Sierra Leone is holding an investment conference in London on Wednesday, showing even the world’s least developed countries can aspire to become emerging economies.
There are a few tentative signs of money going into the country, which was scarred by a 1991-2002 civil war.
CDC, the UK’s development finance arm, said last week it was investing $5 million in private equity in Sierra Leone, in small and medium-sized firms ranging from fishing to financial services.
Billionaire investor George Soros also said his economic development fund was making “significant commitments” to Sierra Leone.
Soros, Sierra Leone president Ernest Bai Koroma and former UK prime minister Tony Blair all feature at Wednesday’s conference.