UNDP-backed disability project becomes flashpoint in Sierra Leone

A Sierra Leone disability housing project partially funded by the United Nations Development Programme is facing mounting scrutiny after police allegedly demolished part of a community compound and detained staff from a local NGO that claims ownership of the land where construction is underway — a claim disputed by the Sierra Leonean government.

Activities at the site — which was until now operated by Lifeline Nehemiah Projects, or LNP, a long-standing local NGO in the country’s capital, Freetown — have been paused pending review, UNDP headquarters told Devex on Feb. 20. According to its website, LNP has operated in Sierra Leone since the 1990s and was set up to rebuild the lives of ex-child soldiers and young people affected by war. Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Social Welfare is responsible for implementing the project “Enabling Economic Independence for Specially Abled Persons in Sierra Leone,” cofinanced by UNDP and the government of India.

Tensions surrounding the project intensified on Feb. 14 when, according to LNP, armed police officers demolished part of the NGO’s compound and detained its finance director, Mohamed Turay. LNP representatives said Turay was held for six days before being granted bail on Friday. He has been charged with incitement and obstruction of police duty and has pleaded not guilty, according to Prince Tommy Williams, executive director of LNP.