Life in Between: Youth Street Gangs and Marginality in Contemporary Sierra Leone

This project explores Sierra Leone’s nascent gang scene and associated street violence, an under-researched topic presenting important policy challenges to UK and Sierra Leonean stakeholders. Sierra Leone's gangs are increasingly visible in urban life and are viewed as a growing threat to post-conflict civil order and peace, yet to date no academic studies have been conducted to understand their origins, motives or organisation. The project team aims to draw upon knowledge from criminology and fields concerned with gang-studies to provide innovative policy-recommendations to Sierra Leone and its partners on how best to tackle rising gang-violence and youth marginalisation.