Background
The Sierra Leone MTNDP 2024-2030 states that Government aims to transform Sierra Leone to achieve a middle-income status by 2039.
It is estimated that about 80% of the Sierra Leone’s population is below the poverty line2. The nation is striving to establish a sustainable green ecosystem that enhances food self-sufficiency, the well-being of its citizens, and ecological infrastructural development that generates renewable energy to ensure macroeconomic stability. Undoubtedly, Climate Change, Renewable Energy, and Food Security are major global challenges, and countries around the globe are developing policies and programmes to address these challenges, to create a just world and improve the lives of its citizens.
To improve service delivery, and to effectively and successfully deliver on the Presidential manifesto, a Presidential Initiative on Food Security, Renewable Energy and Climate Change (PI-CREF) has been launched by His Excellency the President Rtd. Brigadier Dr. Julius Maada Bio. A comprehensive approach to this Initiative is expected to propel massive development through leveraging on the office of the Chairman of PI-CREF.
Climate change is now recognized as the most serious global challenge of our time and its impacts on societies around the world are increasingly evident. Sierra Leone is considered as one of the least developed countries in the world with human development indexes pointing to one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change. The impact of climate change is already manifesting itself on the country’s economic sectors and livelihoods, and according to scientific evidence of climate change reveals that these impacts are likely to continue to affect Sierra Leone in the future, despite the country’s negligible contribution to global greenhouse gases emissions3 and therefore being amongst the least of the countries responsible for the problem. The initiative tends, therefore, to address the most critical effects of climate change that range from increase heat waves, extensive floods, prolonged droughts, property damage to population displacement.
Given the strong commitment of the Government to focus on Climate Change, Renewable Energy, and Food Security, the President has appointed a chairman, and established the PI-CREF Secretariat within the Office of the President. The principal objective of PI-CREF is to support and provide guidance for policy coherence, and coordination of efforts to address climate change, renewable energy, and food security issues throughout the country. The PI-CREF Secretariat will work closely with the MDAs and facilitate collaboration and partnership with international development agencies/organizations, and the private sector for the implementation of activities which shall be anchored by the MDAs.