In the face of climate change, an African mayor worries her city may run out of water
The mayor of a major African city is expressing concerns that it may be the first globally to face a complete water shortage. Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr, the leading politician in Freetown, highlights the potential risks for the city's growing population if climate financing funds are diverted to other projects, such as the construction of a new bridge. During the opening day of Cop28 in Dubai, a fund for loss and damage to assist the world's poorest nations affected by climate change was announced. Sierra Leone ranked as the 12th-poorest nation globally with 57% of its population living in poverty, anticipates benefiting from this initiative. Freetown, situated amid mountains with limited space for agriculture, faces deforestation and land appropriation in surrounding areas.
As Sierra Leone braces for a potentially devastating dry season that could impact its 1.3 million residents, the government is exploring a feasibility study for a $1.5 billion bridge linking Freetown and Lungi. However, Aki-Sawyerr emphasizes that this Chinese-backed project should not take precedence, especially considering the imminent challenge of securing fresh water. Aki-Sawyerr, not aligned with the central government re-elected in June, sees the loss and damage fund as potentially positive news for Freetown, given its vulnerability to climate change. However, she raises questions about the fund's adequacy, noting that it amounts to less than 50 cents per person for the two billion people severely affected by climate change.
Expressing genuine concerns about the looming threat of running out of water, Aki-Sawyerr questions the prioritization of the Freetown-Lungi bridge project over addressing crucial issues like water scarcity, major connectivity challenges, and public health concerns. In her perspective, addressing the energy problem first would serve as a catalytic step toward development, growth, and education in the region. Freetown relies on underground reservoirs for its water supply, with the largest being Guma, surrounded by the Guma Dam constructed in the 1960s, located 15km south of the city.
Unfortunately, many of the associated facilities have not undergone modernization since their initial construction. The rapid expansion of Freetown during the late 1990s and early 2000s, coinciding with the civil war that devastated Sierra Leone, led to population growth at an astonishing rate of about 3 percent annually. The civil war claimed over 50,000 lives and displaced half a million people. The population surged from 578,000 in 1993 to 1.3 million today. Since assuming office in 2018, Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr has endeavored to bring 70 percent more taxpayers into the system by utilizing satellite imagery to identify new homes in Freetown and establish a property database. Aki-Sawyerr, the first woman to hold the post in Freetown in almost 40 years, has also focused on improving sanitation in the poorest areas of the capital and providing shades for market vendors to protect them from the sun. Additionally, a waste-recycling plant implemented under her leadership has contributed to enhancing the lives of local communities.
