Nearly two years after the Islamic Development Bank approved US$72 million for the Kambia–Tonko Limba Road, residents say not a single meter of work has started on the critical northern corridor.
The funding was approved on October 14, 2024, to rehabilitate the road that links Kambia District to Tonko Limba Chiefdom and onward to the Guinea border. It serves as the main artery to Kukuna, Kamakwie, and dozens of villages across northern Sierra Leone.
Today, the route remains in the same dilapidated state that prompted the loan application in the first place.
“We were told in 2024 that the money was secured and construction would start soon,” said a commercial driver from Kambia who plies the route weekly. “It is almost 2027, and we are still driving in potholes and mud. During the rains, vehicles spend two days to cover what should take three hours.”
Community leaders in Kukuna and Kamakwie say the delay is deepening poverty in the area. Farmers cannot get produce to market on time, traders face high transport costs, and patients struggle to reach health centers when the road becomes impassable.
“The road is our lifeline to Guinea, to Freetown, and to each other,” said a youth leader in Tonko Limba. “Without it, we remain cut off. We are calling on the Government of Sierra Leone to break the silence and tell us what is happening to the $72 million. We need action, not more promises.”
The Kambia–Tonko Limba Road was billed as a key project to boost cross-border trade, improve food security, and reduce isolation in the northern region. The IsDB financing was expected to cover grading, drainage, culverts, and asphalt works along the stretch.
Residents say they have seen no contractors, no equipment, and no site preparation since the approval was announced.
Calls for transparency have grown louder in recent weeks, with chiefs, market women, and civil society groups urging the Ministry of Works and Public Assets and the Sierra Leone Roads Authority to provide a timeline.
“We are not asking for anything new,” another resident said. “We are asking for what was already approved for us. This project can end the suffering in this part of the country if the government moves now.”
As of press time, the Ministry of Works had not issued a public update on the status of the project.
For communities along the Guinea border, the wait continues and, with it, the cost of doing business, accessing healthcare, and getting children to school.