While minuscule compared to Robert Mugabe’s large scale ‘clean up’ of the slums in Harare, I couldn’t help but be shocked as I walked down the small side street behind Freetown’s National Stadium and found nothing but the smashed remains of the dozen or so small stalls that lined the street.

Amidst the piles of rubble several young men sat, dejected, imploring me for help. They explained that they had indeed been warned that their shops would be torn down but had been unable to act on the notice as they had neither the capital nor an alternate location to rebuild. To say that these shops employed dozens of young men and woman might be a stretch – but they themselves admit that these informal jobs are the difference between an honest living and a life of crime.

Now, I admit, there is credence to the police’s actions, and their desire to clean up what was both an eyesore and a health risk. However, to tear down the offending kiosks without providing an alternative is incomprehensible; this in a country where only 65,000 of over 5.6 million inhabitants have a salaried job. The rest, like these young men, rely on petty trading to get by.

Given the overwhelming unemployment that grips Sierra Leone, estimated at 70%, and its role in the country’s past conflict, youth employment strategies have become the focus for both local and international organizations operating in the country. Ironically these efforts are led by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, conveniently located a stones throw from the offending, and now non-existent, shops and kiosks that provided jobs for two dozen or so young Sierra Leoneans.