By Brima Sannoh
Older people in Sierra Leone’s southern Pujehun District are struggling with extreme social isolation and poverty, as the government fails to provide shelter and basic welfare services for some of the nation’s most vulnerable citizens.
Elderly people without close family support are particularly affected, often forced to beg on the streets of Pujehun town, especially outside places of worship on Fridays and Sundays. The worsening situation has sparked concern among local residents, who say government intervention is long overdue.
A Legacy of Conflict and Hardship
Pujehun District, home to around 400,000 people, has one of the highest poverty rates in Sierra Leone, according to the World Bank. Agriculture, fishing, and mining are the main sources of livelihood, but decades of war and disease outbreaks have crippled economic progress.
The 11-year civil war, which ended in 2002, devastated the region, destroying farming infrastructure and forcing thousands of families apart. The Ebola epidemic of 2014 further deepened the crisis, leaving many elderly residents without regular income or family support. Many now suffer from depression, hypertension, and other age-related health conditions, exacerbated by poor housing and financial struggles.
Unfulfilled Promises of Support
In 2022, the government launched the Social Safety Net Programme, backed by the World Bank, to provide cash transfers to the country’s poorest citizens, including the elderly. However, the last payment was made in October 2023, leaving many without crucial support for months.
The 2004 Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), established to investigate the causes of the civil war, had recommended that the government set up old people’s homes in major urban centres and ensure that elderly women in rural areas had access to land. Yet, 24 years after the war, these recommendations remain largely ignored.
In Pujehun and across Sierra Leone’s southern region, there are no government-run elderly care homes. The only known shelter for the elderly is the King George VI Memorial Home in Freetown, which has an 80-bed capacity but houses only 35 residents due to financial constraints.
Local officials admit that they are unaware of any initiatives to allocate land or housing to older citizens. “We have no knowledge of any programme that provides land or homes to elderly people in this region,” said Alimamy Sesay, Regional Director of Lands.
Michael James, Regional Director at the Ministry of Social Welfare, echoed this, stating, “There is no old people’s home in the south, apart from other social support we provide.”
The Voices of the Forgotten
For many elderly people in Pujehun, life is a daily struggle for survival. Neeneh Fullah, an 80-year-old petty trader, fled to Liberia during the war. When she returned, she found her home had been burned to the ground. “I suffered to build that house in my youth, and it was destroyed in a single day,” she said. “We are poor, but at least we must choose peace over violence.”
Abu Bindi, 67, a farmer, is one of the few lucky ones. Though he lost his home in the war, his extended family’s house survived, giving him a place to stay. But he worries for those less fortunate.
“I really feel sorry for my age-mates who have nowhere to sleep and nothing to eat,” he said. “The government should have built homes for us, especially those who lost everything in the war. But instead, we are left to struggle alone.”
A Broken System
Civil society groups say government corruption is to blame for the failure to implement welfare schemes for the elderly.
“We have done well in providing basic social services despite limited revenue,” said Abdulai Jalsi Silah, Executive Director of Youth in Action Sierra Leone. “But corruption has held us back for too long.”
He believes that Sierra Leone could have implemented most of the TRC’s recommendations by now but says the country has not been serious about tackling corruption.
“It’s very sad that after 24 years, we still have no sustainable welfare system for the elderly; no housing, food support, or healthcare schemes,” he said.
“Why did we set up the Truth and Reconciliation Commission if we had no intention of implementing its recommendations? It feels like we gave people false hope.”
For now, older residents of Pujehun remain in limbo, waiting for help that may never come.
This story was produced with support from the African Transitional Justice Legacy Fund (ATJLF), through the Media Reform Coordinating Group (MRCG), under the project “Engaging Media and Communities to Change the Narrative on Transitional Justice Issues in Sierra Leone.”
