By Foday Moriba Conteh

Media claims that Pavi Fort AL-Associates Group Ltd has implemented so-called “ghost projects” for which it has received payments are indeed unfounded and totally misleading. Contrary to those baseless allegations, a series of independent oversight missions and official evaluations stretching from 2023 to 2025 have not only disproved the accusations but also elevated the company’s standing as a model of Sierra Leonean excellence in infrastructure development.

One of the most compelling rebuttals to these claims is the Kono-Kurubola-Kabala Road Project; a major infrastructure undertaking covering 261 kilometers and designed to connect the districts of Koinadugu, Falaba and Kono. This transformative highway, also referred to by its strategic purpose as the 261-kilometer highway linking Koinadugu, Falaba and Kono Districts, was commissioned by President Julius Maada Bio on May 19, 2023, in Dogoloyia Town, Koinadugu District. It has become a cornerstone of regional integration.

The project not only enhances travel efficiency and accessibility but also stimulates economic activities in some of the country’s most underserved regions. As of mid-2024, approximately 74% of the first 61-kilometer segment from Kabala to Limbaya Junction has been completed, including 44 kilometers of pavement with bridge construction underway. Despite delays during the rainy season, construction continues under close supervision by the Sierra Leone Roads Authority and other oversight bodies. Beyond physical progress, the project has generated substantial employment and is widely viewed as a catalyst for long-term development.

The earliest of these validation moments came on the very day of its recommissioning, May 19, 2023, when His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio officially launched this landmark highway. The road dramatically improved travel time, slashed transportation costs and enhanced access to social services for thousands in the northern region. The significance of this achievement cannot be overstated. It was a tangible response to decades of isolation suffered by communities in those districts and a major step forward in regional connectivity and national unity.

Building on that momentum, in late 2023, Pavi Fort successfully completed key components of the World Bank-funded Integrated Resilient Urban Mobility Project (IRUMP) in Freetown. The company revamped three major roundabouts, Kissy Ferry Junction, Congo Cross and Lumley, effectively improving urban traffic flow. The quality of the work drew praise from municipal authorities and development partners alike. Additionally, the company carried out extensive street maintenance in the capital and completed the refurbishment of a hospital in Port Loko, donated by the United Arab Emirates, reaffirming its capability to deliver across multiple infrastructure domains.

By June 8 and 9, 2024, the Parliamentary Committee on Works and Public Assets, led by Honourable Ing. Habib Fabbah, Deputy Chairman, undertook detailed inspections of ongoing Pavi Fort road projects in Kenema and Kabala. The Committee found that 74 percent of the Kenema Township Road Project had already been completed, meeting high technical standards. Honourable Ing. Habib Fabbah commended the quality, pace and professionalism of the work and assured the public that engineers from the Sierra Leone Roads Authority and Parliament were maintaining stringent oversight.

In Kenema, Alimu Sanu Barrie, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pavi Fort, revealed that 20 out of 25 kilometers of planned road had already been completed, with final delivery expected by December 2024.

In Kabala, the company had already delivered the full scope of its road construction, overcoming material supply challenges with admirable resilience. These projects not only advanced regional infrastructure but also generated over 600 direct jobs, with hundreds more benefitting through local subcontracting.

The most recent and perhaps most decisive oversight event occurred on Saturday, 3rd May 2025, when Honourable Sallieu Osman Sesay, Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture and Food Security and Dr. Henry Musa Kpaka, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, jointly led a mission to Torma Bum in Bonthe District. The visit focused on the ongoing Torma Bum Sector 1 and 2 irrigation and 17-kilometer rural road initiative, part of the Ministry’s Regional Rice Value Chain Project (RRVCP).

Despite receiving just $3.3 million of the $10.9 million contract, Pavi Fort had already delivered work worth nearly $6 million and completed more than 85 percent of Sector 1. The Committee, visibly impressed, described the work as “marvelous,” with Honourable Sallieu Osman Sesay calling it a model of Sierra Leonean capability in infrastructure delivery.

Commendations poured in from various quarters. Honourable Daniel B. Koroma, Mayor of Kenema Thomas Karimu Baio and Paramount Chief Honourable Alex Maada Kainpumu all lauded the company’s consistent execution, transparency and deep engagement with local communities. These leaders highlighted how Pavi Fort has not only built infrastructure but also trust, inclusion and national pride.

Such sweeping endorsements by Parliament, local authorities and community leaders render media claims of “ghost projects” not only inaccurate but dangerously misleading.

Pavi Fort AL-Associates Group Ltd, founded in 2015 and wholly owned by Sierra Leoneans, has completed over 20 major projects, employs more than 1,500 citizens and remains a pillar of the country’s Local Content Policy in action.

That a company with such a solid track record would be targeted by misinformation campaigns raises serious concerns about the protection of indigenous businesses striving for excellence. These allegations are not merely attacks on a company; they are threats to national development and the empowerment of local capacity.

The legacy of Pavi Fort is not a paper trail of contracts; it is a network of functioning roads, rehabilitated public facilities and thousands of lives improved through employment and access. These are not ghost projects. They are Sierra Leonean success stories written in concrete, asphalt, irrigation canals and community progress.

Sierra Leone must choose between believing in unverified claims or standing behind evidence-based achievements. The oversight missions have spoken and they have spoken clearly: Pavi Fort is not just delivering projects. It is delivering the future.