This pioneering effort comes at a crucial time, as Sierra Leone’s working-age population is growing faster than the overall population—creating urgent demand for new jobs. Harnessing the power of the creative economy, a dynamic sector with strong women and youth participation, could be a game-changer.

CreatiFi seeks to diversify the economy, drive youth and women’s employment, and stimulate spillover effects in the tourism sector. The country's creative industries—from music and fashion to visual arts and photography—have long been a source of cultural pride and community dynamism. However, their full economic potential remains untapped due to a challenging business environment, limited access to finance, and a critical lack of reliable data. Without formal data, it is difficult to design effective policies and scale dynamic, growth-oriented businesses.

To address these gaps, with the help of CreatiFi, the World Bank team is conducting an in-depth assessment of Sierra Leone’s creative economy, identifying growth opportunities, and recommending policies and strategies to enhance the sector’s contribution to job creation and economic development. These initiatives come at a strategically important moment, as the Ministry of Tourism and Cultural Affairs— this study’s main counterpart—has declared 2025 the Year of Ecotourism, elevating national attention on the creative economy as a driver of inclusive growth.

Launched in late 2024, the CreatiFi-funded program began by convening a high-level meeting of policymakers, academics, and renowned creators—including musicians, writers, producers, artists, and fashion designers to raise the profile of the sector. In March 2025, the CreatiFi team hosted three national workshops that brought together CCI leaders, academia, financial institutions, and government representatives to explore innovative solutions for economic diversification through the creative economy.

At the heart of this initiative is the development of Sierra Leone’s first Creative Economy Diagnostic, which will provide much-needed data to identify the sector’s size, challenges, and opportunities—laying the foundation for future investments, reforms, and strategic support. A key component of this is identifying impediments for creators to access financing and proposing new and innovative financing tools, including examples from other relevant countries. The report will also include a toolkit on replicating this diagnostic and adapting financing and other reforms for increased sector competitiveness. The diagnostic is being developed in tandem with a C-JET-funded Creative Industries Accelerator Pilot Program, which is working to formalize and upgrade 20 women-owned creative enterprises in visual arts, music, fashion, and photography/videography.

Looking ahead, the Creative Economy Diagnostic, to be published in mid-2025, is expected to help guide the government of Sierra Leone, the World Bank Group, and development partner interventions in priority policies, improving access to finance and investments that will help unleash the power of the creative economy for job creation.