Sierra Leone: The search for a better life

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Published May 15, 2023

Twins Husai and Hassi take the decision together to leave Sierra Leone. In spite of Husai’s initial failed attempt, this time they’re both ready to take the step. They hope to earn enough money and eventually bring over their parents and Husai’s daughter.

The documentary paints a detailed picture of the sisters’ daily lives. The twins live with their family in poverty. It’s the monsoon season and once again, the family home is under water. The twins are unable to convince their father to move out of this vulnerable house. He refuses to leave - in spite of everything.

Husai and Hassi hatch a plan to leave Sierra Leone to find work and a better future abroad. They’re in agreement over this, but they didn’t always see eye to eye. Unlike her sister Hassi, Husai wears a headscarf. She was raised by her aunt and was always the more adventurous of the two.

She tried to make a life for herself abroad before but ran into problems. When she got pregnant in Kuwait as an unmarried woman, her horrified family had to bring her home. Now, their taciturn father supports their plan to migrate - but their mother is against the idea. The filmmaker accompanies the young women as they go about their work at the market and in meetings with intermediaries promising visas. A new, strong bond begins to form between the twins, who have learned to forgive -- and stand up for -- each other.