Jamie Hitchen, ARI's Policy Researcher , told AFP that poor urban planning had been a problem for years in Freetown, but that the government response had "broadly been one of inaction".
ARI Policy Researcher Jamie Hitchen was quoted by Quartz Africa talking about the failure of political action to address underlying urban issues in Freetown in light of recent mudslides and flooding.
This article, in French, cites ARI's blog about flooding in Freetown in 2015 and points out that many of the underlying causes in 2015 were the same as in 2017.
ARI Policy Researcher Jamie Hitchen spoke to the BBC on why he thinks more could have been done to prevent the devastating floods in Freetown; pointing the finger in particular at the lack of political will to act.
ARI Policy Researcher, Jamie Hitchen was interviewed by The Wall Street Journal on the flooding and mudslides that have killed hundreds in Freetown. He spoke on how unaddressed urban-management challenges were a factor in the disaster.
