- Alfred Fornah / Alhassan Sesay
INNOVATIVE PROJECT EMPOWERING YOUTH TO BE SIERRA LEONE SUSTAINABILITY CHAMPIONS
Launching January 12th at Freetown Teacher’s College, Sierra Leone's Young Diplomats for Nutrition, Climate Action and promoting the SDGs have forged a collaborative alliance to deliver an innovative youth project - funded by Sierra Leone Poverty Alleviation Charity Trust - creating a network of Green Clubs aiming to empower school children to become champions of environmental sustainability in the third most vulnerable country in the world to dangerous climate change impacts.
The Sierra Leone School Green Club (SLSGC) and the Society for Climate Change Communication (S4CCC) headed by Sierra Leone Young Diplomats, Alhassan Sesay and Alfred Fornah have formed a collaborative action-oriented partnership to implement an innovative climate change mitigation capacity building project for schools and communities in the Western Rural District of Sierra Leone,
Mr Abdul Rashid Thomas, Chair of Sierra Leone Poverty Alleviation Charity Trust (SALPACT), explained:
“The aim is to encourage school children to change their perception of farming and agriculture, and to promote the growing of crops as a business and a way of life. Above all, it is hoped that in so doing, school children can become champions of environmental sustainability in Sierra Leone.”
The project aims to improve environmental awareness and governance in schools, using participatory approaches that bring together stakeholders to share experience on climate change mitigation and adaptation and will also develop the skills of pupils and promote environmental friendly lifestyles so that pupils can protect their environment and mitigate the impact of climate change.
Young Diplomat for Nutrition and promoting the SGDs and head of SLSGC, Alhassan Sesay said:
"We're planning on setting up ten school Green Clubs in the western rural district - with each club comprising of fifty pupils. We'll help each participating school put in place a fully operational waste management system and orchards and plant economical fruit trees within each compound to boost nutrition.”
Young Diplomat for Climate Action and promoting the SGDs and Director of S4CCC, Alfred Fornah registered his commitment to ensure that the project is well-implemented and delivers the required impacts, saying:
“With good training and a network of on-going support school's will be able to maintain this project, so, if the pilot is successful it's very scaleable for possible roll out across Sierra Leone as a great way to involve kids in raising awareness about climate change and adapting to its impacts. We'll play our part to deliver good outcomes”
The project is funded by the Sierra Leone Poverty Alleviation Charity Trust (SALPACT), a registered charity based in the UK. According to the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Mr Abdul Rashid Thomas:
“The Trustees of SALPACT are pleased to have entered into partnership with the Society for Climate Change Communication – SL (S4CCC) and the Sierra Leone Schools Green Club (SLSGC), to deliver this project aimed at addressing climate change mitigation capacity building for Schools and communities in rural areas of Sierra Leone.
SALPACT is providing grant-aid to enable the implementation of the pilot project. Following the completion of the pilot, the project will be rolled out across all districts of Sierra Leone. SALPACT will also establish an Annual National Schools Farming Produce Competition, which will be implemented by SLSGC and S4CCC in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture in Sierra Leone.
With the generous charitable giving of our donors all over the world, we are working with local communities, schools and NGOs who are taking action to mitigate the devastating effects of climate change and deforestation in Sierra Leone, such as trees planting and school farming."
The first workshop and launching ceremony of the project will take place on the 12th of January, 2019 at the Freetown Teacher’s College.
For more information, please contact S4CCC Media Team: +23277908976
SALPACT (UK Charity Registration Number 1177207) was established in August 2017 after the devastating floods in Freetown, which killed over a thousand people, leaving hundreds of families homeless and several children orphaned. The aim of SALPACT is to pursue the advancement of education and the prevention or relief of poverty for children in poverty or need, by the provision of grants to charities or other organisations working to prevent or relieve poverty.
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