At least two police officers and one civilian have been confirmed as dead after a day of anti-government protests in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown, over the rising costs of living.

On Wednesday, Vice President Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh confirmed the fatalities, announcing that a nationwide curfew had been imposed from 3:00 p.m. local time in a bid to curb the violence.

“These unscrupulous individuals have embarked on a violent and an unauthorised protest, which has led to the loss of lives of innocent Sierra Leoneans including security personnel,” Mr Jalloh said.

“As a government, we have the responsibility to protect every citizen of Sierra Leone. What happened today was unfortunate and will be fully investigated,” added President Julius Maada Bio on Twitter.

Internet watchdog NetBlocks also noted that Sierra Leone had experienced a near-total internet shutdown during the protests, with national connectivity at five per cent. 

The protesters were calling for the departure of Mr Bio, who was elected in 2018 and still has 10 months left in his term.

The demonstrators chanted “Bio must go” as they made their way through the capital, Freetown.

The cost of living in Sierra Leone has risen by more than 40 per cent in the last few months with food, electricity and fuel prices also spiking.

Regional bloc ECOWAS condemned the violence in Freetown and called for peace in a post on Twitter, urging “all to obey law and order and for the perpetrators of the violence to be identified and brought before the law.”