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The report projects that Sierra Leone's population will grow to 13.1 million by 2043, with GDP increasing to US$12.8 billion under the Current Path. However, extreme poverty is expected to persist, with 42.2% of the population living below US$1.90 per day. Energy production is forecast to be dominated by gas (92.7%), and carbon emissions are projected to rise to 2 million tons. The report evaluates 11 sectoral scenarios, finding that agriculture and free trade have the highest potential to increase GDP per capita. In a Combined Agenda 2063 scenario, GDP per capita could reach US$4,304 and extreme poverty could drop to 10.3%, though carbon emissions would increase to 3.3 million tons.

The policy brief highlights the critical role of local governments in Africa and the Global South as implementers of climate adaptation, mitigation, and biodiversity goals. It identifies systemic barriers—including severe finance gaps, technical capacity constraints, and data deficiencies—that hinder municipal action. The authors recommend that South Africa's 2025 G20 presidency establish a multi-level climate governance declaration, a dedicated local climate action forum, and a specialized finance access facility to empower subnational governments as equal partners in global climate governance.

The report evaluates the "Freetown the Treetown" initiative, which aims to plant millions of trees to combat deforestation and climate change in Freetown. Using Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi), it analyzes two scenarios for planting trees by 2050, projecting significant net discounted benefits between USD 21.68 million and USD 26.45 million. The primary benefits include avoided infrastructure damage from natural hazards, job creation, and reduced loss of life, with a societal return of over USD 2 for every USD 1 invested.

The Sierra Leone Healthcare Electrification Project, managed by Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) and funded by the UK, is replacing diesel generator reliance with solar PV and battery storage in health facilities. Following a Market Assessment and Roadmap, the project initially equipped six hospitals in Freetown, Kambia, Masanga, Kabala, and Bonthe with over 0.6 MWp of solar capacity, reducing diesel usage by 58% to 99%. The project has since expanded to include an additional hospital and 25 community health centres, while providing technical training to young women in the renewable energy sector.

The assessment identifies systemic gender inequalities, high rates of gender-based violence, and significant barriers for people with disabilities in Sierra Leone's coastal regions. It argues that these structural disadvantages hinder effective climate adaptation and recommends mainstreaming GESI across all project activities to ensure equitable access to resources and decision-making.

The report outlines the necessity of community-led climate action, innovative financing, and the democratisation of technology to build resilient communities. It emphasizes that effective adaptation requires integrating local and Indigenous knowledge, leveraging private sector capital through blended finance, and breaking down infrastructure management silos. The document advocates for a collaborative ecosystem involving governments, NGOs, and the private sector to bridge gaps in funding and technical capacity ahead of COP29 and COP30.

CILRIF is a novel financial instrument developed by the UNCDF and partners to address the lack of affordable, long-term climate insurance and resilient infrastructure funding for cities in emerging markets. It operates through two linked facilities: an insurance facility providing 10-15 year coverage with premiums that decrease as cities meet resilience milestones, and a financing facility providing below-market rate loans for adaptation projects. The instrument uses a hybrid parametric and indemnity insurance model to provide immediate post-disaster liquidity while rewarding risk reduction. A financial model for 40 cities suggests that resilience interventions, such as drainage systems for flood risk or cooling networks for heat risk, can reduce annual premiums by 5% to 10% per intervention. The pilot phase targets Makati, Durban, and Freetown, with a goal of mobilizing USD 1 billion in commercial and concessional investment.

The report defines financial aggregation as the use of instruments to combine multiple investments, projects, or participants to scale urban climate finance. It identifies key barriers to city-level investment, such as poor municipal creditworthiness and high upfront costs, and proposes supply-side aggregation (combining investor commitments) and demand-side aggregation (pooling project needs) as solutions. The document provides case studies from Africa, Asia, and South America, and emphasizes that these tools require a supportive 'enabling environment' characterized by fiscal autonomy and technical capacity.

The project aims to modernize Sierra Leone's hydrometeorological infrastructure and institutional capacity to reduce losses from climate-related disasters. It proposes a $11.3 million investment to establish automated decision management systems, rehabilitate observation networks with at least 50 new stations, and implement forecast-based financing (FbF). The initiative targets 7.9 million people, focusing on vulnerable populations and women, to improve disaster risk knowledge and response capabilities across the country, particularly in the Freetown peninsula.

The document details how West Africa is experiencing warming faster than the global average, leading to increased heatwaves, erratic rainfall, and severe economic losses. It highlights critical vulnerabilities in health, food security, and coastal infrastructure, while emphasizing the urgent need for increased climate finance and data collection to support transformative adaptation.

CILRIF is a financial innovation designed to provide cities with long-term climate insurance and access to capital for resilience building. The mechanism uses a results-based pricing structure where insurance premiums decrease as cities implement adaptation measures, thereby reducing overall financing costs and managing climate risk. The initiative targets specific cities in South Africa, the Philippines, and Sierra Leone, focusing on risks such as riverine floods and extreme heat.

The report highlights the escalating risks of extreme heat on human health and productivity, noting that 356,000 people died from extreme heat in 2019. It argues that while cooling demand is expected to soar—with space-cooling units potentially reaching 2.5 billion by 2030—this must be managed through sustainable solutions to avoid tripling global electricity demand by 2050. The text advocates for a mix of passive cooling, nature-based solutions, and energy-efficient active cooling, supported by policies like Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) and the appointment of Chief Heat Officers in cities such as Athens and Miami Dade County.

The report finds that while Sierra Leone ratified the AfCFTA on November 7, 2018, actual implementation has been slow and lacks formal policy frameworks, strategic plans, or dedicated implementation structures. The country's economy remains heavily dependent on the extractive sector, particularly minerals like titanium ore and diamonds, which limits its intra-trade competing capacity. Significant barriers to success include a severe lack of access to finance for SMEs—with 65.1% of SMEs citing it as a major impediment—and a lack of data on business preparedness. The report recommends that the Ministry of Trade and Industry lead the development of a national AfCFTA Policy Framework and establish a steering committee to coordinate implementation.

The document examines the systemic link between gender equality and sustainable development, asserting that discriminatory social norms and legal barriers hinder environmental and economic progress. It highlights the economic costs of gender inequality, the historical evolution of UN gender policies, and the specific benefits of women's leadership in climate-smart agriculture, renewable energy, and natural resource governance. The briefing concludes with recommendations for gender-responsive policies, increased funding for women-led organizations, and ensuring women's control over productive resources to meet the 2030 Agenda.

The document examines the intersection of the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and urban inequality, proposing six priority solutions to build climate-resilient and equitable cities. It highlights how the pandemic exposed systemic vulnerabilities, particularly for the urban poor in informal settlements, and argues that adaptation investments offer high benefit-cost ratios (2:1 to 10:1) and local job creation. Proposed solutions include upgrading poor settlements, building water resilience, advancing nature-based solutions, creating knowledge networks, enhancing devolved funding, and fostering peer-to-peer city collaboration.

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.

The report advocates for the use of nature-based solutions (NBS) in South African municipalities to address the dual crises of COVID-19 economic devastation and climate vulnerability. It highlights that while national green recovery plans exist, they often require high skills and long lead times. In contrast, NBS—particularly urban tree planting and the removal of invasive alien plants—can provide immediate, low-skill employment for vulnerable populations while mitigating urban heat islands, managing flood risks, and improving public health. The document identifies significant barriers to implementation, including municipal funding shortages, difficulties in quantifying the economic value of natural assets, and rigid public procurement processes.

Smiling Through Light is a social enterprise in Sierra Leone that recruits and trains local women to sell solar-powered lamps, addressing a national electricity access rate of 13 percent. Founded by Mariama Kamara, the business aims to transition women from energy consumers to leaders in the energy transition. In 2019, the company created 15 local jobs and sold approximately 700 solar products. The enterprise also launched the 'One Child One Lamp' campaign, providing lighting to about 400 children in Kamayama, which reportedly improved students' grades and safety. Kamara aims to expand the network to 300-500 women within five years and eventually enter Guinea and Liberia, though she notes that scaling is hindered by investor risk aversion toward African entrepreneurs, particularly young women.

The document examines China's role in Sierra Leone as a trade partner and infrastructure developer. While Chinese activities may promote overall economic growth, the author argues that weak local institutions hinder the ability to ensure these investments lead to significant poverty reduction or employment. The brief highlights specific infrastructure projects, the nature of Chinese developmental aid, and the challenges regarding labour rights and corporate social responsibility in the mining sector.

Former President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah details Sierra Leone's transition from a failed state characterized by a brutal civil war (1991–2002) to a functioning democracy. He attributes the conflict to bad governance, corruption, and the influence of the Liberian conflict, while highlighting the role of international interventions (ECOMOG, UN, UK, US) and internal reforms in restoring peace. The report emphasizes the importance of constitutional adherence, security sector reform, and the fight against corruption in sustaining stability.