"My village was attacked so many times by the army, the rebels and the Kamajors that we fled and lived in the bush. When we returned there was hardly a building standing, and the children who had not been killed or mutilated had been forced to work for the armed groups.

"Now we must rebuild our agriculture sector. Sierra Leone was once a rice exporter; now we rely on food handouts. First, we need to encourage the young people to return from Freetown to help us."