Mining Rings

Organised mining began in the 1920s with bauxite first being recorded in 1920 along the Falaba to Waia road. The monopoly was originally given for 99 years but in 1955 the SLST gave up rights to alluvial deposits outside its lease area. This allowed artisan and small scale mining of alluvial deposits, and by 1965 there had been a large movement from agricultural work to working these deposits. In 1970 a joint SLST and government organization was formed called the National Diamond Mining Corporation (NDMC). Before the start of the Civil War in 1991 250,000 people made a living in the mining and quarrying sector with direct and indirect employment accounting for 14% of the country's total…

Diamonds are found in about a quarter of Sierra Leone in the south-east and east of the country, with the diamond fields covering 7,700 square miles. The main production areas are concentrated around the drainage areas of rivers in the Kono, Kenema and Bo Districts. In the Kono, Kenema, Bo and Pujehun Districts there are 1,700 artisanal mining licenses in operation. Sierra Leone should have been one of the world’s richest countries, being blessed with resources, including gold and diamonds. However, it remains one of the world’s poorest countries, ranking 203 out of 206 countries by World Development Report. Revenue from mining in Sierra Leone has not been redistributed to benefit the…