Future In Our Hands
International Network

Emergency Aid needed in Sierra Leone

Fire engulfs seven homes in rural community March 2026

The unreported world as climate induced extreme dry season has devastating impact

​I am writing to you today with a very heavy heart. Today, I went to our mother’s village, and what I witnessed there has left me in tears. We all know how harsh the dry season can be, with the sun beating down and the heat becoming almost unbearable—but today, that heat turned into a nightmare.

​As we were gathered for a settlement meeting between two villages, the peace was suddenly shattered. We heard shouting and screaming from the back. When we ran toward the noise, the sight was terrible: houses were already being swallowed up by fire.

​In the village, our people work so hard. You know how they plant and harvest their rice with such care. They eat what they need and then, with such hope for the future, they store the rest high up in the ceilings of their homes to keep it safe for the months ahead. It is their life savings, their only security.

​Today, that security turned to ash.

​I stood there and watched as six homes and then a seventh were completely destroyed. 

The villagers fought the flames with everything they had, but the fire was too fast. I saw the very rice they had reserved for their children’s meals falling from the burning roofs, blackened and ruined. 

Everything—their clothes, their properties, their shelter—is gone.

​As I walked through the scene, taking pictures and talking to the families, I couldn’t stop the tears from falling. These people are now homeless and helpless, and the food they counted on to last for months has vanished in a single afternoon.

​I am stepping forward as a humanitarian to coordinate help for them. I have documented the damage and the households affected, but the need is far greater than what one person can do alone.

​I am pleading with you, on behalf of YLTW SL, that whatever little support you can provide whether it is for food, clothing, or helping them get materials to start rebuilding their roofs would be a blessing beyond measure.

Even the smallest contribution will help a family find their footing again after losing everything.

​Please, let us come to their aid in this darkest hour

​With love and hope,

​Alpha Mohamed Kargbo

Three of the affected extended families

We are pleased to announce that emergency aid was available directly from FIOH through our cooperation with Youth Leading the World in Sierra Leone. Our response was instantaneous, with aid to rebuild the damaged dwellings with more substantial infrastructure and rice to replace what was lost in the fire. The community responded with thanks and celebrations.

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Supporting grassroots initiatives in Sierra Leone, through subsistence farming.

Image 1
Image 2


Alpha Kargbo Youth Leading the World (YLTW) “We are pleased and grateful for all your support you have been giving us all this while, blessings to FIOH.”

YLTW have managed to cultivate 2 acres of cassava throughout the summer of 2025 with the aim of having a greater benefit to aid the community in establishing a staple crop. This will enable local communities have a more reliable source of carbohydrate, baking, along with the ability to control prices and employment through processing the raw material.

YLTW started with ploughing as two tractor machines (see image 1) went to work the land. They planned to establish labour to power the construction of ridges on the area (image 2), planting, weeding and cultivation. All with the aim to purchase and transport cassava stems, for farming.

Gari Processing Centre

YLTW chose this as they were convinced it would yield a profound benefit. The processing centre is available for use and is owned cooperatively by the grassroots community. Offering free or reduced cost use towards processing of the Cassava.

FIOH are delighted to participate and facilitate locally managed initiatives like this project. We feel that it has provided meaningful employment, impact and sustainability to the lives of people who need it most. Projects such as this, managed from the ground up by local people has the fastest and biggest impact to people’s livelihoods.

It is our hope to continue to provide funding and guidance on projects like this into the future. If you wish to help us with your support, please consider donating or getting in contact with us for fundraising opportunities.

Computers on the way for Mike Thomas’s schools

Working in collaboration with Youth Leading the World Sierra Leone

Address  34 Back Street Mile 91 Sierra Leone         E mail    itzalpha@ gmail.com

 Phone  +23299900645                                                 Motto Inspire, Inform, Involve

Historic Context

             Future in Our Hands Education and Development Fund were responsible for the  financing of initial construction of these schools in Sierra Leone.  Following several visits in 1990s and 2000s our founder Mike Thomas, working alongside the local NGO  (Future in Our Hands Sierra Leone). Whose Founder Edward Kargbo became a close personal friend and organised the planning and original construction using local labour. We have since funded repairs to these schools after extreme weather events and ensured superior building standards to the initial construction.  We believe in grass roots initiatives and are delighted that Alpha Kargbo ( son) carries on the humanitarian work and has been pivotal in promoting school improvement. The plan below is the latest proposed innovation to ensure an education fit for the 21st century for these 2000+ local children.

Planned Activities for 2026

Issue of concern

Sierra Leone faces major computer literacy challenges due to lack of infrastructure (electricity, internet), high costs (devices, data), limited teacher training, outdated curricula, and low overall digital skills, this is particularly true in rural areas, hindering economic participation and access to online services.

Project vision

Computer based  learning is crucial for economic empowerment, bridging the digital divide for jobs, fostering entrepreneurship, improving education through global access, and enabling women to combat challenges like gender-based violence, ultimately driving personal growth and national development in an increasingly digital world. This would impact directly on more than 2000 current students and many more in the future

Outline of planned activities

Across all five local primary and secondary schools all bearing the name of the original  chairman of Future in Our Hands

1. Mike Thomas Secondary School Masingbi Town Sierra Leone Northern Province Sierra Leone 

2. Mike Thomas Secondary School Mile 91 Town Northern Province Sierra Leone.

3. Mike Thomas Primary School Rogbetrr Northern Province Sierra Leone.

4. Mike Thomas Primary School Mile 91 Town Northern Province Sierra Leone.

5. Mike Thomas Primary School Masingbi Town Northern Province Sierra Leone 

Construction of additional buildings in all five schools

Purchase of projectors and screens for tuition

Purchasing computers for the five schools

Solar installation and battery storage to overcome the local issue of power reliability.

Teacher training

Projected costs

66,000 Leones   Current exchange rate March 2026    31 New Le  to the GBP  so around £2000. More would obviously allow for greater numbers of computers, solar panels, back up batteries and some teacher training.

Initial plan of proposed construction

Progress on the fundamental block work

Well on the way to completion

Finishing touches

Pupil engagement and pride in the new facility

Engaged students

This was the first school equipped and fully working by the end of 2025. We seek to achieve the same in four more schools throughout 2026. If you think you can help the next generation establish the skills needed for the modern world please donate.

The Future in Our Hands Education and Development fund achieves a significant milestone

Future in Our Hands Education and Development Fund having been established by founder Mike Thomas in 1995 is just reaching its 30th anniversary this year. We would like to thank all our regular donors and helpers for their selfless support over this time period.

As treasurer, I have trawled through our detailed accounts and aggregated all of our past donations. What began in the 1990’s, as a grant of £20 to test the water has grown into multiple affiliated NGOs across Africa and India. The incredible final total raised and donated stands at £548,748. All of this fundraising has gone to the most marginalized and deserving of causes and is far beyond our expectations at the outset. Who would have believed that a small official UK registered charity, administered from a small front room in Swindon, would issue grants way in excess of half a million pounds.

The list of individual beneficiaries must run to tens of thousands as our grants have been able to transform lives and livelihoods. Our updated website fiohnetwork.org illustrates a detailed archive of our work and highlights a network of organizations which share the same ethos. We have always encouraged individuals and non governmental organizations who share our ideas of a bottom up grassroots approach to solving problems of development.

Our goal is to help some of the poorest and most marginalized people in the world by empowering them and their local communities to find sustainable ways to overcome poverty, raise ecological and environmental awareness and create lasting just and equitable social change.

FIOH news update from Sierra Leone Autumn 2024

The Mike Thomas School at Mile 91, due East of the capital Freetown, near Yonibana. The school suffered a sudden and prolonged extreme wind event which caused severe damage to two classroom roofs.

Alpha Kargbo our link person in Sierra Leone, immediately informed us of the emergency issue. The severe and detrimental impact on the education of the children was obvious.

FIOH agreed that immediate intervention was necessary and sent a grant so work could be expedited to rectify this situation. The following images show the reconstruction with more appropriate building materials to ensure that any further damage would be less likely.

With the new roofing intact the normal daily procedures of schooling could continue, as the photos below illustrate

Students hard at work in the organic school gardens and impressive in their smart, well turned out uniform

How worried should we be about the spread of Monkey Pox ?

What is Monkey Pox? (MPox)

Monkeypox is a virus in the same family as smallpox, although less harmful. The virus was originally animal to human transmitted, but is now human to human. Typically MPox is not fatal, however if you are vulnerable, malnourished, with poor access to healthcare, MPox poses a risk to life. – See links at the end of the article for further reading and sources.

What was our response?

FIOH reaction to this news feed was to send immediate grant aid to Sierra Leone hoping that our contact Alpha Kargbo could launch an information and education campaign about the serious nature of this infection. The likely methods of spread and also overcome any perceived negativity and suspicion around a vaccine programme. He aims to achieve this through information and education rather than antivax disinformation.

Our response has proved to be very timely with the news from the Government of the first suspected case of MPox in Sierra Leone. First recorded case of MPox was in Makong village, less than 10km NE from Mike Thomas school at Mile 91. This makes this epidemic a close and pressing issue with the work we do, and people we aim to help.

On 20th August  a 32 year old  man presented with numerous symptoms of MPox, fever, lesions, raised bumps, pus filled blisters, accompanied by muscle pain, joint pain, headaches and weakness reporting that he had the symptoms worsening since 12th August. He reported that he normally hunts rodents and had no travel history outside his local area. Medical response was thorough with the District Health officer informed and a Rapid Response Team alerted. This team collected samples and he was evacuated to the nearest Government Isolation Hospital Unit in Koidu 60 kms away.

15th Aug 2024 What is mpox and how is it spread? www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cxww2dxr3mko
20th August Mpox not the new COVID and can be stopped. 
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg34y37jqgo
22nd August 2024  How worried should we be about mpox?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4glqzerw3no
26th Aug 2024 Children bearing the brunt of mpox outbreak
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdjwz77mmgmo
27th Aug 2024   Mpox jabs arrive on African soil after red tape delays www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd734115e5eo

World History Competition

Prizes were given out to students from the Mike Thomas secondary school in Sierra Leonne who took part in a recent competition presenting their knowledge of history. After teaching “The Usbourne Encyclopedia of World History” in classrooms, it raised a lot of questions so the school organised the competition.

Students took the opportunity to read the book and then present what they had learnt from it – the prizes were given to the two who made the best presentation.

A girl, Mariatu Conteh won the competition, and a boy Lamin Conteh was runner-up.

 

It can be difficult getting hold of educational materials and factual resources in Africa – and after seeing how well students engaged with the book, the school has now made it part of it’s curriculum.

The encylopedia is a comprehensive introduction to world history from prehistoric times to the start of the 21st century. Including information on dinosaurs, the first humans, Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome, Medieval Europe, the World Wars and other major events in history.

  

ALPHA MOHAMED KARGBO – YOUTH FOR THE WORLD SIERRA LEONE

A Youtube presentation by Alpha Mohamed Kargbo, Youth for the World Sierra Lone

Alpha Mohamed Kargo

Representatives of the four groups

Youth Leading the World Sierra Leone activities:

Tre planting

Sensiization

Interview with famers producing charcoal and timber logging

Controlling waste plastics

FIOH Sierra Leone – responding to climate change and Covid 19

ACTIVITY REPORT

PROJECT        :           Local response to climate change and Covid19

Funder          :           FIOH Fund -UK

COST              :           GBP 545

REPORTING DATE:  4thJune 2020

Brief background

In a bid to integrate climate change in development projects, FIOH-SL in collaboration with FIOH-UK supported farmers to mitigate climate change through scaling up the adoption of regenerative agriculture. This involved farming practices that work together not just to sustain, but to increase the carrying capacity of the land, restoring the natural fertility of agro-ecosystems.  Core practise involves permanent soil cover with living plants, minimum or zero tillage, maximization of biodiversity, composting from zero waste in the farming system and reduction of agrochemicals with a view of their elimination.

FIELD ACTIVITY RESULT

Result of activity 1: Organize community sensitization meetings on climate change:

WHAT IS CLIMATE CHANGE?

Following the discussion on the literal understanding of climate change, participants also brainstorm, on the kinds of climate hazards.

IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE

 Traditional/cultural practices adopted in the past to mitigate climate change as:

RESULTS OF ACTIVITY 2 – Practical training on Agroecological/ farming.

25 farmers (15F,10M) received practical training (5 per session) of farm design, planting methods, plant spacing, zero or minimum tillage practice, composting from zero waste and field application. Monitoring results reveal that farmers are gradually adopting these practices on their own farms.

 

RESULTS OF ACTIVITY 3 – Seeds and tools support. Following the procurement of assorted seeds and tools, these items were distributed to farmer field school representatives.

FIOH-SL seeds and tools support to cross-section of farmers.

RESULTS OF ACTIVITY 4 – Seed multiplication and demonstration farms.

Two multiplication and demonstration farms were established in two communities using permaculture/agroecological principles – farmers working with natural forces or farming using natural approaches, the wind the sun and water to provide food, shelter, and everything else including compost, farm/ gardens needs beside seeds and plants. Any farm established using these principles is a permaculture /agroecological farm.

FIOH -SL support to the establishment of two permaculture farms.

CHALLENGES

 WAYS OF OVERCOMING CHALLENGES

Representatives from the demanding villages were included in the on-farm training and promised to be given some proceeds from the established multiplication farms as starter seeds to establish their own farms.  Development of community pilot projects by FIOH-SL is underway to service other communities.

  A detailed concept Note will be shared with National and International     donors for possible support.

LESSONS LEARNT.

Household food insecurity exacerbated by the global lock down by Covid19 reveal the extent that existing food systems (and the people underlying them) have been undervalued and under-protected.

Please support the work of the Future in Our Hands Education and Development Fund whose aim is to help and empower some of the world’s poorest and most marginalised people by:

Cheques should be made payable to the
Future in Our Hands E&D Fund
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Fundraising to help the work of the charities would be greatly appreciated

Future in Our Hands Sierra Leone Report Sept 2019

Achievements

For the period January – September 2019 FIOH SL undertook the following activities:

Regenerative agriculture

rice permaculture farm SLRice permaculture farm

training farmers on ridges construction SLTraining farmers on ridges construction

vegetale farm inspection SLVegetable farm inspection

agroecological training on compost making                  Agro ecological training on compost making

Establishment of village savings and credit associations

training meeting on share purchase and loan disbursment and repayment SLTraining meeting on share purchase and loan disbursement and repayment

Nutrition

training on baby positioning during exclusive breast feeding SL

Training on baby positioning during exclusive breast feeding

training on methodoligies to ensure balance diet for pregnant women and lactating mothers SLTraining on methodologies to ensure a balanced diet for pregnant women and lactating mothers

Future in Our Hands Sierra Leone
37 Lunsar Road
Makeni City
Northern Region
Sierra Leone