Tuesday, August 12, 2025, marked a significant step forward in the country’s fight against environmental degradation with the launch of the “Nature Nourishes: A Territorial Approach to Local Development” (NN-TAL) project.
Funded by the European Union, this €9 million initiative aims to strengthen conservation across nineteen chiefdoms adjacent to key protected landscapes in the country. Up to €5 million will be available as grants for chiefdoms to develop and pilot their own conservation initiatives.
At the weekly government press conference, key stakeholders identified the urgency to tackle deforestation, which has increased over the last decade.
The Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Jiwoh Abdulai, stressed on the vital connection between forest preservation and human survival. “I want us to understand that this is not just about the forest, this is about our own survival,” he underscored. “These forests have been around for generations providing food, medicine, water and more. We are playing with our very survival. The forest is for us. We need to use it in a way that we can be able to pass it on to our grandkids like how our ancestors passed it to us. If they do not have it, life will be very difficult for them. It’s all our responsibility.”
He further emphasized the need for collective action against environmental threats: “If you hear of an encroachment in a protected area, it’s not just one man’s problem, it’s all of us our problem. If you hear there is mining in a particular area, it’s all of us, our problem. We need to get this mindset. God has given these natural resources to us, so we need to use them wisely in a sustainable way.”
While highlighting the government’s “Protect Sierra Leone” program launched earlier this year, Minister Abdulai noted the role of traditional leaders and communities in sustainable forest management. He announced plans to regulate wood fuel sources by promoting subsidized gas and designated charcoal production areas to reduce deforestation pressure.
Yvonne Forsen, Country Director of the United Nations World Food Programme, reflected on the ongoing challenges posed by deforestation since the 2017 mudslide tragedy. “The project provides the hope that we desperately need now,” she said. “It does include nineteen chiefdoms, and collectively, we now will have the responsibility to show that that way of working really works, because it’s not only the EU who is supposed to be funding this. Once we prove that the nineteen chiefdoms have moved and succeeded in protecting their forests and the environment, then others will come. We need to show that we have a blueprint that really works; so I am really excited that we will see some change.” Forsen also underlined the importance of using satellite data to monitor forest loss and guide conservation efforts, emphasizing the role of community empowerment in local land-use planning, alternative livelihoods and green infrastructure supported by technical and financial assistance.
In response to this community-driven approach, Paramount Chief Mima Kajue of Mano Dasseh chiefdom, Moyamba District, highlighted local measures to prevent forest degradation, including instituting fines against charcoal burning and promoting swamp farming as a sustainable alternative.
She mentioned the collaborations with Njala University, which was aimed at certifying youth swamp farming initiatives, as the chiefdom is setting the example to shift norms away from destructive land use towards sustainable livelihoods that protect the environment for over 15,000 residents. “People will come to our lands as tourists to see birds, medicinal trees and others… I will continue to speak with my fellow Paramount Chiefs so that they will follow our example, as we are headed for the swamp farming approach.”
Holger Rommen, European Union Team Lead for Infrastructure and Rural Development, praised Sierra Leone’s leadership and reiterated EU support through the €9 million (over 250 billion Leones) investment, which seeks to empower local communities as key stewards of ecosystems. “The data that was produced by WFP, to some extent with the help of the EU and to some extent with the help of the government funding, shows that actually deforestation and forest degradation continue in many places,” Rommen explained. “Now, that is a concern, the loss of forests and particularly of primary forests is a tragedy. Locally, we know that it is a driver or potential driver of economic and social crisis. It threatens the livelihood of communities who depend on the forests. It jeopardizes fresh water supply and raises the possibility of catastrophic events, such as landslides.”
He underscored the importance of local empowerment, stating, “You cannot protect the forest against the communities. The communities are key in protecting their ecosystems… we need to come by their sides to actually live in harmony with their surroundings.”
The Minister also presented to the audience critical data on forest cover monitoring from May 2024 to April 2025 across five main protected areas:
- Western Area Peninsula National Park lost approximately 713 hectares;
- Outamba-Kilimi National Park saw 2,152 hectares lost;
- Loma Mountains National Park lost about 840 hectares;
- Gola Rainforest National Park suffered a small loss of 16 hectares;
- Tiwai Island Wildlife Sanctuary reported no significant forest loss.
“These losses underscore the critical need for urgent and coordinated action,” Minister Abdulai emphasized, as he called for strengthened environmental governance and community-led initiatives in reforestation, eco-tourism, firebelt maintenance and climate-smart agriculture.
As the country advances this ambitious agenda, the collaboration between government, international partners and local communities offers a hopeful path toward a more resilient environment that supports both biodiversity and livelihoods.
Closing remarks from the speakers reaffirmed a joint commitment to ensure the protection of Sierra Leone’s forests for present and future generations.