Kono
Background
Kono District is a diamond-rich district in the Eastern Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is Koidu Town. The other major towns in the district include Motema, Yengema, Tombodu, Jaiama-Nimokoro and Sewafe.
The administrative headquarter is at Sefadu. The actual Kono district comprises 12 Kono chiefdoms, which include all the Kono tribe, and 3 Kisi chiefdoms on the French Guinea boundary.
The Kono are primarily farmers and in some areas, alluvial diamond miners. They live in towns and villages and travel daily to their surrounding farmlands to work. They are a polite and hospitable people and even allow strangers to lodge with them or their chiefs. The land is hilly at least a thousand feet above see level.
There are no armed conflicts or arm rivalries in the chiefdoms of the country. In fact, arm robbery is not heard of in these communities, nor are there proliferations of arms. The chiefdoms are relatively peaceful. There are no security risks prevalent in all of the chiefdoms. The military takes regular border patrols to monitor security and this is coordinated by the British Technical Unit (IMATT) within the Koidu township. There are also night security patrols.
Most Konos practice Islam or Christianity. Some practice traditional religion as well. Konos invoke and pray to their ancestors and other spirits for protection, health, guidance and good fortune. They believe the ancestors are present during every activity, including eating, sleeping, and important events. Some Kono are also superstitious and use curses, omens, charms, and magic in their daily lives. Secret societies and practices pertaining to these are deeply entrenched in the culture.
JESUS Film Church Planting Strategy Team (JFCPS)
The team is located in Koidu Town and is planting churches in the surrounding villages with mother churches from the Kono district.
During the rainy season, or after heavy rainfall, the roads within the district are in bad condition, to the extent that remote areas become inaccessible. Below is an email that we received from our coordinator
“I just returned from the provinces after visiting the Loko, Kuranko and Kono JFCPS teams. I am back in Freetown after a strenuous trip especially to and from Koidu Town. The Kono district is not easily accessible by vehicle during the rainy season especially from Makeni to Koidu Town, which is 100 miles of treacherous road. I had to hire a motorbike and on the way back to Makeni we had an accident with the motorbike. The rider and I fell in the muddy road but fortunately we were not seriously injured. Covered with mud and having a few minor bruises we made our way back home.”
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