Four of di world biggest 20 diamonds wey dem don ever find, na from Sierra Leone soil dem come. But e funny say, even though di kontri get plenty diamond, gold, rutile, bauxite, iron ore and other minerals, di kontri still dey among di poorest for di world – e be like example of wetin dem dey call 'resource curse'.

Now, more than 20 years afta di civil war wey scatter di kontri finish, Sierra Leone don dey try change di story. Dem wan use di minerals wey dem get take build better economy wey go help di people for di kontri.

For May ending, di latest move for dis plan happen for Istanbul, where Sierra Leone government organize trade and investment conference to bring international investors, especially from Turkey. Investors from Europe, Africa and Asia, including people wey don dey do business for Sierra Leone, follow attend di event.

Di kontri ambassador to Turkey, Timothy Musa Kabba, tell di people wey attend say, "Sierra Leone na full democracy, and e make di kontri good for investment because your money go dey safe."

Di seminar wey dem do for May 30, wey di Sierra Leone Embassy for Ankara organize, no be just diplomatic waka. E show say Sierra Leone wan change di story wey people dey always talk about dem – civil war, disease and poverty.

Di people wey organize di forum talk say di aim na to create new road for Sierra Leone and international investors, especially for sustainable development, infrastructure and long-term partnership.

Di history of Sierra Leone no easy at all. Di civil war wey happen from 1991 to 2002 kill more than 50,000 people and make 2.5 million people run comot from dia house. Dis na big wahala for one kontri wey get only 4.5 million people dat time.

Di war wey dem fund with 'blood diamonds' destroy di kontri infrastructure and even scatter di society. Many clinics wey government build, dem destroy am. Di school system collapse, and plenty young people no fit go school, dem end up join rebel army.

As di kontri dey try recover, di Ebola outbreak wey happen from 2014 to 2016 come add another wahala. By 2016, di World Bank talk say di kontri economy growth don drop well-well to 0.3% from di better projection wey dem get before Ebola.

But now, new data dey show say Sierra Leone fit bounce back. Di minerals sector dey contribute about 7% of di GDP and na 80% of di exports, according to IMF report for 2024.

For places like Bo and Tonkolili, di Baomahun mine get 5.8 million ounces of gold reserve and dem go start production dis year, wey dem dey target 185,000 ounces every year.

Di mining sector dey help di economy recover. Di African Development Bank talk say growth fit reach 5.2% by 2025, as mining, agriculture, manufacturing, construction and tourism dey improve.

Sierra Leone minister of trade and industry, Ibrahim Alpha Sesay, talk say dem don do plenty reforms to make trade and investment better. "We don present our third trade policy review for WTO and di review dey positive. We dey expect approval soon," e talk.

Di kontri don change dia mining law with di Mines and Minerals Development Act 2022 to make di sector better and make sure di public benefit from am. Dem also join di Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative and di Kimberley Process for diamond certification.

Tourism wey no too shine before, don dey grow. Di money wey dem dey make from tourism fit reach $109 million by 2028, from $91 million for 2023.

Turkish companies dey do plenty work for Sierra Leone, especially for construction and manufacturing. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan dey support di partnership wey dem call 'win-win'.

Faruk Deveci, wey be World Turkish Business Council representative for Sierra Leone, talk say, "Sierra Leone na good market for Turkish investors. Di young population dey make workforce dey productive. Construction dey help di economy grow."

Di Turkish Embassy for Freetown start work for February 1, 2018, and two years later, Sierra Leone open dia embassy for Ankara. Di trade between di two kontri don dey grow, and Turkish Airlines dey fly go Freetown three times every week.

Delegates for di Istanbul conference talk say di government need to focus on infrastructure, energy and service delivery. Di government don increase electricity generation to 253 megawatts, but di demand still pass di supply.

Sierra Leone get plenty resources – from minerals to agriculture and tourism. Di government dey serious about reforms, and international partners like World Bank and AfDB dey support dem. Di kontri dey ready to shine for di global stage.