Back on the road in Sierra Leone
22nd June 2021
After more than a year of supporting destinations remotely, we are back in field in Sierra Leone. We are engaging with stakeholders and communities across the country to inform the National Tourism Marketing Strategy and Rebranding for the National Tourist Board, a project we are delivering with our joint venture partners The Journey from South Africa.
Despite the ravages the country has experienced from the Civil War and Ebola, the Sierra Leoneans have a resilience, a love of life and a natural hospitality that makes it an incredibly warm, tolerant and open-hearted place to visit. Combine this with lush mountainous rainforest; a palm fringed coastline with exceptional beaches and remote islands; unusual, endangered wildlife; vibrant music, traditional ceremonies and a heritage that is central to the abolition of the slave trade and the repatriation of freed slaves, and you have an remarkable destination.
Capitalising on these rich and numerous opportunities requires addressing many challenges. Not least, the need to build a positive narrative to overcome the negative perceptions of the country in its international source markets.
The Journey-Acorn team will provide the National Tourist Board with a marketing strategy and action plan and will redevelop the Sierra Leone brand. This will give the Tourist Board a roadmap which they can use to improve the position of the destination and increase the value of their tourism sector.
To kick start the process, we will be building the national tourism website, developing content for a digital marketing campaign, guiding the domestic tourism campaign, bringing travel influencers to Sierra Leone and providing training and capacity building for the National Tourist Board.
The programme is contracted by the Sierra Leone Economic Diversification Project, funded by the Government of Sierra Leone and the World Bank.
