Sierra Leone Telegraph: 15 October 2025:
Last Thursday, members of Sierra Leone’s Parliamentary Oversight Committee on Local Government and Community Affairs and the Director of Surveys from the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Country Planning, conducted a joint site visit at Tower Hill and Ojuku in the east end of Freetown, where two of the over 70 reforestation sites within the 13 catchment areas in Freetown are located. They were accompanied by senior staff of the Freetown City Council (FCC).
The parliamentarians and ministry officials reviewed progress in the council’s reforestation efforts. They assessed the long-term impact of trees planted five years ago, which continue to protect the city’s vital water catchments, stabilize slopes, improve biodiversity, and contribute to carbon storage.
The delegation started at the Tower Hill site where 5,000 trees were planted between 2020 and 2024 and then moved to Ojuku, one of Freetown’s important coastal areas where 100,000 mangroves have been planted through the Council’s Freetown the Tree Town campaign.
According to Mayor Aki-Sawyerr: “Freetown the Tree Town is a strong testament to the collective efforts of the CBO leads, growers, trackers, community stakeholders, and our donor partners in advancing climate action, ecological restoration, and urban resilience. The visit highlighted the challenges faced by Freetown the Tree Town and underscored the need for sustained protection of restored areas to safeguard Freetown’s future against the impacts of climate change, flooding, and coastal erosion.”
Video: Parliamentarians visit reforestation sites
In another development, on Monday, the Freetown City Council launched its ambitious Central Business District Regeneration Project with support from the City of Zurich in Switzerland, as part of Council’s wider Transform Freetown – Transforming Lives Plan.
Speaking on AYV Television on Monday, 13 October, Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr OBE said that funding for the regeneration project came from her previous global engagements in New York.
She also outlined the key components and financing structure of the project, emphasising its importance in reshaping the city’s urban core.
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