Banks

Banking in Sierra Leone……. its like nothing else you have experienced!

To withdraw money and get it changed into local currency is an all day affair!

The actual bank is like a cattle market, and although there are lines to get to a teller, everybody just pushes to the front to get served first! The bank seems to make its charges up on a daily basis, and there seems to be no recourse to be had. No financial watchdog to oversee what they do……. so its like it or lump it! Not that I haven’t tried of course…… I am on first name terms with every manager within the bank! I have stamped, screamed, and cried!! All to no avail! So we have to pay their charges, I don’t like it but there is no other choice…… other than smuggling money in…… now there’s a thought!

So, essentially that has been my days for the last few weeks, withdrawing money, getting it changed into Leones and paid into our lawyers account in preparation for the sale of the land to us. I hopefully have now negotiated a preferential rate with the bank which will fast track the money exchange, and therefor the land transfer. God willing.

I had a welcome visit from Heather, who is going to be establishing our charity shop in Luton very soon we hope! It was a pleasure to have her here, and she really got involved and saw first hand some of the day to day hassles of living here. We also visited the “Old Wharf” slum and saw some of the absolutely appalling conditions people were living in. Brave woman, it knocks the wind out of you to see and is not for the feint of heart!

She had an absolutely awful journey home too, bless her!

Ian