The Government of Sierra Leone has made considerable progress in the land sector in the past 10 years, partially as result of a successful application of the VGGT principles in different reform processes supported by the Government and CSOs. Starting from the adoption of the National Land Policy in 2015, a progressive Customary Land Rights Act and a Land Commission Act have been promulgated by the Parliament in August 2022, as well as the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Act (GEWE) signed by the president in January 2023. All these instruments represent a milestone in the advancement of securing tenure rights for the most vulnerable and a significant step towards the realization of women’s land rights in the law. At the same time, the implementation of such laws requires the definition of clear roadmaps and implementation plans.

The project strives to improve local land governance by reinforcing and capacitating local institutions which play a crucial role in the implementation of the legislative framework, paying particular attention to the role of women and youth, promoting multistakeholder local dialogue on responsible governance, addressing in particular local government institutions, but also traditional leaders, bringing closer to the rural communities and more transparent the changes in act as result of new policies and laws.

The project also aims to increase the capacity of national actors to define land reform targets (national roadmaps), indicators and agree on long term monitoring mechanisms, in line with the VGGT principles, with the ultimate objective of increasing accountability.