Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, at 199: Quo Vadimus?

 Fourah Bay College (FBC), celebrates today, February 18, 2026, one hundred and ninety-nine (199) years of existence as the first Western-modelled tertiary institution in West Africa.

Many Sierra Leonean academics, alumni and non-alumni of the University of Sierra Leone (USL), especially of Fourah Bay College (FBC), one of the constituent colleges of USL, are looking at the Bicentennial celebrations of Fourah Bay College from various perspectives.

In commemorating this important milestone of our Alma Mater’s existence, we attempt to address the following questions:

Where is FBC/USL today as a university? How does the university stand in the region? What has happened over these years, especially from 1961 to date, under an independent Sierra Leone?

What hopes are there that our age-old political parties and their respective governments have what it takes to revamp the university as a centre of excellence through teaching, research, knowledge production and extension, four key ingredients for solving longstanding development challenges the country faces through its public universities?

What does FBC/USL have to show in our almost 200 years of existence? In short, Quo Vadimus FBC/USL?

The University of Sierra Leone underwent restructuring in 2005, separating constituent colleges into distinct universities (e.g., Njala University, later Ernest Bai Koroma University). While this decentralisation aimed to improve governance, it also diluted the symbolic unity of the University of Sierra Leone.

In 2026, Fourah Bay College (FBC) approaches its 200th year of existence. Founded in 1827, it is not merely Sierra Leone’s oldest university; it is the oldest Western-style university in West Africa.

For generations, it stood as the intellectual lighthouse of the region—earning the proud title, “The Athens of West Africa”. But anniversaries are not only moments for celebration. They are moments for reckoning.

At 199, FBC stands at a crossroads. The question before us is simple yet profound: Quo Vadimus? Where are we going?

This question is simple in phrasing yet profound in its implications. For an institution once called the “Athens of West Africa”, the answer cannot be casual, accidental, or nostalgic. It must be deliberate. Its name once carried intellectual authority across the region.

Studying at Fourah Bay College meant joining an elite tradition of scholarship and leadership. That legacy still matters. But legacy alone does not secure relevance.