YARDO-SL in Partnership with FCC joins the High Commission of India to Sierra Leone to Celebrate its 75th Independence Anniversary by planting trees
Today, the High Commission of India to Sierra Leone donated 75 trees to support the #FreetownTheTreeTown Campaign, which seeks to plant 1 million trees and raise awareness against indiscriminate deforestation in the Western Area Peninsula Forest Reserve.
The donation comes as part of the Commission’s commemoration of the 75th independence anniversary of the Republic of India.
The trees donated were planted at the Kissy Catchment area, after a short donation ceremony, which was graced by the High Commissioner, Mr Rakesh K Arora, Cllr Bumpa Turay of Ward 416, Ward Development Committee members, community leaders and our tree growing team.
FCC matched the 75-tree donation with an additional 75 trees which have now planted by the community Growers from Kissy Community supported by the Environmental Foundation for Africa and YARDO, the NGO tasked with operational management of community tree planting in Kissy Catchment.
Launched by Freetown City Council in 2020, the #FreetownTheTreeTown campaign is currently in its second phase. In the initial 2020-21 phase, planters successfully planted and tracked 250,000 trees during the rainy season, focusing on higher slope areas where communities are susceptible to landslide risks.
Together with 10 commercial tree nurseries and 10 community-based organizations, the project has created more than 550 short-term jobs, especially for marginalized, vulnerable, and underemployed women and youth. Under Phase 2, the campaign aims to enhance community engagement, participation, and impact through planting 300,000 trees, shrubs and grasses in 2021 and another 450,000 trees in 2022.