Sulima Fishing Villiage, Sierra Leone
Sulima is a small coastal fishing village lying on the Sierra Leonean side of the border. Its inhabitants are primarily involved in fishing and appear to be living in harmony with the Ghanaians.
But even with such hospitality, the Ghanaians are clearly finding it hard to adjust to their new environment and engage in their regular profession of fishing. “We are not refugees in the strict sense of the word; call us economic migrants if you like and all we want now is to engage in our regular fishing activities,” says Kofi Acheampong, another Ghanian fisherman.
Locals in Sulima say the Ghanaians do engage in small-scale fishing, “just for sustenance”. “They are not allowed to fish in outer sea,” says one man.
Concurring, a Sierra Leonean navy officer, who patrols the Sulima sea front, told IPS this week: “This action has been taken mainly because of security reasons. In fact, we have grounded most of their fishing boats because this is one easy way of smuggling weapons and ammunition into the country”.
Epic Sierra Leon Culture & Adventure Route © Monika Newbound
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