Freetown

There's a great deal of concern among civil society groups over how ethnic tensions may influence Sierra Leone’s June 24 elections.

Sierra Leone elections: Familiar faces vie for voter trust as economy stagnates

Incumbent President Julius Maada Bio will face off against against main contender Samura Kamara on June 24. As the country prepares for this crucial election, voters are looking at issues like economic stagnation, corruption and national security.

Sierra Leone elections: Familiar faces vie for voter trust as economy stagnates
Sorie Kondi and DJ Chief Boima of Kondi Band

Kondi Band connects West African thumb piano with US electronica

Kondi Band connects West African thumb piano with US electronica
Vickie Remoe

It’s not just Kesha. Women face demands for transactional sex all over the world.

It’s not just Kesha. Women face demands for transactional sex all over the world.
The World

Bye Bye Ebola! Eradication spurs rap song in Sierra Leone.

Bye Bye Ebola! Eradication spurs rap song in Sierra Leone.
One of many banners around Freetown, Sierra Leone, warning people not to touch one another because of Ebola.

Emerging from the spectre of Ebola

Emerging from the spectre of Ebola
An ambulance transporting an Ebola patient drives to the entrance of a treatment centre outside Freetown, Sierra Leone.

An American aid worker with Ebola receives speedy care, while a Sierra Leonean colleague is 'left behind'

An African health care professional didn't get the same care as his American colleague when he contracted Ebola at a Partners in Health-supported treatment facilities in Sierra Leone.

An American aid worker with Ebola receives speedy care, while a Sierra Leonean colleague is 'left behind'
A baby looks out of a box at an outdoor market in Devils Hole, Sierra Leone. A new report suggests Ebola has created 12,000 orphans in the West African country.

Armies of student volunteers are key to Sierra Leone's fight against Ebola

The resurgence of Ebola in Sierra Leone can be traced to two wooden boats and the fishermen that carried the disease from their decks into Freetown. But the country's youth — unpaid volunteers — are helping track down the resurgent disease.

Armies of student volunteers are key to Sierra Leone's fight against Ebola
Sierra Leone's Ebola epidemic continues to claim lives

Ebola is leaving a new generation of orphans

More than 10,000 children are believed have been orphaned by the Ebola epidemic — and orphanages are struggling to cope with the load.

Ebola is leaving a new generation of orphans
Edward Turay, Sierra Leone's High Commissioner to Britain, attends the "Defeating Ebola: Sierra Leone" conference in central London on October 2, 2014.

Ebola cases are soaring in Sierra Leone, and the government is coming up short

Despite a major influx of supplies and expertise, new cases of Ebola are spreading faster in Sierra Leone than in neighboring Liberia. While some Sierra Leoneans are pointing the finger at the UK, which once ruled the country, the government's disorganized response is playing a big role.

Ebola cases are soaring in Sierra Leone, and the government is coming up short
Health workers remove the body a woman who died from the Ebola virus in the Aberdeen district of Freetown, Sierra Leone, on October 14, 2014.

One story describes the oppressive Ebola 'siege' in Sierra Leone

Ebola has wormed its way into every facet of life in Sierra Leone, from basic greetings to an overworked medical system. The story of Ebola patient Francis Samuka shows how the country is trying, and often failing, to get a grip on the crisis.

One story describes the oppressive Ebola 'siege' in Sierra Leone
An empty street at the start of a three-day national lockdown in Freetown, Sierra Leone, on September 19, 2014. Curfews were imposed in an effort to halt the spread of the Ebola virus.

Sierra Leone celebrates the end of its lockdown, but Ebola still looms

The Ebola stricken nation of Sierra Leone was on lockdown over the past weekend as part of a national effort to stop the spread of Ebola. During the curfews, thousands of health workers and volunteers went house-to-house, looking for suspected Ebola cases.

Sierra Leone celebrates the end of its lockdown, but Ebola still looms
Workers wearing protective masks sit at the Felix Houphouet Boigny international airport in Abidjan. Ivory Coast on Monday banned air travelers from Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, the three countries worst-hit by the Ebola outbreak.

Liberia doesn't have many doctors, and it's battling Ebola with minimal supplies

Doctors in West Africa are having a tough time battling Ebola since they're lacking the most basic supplies — like gloves and masks. Dr. Roseda Marshall, the chair of pediatrics at the University of Liberia's Dogliotti College of Medicine, says the world is wasting time while the epidemic spreads.

Liberia doesn't have many doctors, and it's battling Ebola with minimal supplies
Health workers carry the body of an ebola virus victim in Kenema, Sierra Leone.

The death of a key doctor damages the fight against Ebola in Sierra Leone

The Ebola virus has killed nearly 700 people in West Africa, and the death toll now includes the doctor who was leading the fight against the disease in Sierra Leone. That's left the campaign there desperately short of expertise.

The death of a key doctor damages the fight against Ebola in Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone Thumb Piano Player, Sorie Kondi, Finds American Audience Online

A street musician from Sierra Leone is cultivating an American audience, with a little help from the internet. Reporter Marlon Bishop tells us about Sorie Kondi and his thumb piano.

Sierra Leone Thumb Piano Player, Sorie Kondi, Finds American Audience Online

Women in Sierra Leone face high barriers to participation in politics

Women in Sierra Leone are trying to get more involved in the country's politics but they're being stymied by a political system and a culture that advantages men. And while a major party candidate has selected a woman as his running mate, his party has still put just 10 women on their ballot. Some 38 women in total are running, compared to 548 men.

Women in Sierra Leone face high barriers to participation in politics