination
00:18:45.000 --> 00:18:49.999
is Sierra Leone\'s only national park,
Outamba-Kilimi in the north of the country.
00:18:50.000 --> 00:18:54.999
Before the war, the park
was well maintained.
00:18:55.000 --> 00:18:59.999
Today, there\'s little left a couple of
canoes and three accommodation huts.
00:19:00.000 --> 00:19:04.999
[sil.]
00:19:05.000 --> 00:19:09.999
So if you can just show me the facilities
here, what\'s… what\'s inside this?
00:19:10.000 --> 00:19:14.999
This is the modern facility. I can open,
I\'m going to show you now. All right.
00:19:15.000 --> 00:19:19.999
You know, and I can sit here.
Okay, it looks… (inaudible).
00:19:20.000 --> 00:19:24.999
Okay, so.
00:19:25.000 --> 00:19:29.999
Mosquito netting on the window. There\'s
mosquito netting on the window.
00:19:30.000 --> 00:19:34.999
And it\'s made with local materials.
Oh, that\'s good. Okay.
00:19:35.000 --> 00:19:39.999
Okay, so it\'s simple, but it\'s
clean… it\'s… Bed comfortable?
00:19:40.000 --> 00:19:44.999
But seems right.
00:19:45.000 --> 00:19:49.999
The park senior ranger knows there have to
be improvements to the facilities he offers.
00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:54.999
The war tends to, you know vandalize all our
treatments, reduce sets, and every other equipments
00:19:55.000 --> 00:19:59.999
which are vital for our operation
here was they\'re all taken away.
00:20:00.000 --> 00:20:04.999
So tourism promotion in this part of
the country is below the standard.
00:20:05.000 --> 00:20:09.999
I can see why people would be attracted
uh… to the place called it is.
00:20:10.000 --> 00:20:14.999
You know, it is quite a nice and peaceful place.
But if we are looking to target a market,
00:20:15.000 --> 00:20:19.999
it will need umm… somewhat time. Ideally,
you would want government to push
00:20:20.000 --> 00:20:24.999
uh… something like this and to take a
leadership role. They may have other priorities
00:20:25.000 --> 00:20:29.999
for the list than places like Kilimi.
They should be looking as areas
00:20:30.000 --> 00:20:34.999
such as this one as, you know, alternative
means of actually bringing revenue in.
00:20:35.000 --> 00:20:39.999
Because it means, if it is developed, it
will do just that. Because of the war,
00:20:40.000 --> 00:20:44.999
the… the focus has been for a long time on the social
sector. But I think now we need to maintain a balance.
00:20:45.000 --> 00:20:49.999
We need to focus more on the productive sectors.
And tourism is one of the productive sectors
00:20:50.000 --> 00:20:54.999
as far as bringing in revenue concern.
00:20:55.000 --> 00:20:59.999
The balance isn\'t quite there yet.
00:21:00.000 --> 00:21:04.999
And while the government claims it\'s taking steps
to attract investors, there is still a way to go.
00:21:05.000 --> 00:21:09.999
Right now with no coherent
tourist policy yet in force,
00:21:10.000 --> 00:21:14.999
the government is keen to raise money. Recently
they signed an agreement with a Chinese company
00:21:15.000 --> 00:21:19.999
on a development generating an
investment of $270 million dollars.
00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:24.999
Most of the building will be
on prime beachfront land.
00:21:25.000 --> 00:21:29.999
Well, that\'s area has been lain
(inaudible) fallow for years, decades.
00:21:30.000 --> 00:21:34.999
And nobody ever thought of
constructing anything there,
00:21:35.000 --> 00:21:39.999
then came the Chinese. They have been
telling us, \"Okay, give us this area,
00:21:40.000 --> 00:21:44.999
we\'ll put up a 250 bedroom hotel. We will
put holiday houses all over the place.\"
00:21:45.000 --> 00:21:49.999
That became very attracted. Well, because what
had no better offer, nobody offered anything.
00:21:50.000 --> 00:21:54.999
You can only think twice
when there\'s a second offer.
00:21:55.000 --> 00:21:59.999
The plan is for Sierra Leone\'s
government to develop tourist projects
00:22:00.000 --> 00:22:04.999
in collaboration with new investors. But
with buildings springing up everywhere
00:22:05.000 --> 00:22:09.999
holiday homes and local housing, the
question is are there enough laws in place
00:22:10.000 --> 00:22:14.999
to ensure adequate controls?
00:22:15.000 --> 00:22:19.999
The board must be given more arm
to monitor investors coming here.
00:22:20.000 --> 00:22:24.999
You don\'t just allow anybody
to come in with no guidelines.
00:22:25.000 --> 00:22:29.999
We should be able to have laws that
will address people who default.
00:22:30.000 --> 00:22:34.999
And therefore they should be penalized.
And there should be heavy fines
00:22:35.000 --> 00:22:39.999
on people who are legally the artists are very
old. And the penalties are very, very weak.
00:22:40.000 --> 00:22:44.999
So people get away with these things because
we\'re still talking about 5 pounds, fine,
00:22:45.000 --> 00:22:49.999
which… which is ridiculous. It is a church. And this is
looking at (inaudible) actually a member, the name of that.
00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:54.999
Derek Moore and Bimbola Carrolare are back in
Freetown. Derek Moore is keen to find out more
00:22:55.000 --> 00:22:59.999
about the government\'s plans
to move things forward.
00:23:00.000 --> 00:23:04.999
He\'s meeting the newly
appointed Minister of Tourism.
00:23:05.000 --> 00:23:09.999
Minister, good morning. Yeah, welcome, welcome to Sierra Leone. I\'m Derek
Moore. Thank you… As a government, you know, all we need to do is to provide
00:23:10.000 --> 00:23:14.999
the necessary environment. After with
the extra mile to encourage investors,
00:23:15.000 --> 00:23:19.999
encourage tourists to come to us.
(inaudible)
00:23:20.000 --> 00:23:24.999
because to this, we are the second,
we are not a very rich country.
00:23:25.000 --> 00:23:29.999
And coming from war, we
need every single penny.
00:23:30.000 --> 00:23:34.999
So the best we can do is to encourage the investor,
given the necessary incentives to move ahead.
00:23:35.000 --> 00:23:39.999
The Minister of Tourism will have to
work closely with other ministries
00:23:40.000 --> 00:23:44.999
to manage the process. We need to try
00:23:45.000 --> 00:23:49.999
together with the Minister of Tourism to sell
Sierra Leone and make Sierra Leone look attractive.
00:23:50.000 --> 00:23:54.999
And there\'s no doubt in (inaudible), there is a need
for strategic plan. We need a new tourism policy.
00:23:55.000 --> 00:23:59.999
We need to revise what exists now. And… and of course,
there has to be a commitment for some resources
00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:04.999
to uh… boost tourism.
00:24:05.000 --> 00:24:09.999
Tourism is just one of the industries where
barriers to investment need to come down.
00:24:10.000 --> 00:24:14.999
We are going to go round every
sector, every department
00:24:15.000 --> 00:24:19.999
to ensure that the existing barriers are dismantled
so that to makes it a little more attractive
00:24:20.000 --> 00:24:24.999
location for investment.
00:24:25.000 --> 00:24:29.999
[music]
00:24:30.000 --> 00:24:34.999
Peace is priceless. It\'s… it\'s priceless
for… for 11 years doing the war,
00:24:35.000 --> 00:24:39.999
we\'ve seen, you know, the… the what was
00:24:40.000 --> 00:24:44.999
uh… you know, they\'re ready to leave basic
infrastructure to start with that we had we\'ve seen it
00:24:45.000 --> 00:24:49.999
with two pieces by the rebels. It\'s just
amazing like we\'re coming to the beaches
00:24:50.000 --> 00:24:54.999
and seeing the kids playing in
a waving to us as we go by.
00:24:55.000 --> 00:24:59.999
It\'s really good that we have peace. But we need, you know, to
improve the quality of life umm… of Sierra Leone at this time.
00:25:00.000 --> 00:25:04.999
The government should encourage investment,
foreign investment in one investment.
00:25:05.000 --> 00:25:09.999
And I think is absolutely crucial that we get, you
know, people of the younger generation involved.
00:25:10.000 --> 00:25:14.999
To visit this place is to see a place,
00:25:15.000 --> 00:25:19.999
it\'s about to boom. It\'s about to burst
forth and do what he wants to do.
00:25:20.000 --> 00:25:24.999
We are now at that pivotal point where decisions have to be made
whether it\'s made by the private sector the government or both.
00:25:25.000 --> 00:25:29.999
Whichever way it goes, it\'s
got to be managed properly.
00:25:30.000 --> 00:25:34.999
The one thing I\'ve no doubt about is
that tourism will return in a big way.
00:25:35.000 --> 00:25:39.999
But I think Explorer will be here, yeah. I\'ll be
back. Yeah, I think, I can tell you that for a fact
00:25:40.000 --> 00:25:44.999
uh… that I… I will be back and hopefully contributing to
the development of Sierra Leone in one way or the other.
00:25:45.000 --> 00:25:49.999
[music]
00:25:50.000 --> 00:25:54.999
Although there is still much to be done, Sierra
Leone is reforming its laws and policies
00:25:55.000 --> 00:25:59.999
to attract new investors. The country is
well on its way to being back in business.
00:26:00.000 --> 00:26:05.000
[music]