By Kathy Conteh
Sierra Leone has launched a national Climate-Resilient Water Investment Programme aimed at mobilising large-scale financing for water and sanitation projects, the Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation said on Wednesday.
The programme, supported by the African Union’s Africa Water Investment Programme (AIP) and the Global Water Partnership, follows Sierra Leone’s selection as one of 15 African countries under a joint African Union–Green Climate Fund (GCF) multi-country initiative.
It was unveiled at an inception workshop and training on climate finance and GCF project preparation held in Freetown.
The initiative is designed to help participating countries develop bankable, climate-resilient water projects to address rising risks from floods, droughts and increasing water stress linked to climate change.
“This is a defining moment for the WASH sector and for Sierra Leone,” Deputy Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation Francis Alpha Kallon said, citing the growing impact of flooding, drought, coastal erosion and pressure on water and sanitation systems on public health and food security.
Kallon said Sierra Leone’s inclusion in the programme followed discussions at World Water Week in Stockholm in August 2024, when the African Union Commission and the GCF announced the first phase of the readiness initiative.
He said the framework would enable the country to move away from short-term, fragmented interventions towards a coordinated pipeline of long-term water investments, while strengthening access to climate finance, particularly from the GCF.
“Through this initiative, Sierra Leone is shifting from reactive responses to programmatic investments that deliver measurable development impact,” Kallon said.
Joseph Mbinji, a programme officer with the AU’s AIP-GCF Multi-Country Readiness Programme at the Global Water Partnership Southern Africa, said Africa faced a significant investment gap in the water sector.
“There is a huge shortfall in water investment needed to meet water safety and security goals at both continental and national levels,” Mbinji said, adding that climate change is largely experienced through water-related extremes.
Officials said the programme would be aligned with national policies, including the Medium-Term National Development Plan, the WASH Sector Development Programme, and Sierra Leone’s Nationally Determined Contribution under the Paris Agreement.
The initiative will focus on improving water-sector investment planning, mobilising diversified and sustainable financing for climate-resilient infrastructure, and integrating gender equality, social inclusion and environmental sustainability into all projects.
The government said outcomes from the workshop would be developed into a prioritised project pipeline to be presented to development partners and climate finance institutions.
