USAID/Sierra Leone: USAID's PDA Mediates Community Dispute in Kono

MARCH 30, 2004

USAID's PDA Mediates Community Dispute in Kono

As tensions rose dramatically when commercial blasting began close to residential areas of Kono, the USAID-sponsored Peace Diamond Alliance brought together both community representatives and the mining company to promote greater understanding about the mining process, and to help negotiate a compromise agreement for those being displaced by the mining.

The USAID-funded Peace Diamond Alliance earned its salt this past week as community tensions in diamond-rich and volatile Kono District mounted. At issue was the effect of the first round of blasting as the country's only industrial-scale kimberlite diamond venture, Koidu Holdings Ltd (KH), (previously known as Branch Energy) began operation on the outskirts of the District's capital, Koidu Town.

The blasting is being carried out close to the homes of residents scheduled to be relocated to housing that is currently being constructed by KH, but since the housing is not yet completed, residents are regularly asked to leave their homes for their own safety during blasting hours, usually once a week. Local school children also had to regularly evacuate their school during blasting because the location was considered dangerous.

In addition, the community's tempers were fanned by a local NGO's press statement calling into question the mining company's commitment to the peace, security and development of Kono. The statement referred to the construction of 10 "sub-standard, poorly constructed and incomplete houses" meant to be occupied by residents relocated off of the mining concession site. The local press ran with the issue, splashing bold headlines on page one that read, "Kono on Time Bomb," and "Diamond Blasters Violate the Law!."

a pregnant woman and a woman with a baby evacuated from their homes during blasting in Kono

Frequent evacuations are particularly difficult for pregnant women and the elderly -- KH has agreed to a timetable to complete the new houses for those displaced.

With community tension mounting dangerously, the Peace Diamond Alliance sponsored a meeting between community, NGO and government representatives and KH management at the kimberlite mining site. One NGO representative expressed her surprise during the visit to see that Sierra Leoneans constituted the bulk of the work force at the operation--in contrast to local lore that only South Africans were employed. As the group proceeded from the mining site to where new houses for dislocated families are being constructed, they were again shocked to see dwellings that were superior to those the affected families would soon be vacating.

However, certain design features of the houses had not taken local conditions into consideration (for example, slanted, raised roofs are typically used in Kono because of the heavy rainy season, and to keep the houses cooler inside during the hot dry season--residents are asking that the new houses conform to this local standard), and Koidu Holdings agreed to include community participation in the planning the layout and design of the dwellings yet to be built. KH also agreed to include water and sanitation facilities as an integral part of the new housing site.

This visit was followed up by a subsequent PDA-organized meeting between Koidu Holdings (which is otherwise an active member of the PDA), the community, civil society organizations, and officials of the Ministry of Mineral Resources to hammer out agreements on times of day and days of week future blasts would be scheduled so that, for example, the blasting would not take place during children's school hours, and the community could prepare in advance to evacuate. An agreement was also reached on a prompt timetable for completion of the construction of the remaining houses for dislocated families.

New homes for displaced residents, to be completed soon by the KH mining company.

Although the new homes are basic, most are a step above the houses of most residents close to the mines, many of which were destroyed during the war. KH has also agreed to better adapt the design of houses to local conditions and norms to make them more comfortable places to live.

Shortly after this successful mediation, Sierra Leonean President Alhaji Dr. Ahmed Tejan Kabbah congratulated the PDA during a public address to local police for having "nipped in the bud" a situation rife for conflict. He also said that "full use should be made of the Peace Diamond Alliance, whose membership has been made large enough to include representatives of the Chiefs and elders, the youth, the [Koidu Holdings] company, and the Government" in the resolution of future problems.

This is not the first diamond-related issue the Peace Diamond Alliance has been called in to mediate. The large number of young, under- or un-employed and desperate youths and ex-combatants in the region, combined with the inherent volatility generated by the potential wealth from diamonds, suggests that this may well not be the last. Since the overall objective of the USAID presence in Sierra Leone is to promote "peace and stability," mediating such disputes, while at the same time helping the country develop systems and approaches to better managing the diamond resources, appears to be U.S. government money well spent.

Story and photos by Laura Lartigue