Freetown WASH and Aquatic Environment Revamping Program

The Freetown WASH and Aquatic Environment Revamping Program is a proposed project in Sierra Leone designed to address climate vulnerabilities affecting water security and forest ecosystems. With a total indicative cost of USD 219 million, the program combines large-scale infrastructure rehabilitation—such as water treatment plants and distribution networks—with GCF-funded climate-specific interventions. These include climate-resilient catchment-based water resources management and forest management to protect the Western Area Protected Forest. The project aims to benefit approximately 1.4 million residents, improve water access for 800,000 people, and create 2,700 jobs, while achieving an estimated mitigation impact of 22.5 tCO2eq through the creation of carbon sinks in 30,000 hectares of protected forest.

• Sierra Leone faces severe climate vulnerabilities, including recurrent floods, droughts, and landslides, with the Notre Dame Global Adaptation Index ranking it 158 out of 182 countries in terms of vulnerability.
• Climate change and forest degradation are severely impacting Freetown's water security; approximately 40% of the country's protected water points experience shortages during the dry season, and increased rainfall intensity has raised sediment loads in rivers.
• The program targets a total indicative cost of USD 219 million, requesting USD 50 million from the GCF as grants and reimbursable grants to leverage USD 169 million from the African Development Bank and other partners.
• The project aims to provide safe water access to 1,000,000 residents of greater Freetown, including new access for 800,000 people and restored daily service for 400,000, while improving sanitation for 200,000 people in vulnerable communities.
• Mitigation efforts focus on the sustainable management of 30,000 hectares of natural forest to act as carbon sinks, with an estimated total mitigation impact of 22.5 tCO2eq over the project lifespan.
• The project identifies six primary barriers to adaptation: weak knowledge of climate risks, inadequate risk information (specifically sparse hydromet stations), weak adaptive capacity for early warning systems, insufficient climate finance, gender inequality, and poor inter-sectoral coordination.

APA

Green Climate Fund (2020). Freetown WASH and Aquatic Environment Revamping Program. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/23410-freetown-wash-and-aquatic-environment-revamping-program.pdf

Chicago

Green Climate Fund. Freetown WASH and Aquatic Environment Revamping Program. 2020. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/23410-freetown-wash-and-aquatic-environment-revamping-program.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Green Climate Fund |title=Freetown WASH and Aquatic Environment Revamping Program |date=24 January 2020 |url=https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/23410-freetown-wash-and-aquatic-environment-revamping-program.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{greenclimatefund2020freetown, author = {{Green Climate Fund}}, title = {{Freetown WASH and Aquatic Environment Revamping Program}}, institution = {Green Climate Fund}, year = {2020}, month = jan, url = {https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/23410-freetown-wash-and-aquatic-environment-revamping-program.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }