Shout Climate change Africa

Land degradation is a common issue in Sierra Leone and one of the main reason for land degradation is Urbanization. Now Urbanization leads to building of houses and other construction purposes which cause deforestation as there is no control and precautions taking place when it occurs and most of the activities  upsets the ecosystem and causes an imbalance in the ecology of the environment. Exposure of houses to the wind may cause land and water erosion which leads to disaster as a result of blockage of drainages due to the rampant encroachment of forested lands.

The solution to battle land degradation is to orientate hillside residents of their damage to the ecosystem and to plant Yani Field Grass and Trees, encouraging them to maintain the plants and to also urge them to plant trees around their houses. This project helps to develop communities by empowering especially the hillside communities of Freetown with the necessary knowledge of climate change and the role of the forest in biodiversity conservation especially in disaster prevention on the hillside in totality all the bare/naked land areas of the hills around Freetown. 

This project can help residents residing in hillsides and those living downtown in protecting their lives and properties from destruction as a result of climate change. The project will help the community youths, women, the  underprivileged, with focus on youth, women, children as well as physically challenged (disabled), and to support the process of their poverty alleviation though direct intervention in the later preserved sustainable rehabilitation of the hillside undergrowth and trees in their community through the physical planting of Carpet Grass (as undergrowth) together with trees that will hold the soil of the hill compact. for places close to the streets, beautiful flowers like Hibiscus, Roses, Pride-of-Barbados, Yellow-bells etc. will be interplanted with the carpet grass. Reforestation will bring about a way to restore their livelihood and a means to reduce the level of risk to residents living in such areas which tend to be flooded during the raining season and will be a risk to children living close to these areas.

The organization is a non-governmental, non-political, non-ethnical, non-racial organization that encourages all to "SHOUT NOW OR NEVER" on Climate Change issues that may affect us all; formed in 2016 made-up of scores of professionals of various expertise that work with other organizations, communities, NGOs, institutions, companies, Governmental MDA etc. In providing services that addresses Climate Change environmental problems and related issues. SCCA has undertaken some four key environmental related assignments working with the local radios, televisions and newspapers and other organizations in addressing community climate change environmental and related concerns. Key among them was transforming communities from depositing refuse dumps in drainages, support and encouraged communities to contribute and prioritize tree planting and reforestation activities; renewable energy usage to fossil fuels and towards decentralized community-owned and controlled sustainable energy.

SCCA has a well-structured management system; it operates from a coordinating center in Freetown, with personnel in the regional headquarters and hopes to have focal persons in all districts in Sierra Leone.    

Solve was on our list our partner as they could help with outreach to other partners to bring recognition on some of the problems we face, we hope it can shine more light on the problem 

• Over the years, the effect of climate change has greatly affected the coastal communities of Freetown especially the Goderich to Lakkah areas. Sustainable Development Goal 13 requires “Climate Action” since inaction will have a direct consequence on non-development of communities that are affected thereby encourage the circle of poverty.
• To undertake “Climate Action” according to the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13 requires solving those problems that are posed by climate change.
• The rampant deforestation of the especially in the Port Loko District is very visible in the rate of reduction of the country’s forest. Nearly 40% have been lost over the past 30 years. If this trend continues, there will be no more mangroves after the next sixty years.
• The forest is very important component in the land ecosystem. They serve as sanctuary for birds and home to scores of biodiversity including various mammals, reptiles and amphibians. They help to regulate the soil water content by reducing excessive solar radiation and hence the water content. They also help to reduce the evaporation of the water around them thereby reducing drying up of rivers and streams and increase in the concentration of the “salt “component of theses water bodies which is unfavorable to the fish and other water creatures thereby usually killing them.
• The trees also act as a very good carbon sink thereby reducing our carbon emission budget
• The increase in the deforestation in the Port Loko district areas of Sierra Leone is very worrisome. Its massive forest reduction in the district is responsible for the reduction of biodiversity especially the mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles thereby creating an unbalance ecosystem
• This project therefore hopes to mobilize the Mano Dasah community and engage them to reforest parts of their vast degraded land between  in the chiefdom
• It will create a short impact employment for the youths of the community, and they will claim ownership and protection for it and this once beautiful ecosystem of the area will be restored. Alongside the tree planting will include massive sensitization and advocacy for the community on the harmful effect of destroying the trees and climate change effect. It will easily be replicated in other parts of the Moyamba district in particular and Sierra Leone in general. Proper Land use, tree planting and climate change will be included in the posters, bill boards and hand bills together with the Exhibition on Wheels along the Freetown-Mano road  will set this project apart in reaching more people with needed messages and climate information/education

The high percentage of women participants will give further added value to the project since the suffer most from the effect of climate change in terms of water shortages and low crop yield

Project Goal and Objectives: The main objective is to rejuvenate the forest and the biodiversity and forest ecosystem that once habilitated these places as well as providing the necessary carbon sink for climate change mitigation.

The specific objectives are:

• To engage the community youth and women of these areas to undertake solving community and national problem and strategies for addressing ecosystem/biodiversity restoration for replication in similar parts of the country.
• To conduct series of sensitization workshops on the effect of deforestation and other sources of carbon sink along the Moyamba District area  and savanna areas in other protected areas in the country.
• To educate the masses on the components of the Climate Change and related accompanying disasters that the community and country are prone to Climate Change.
• To ensure that affected deforested areas are reforested, managed and maintained
• To see that the deforestation through uncontrolled charcoal burning and other uses in these once  forested communities is totally stopped or substantially minimized with the replacement by a sustainable forest management alternative by planting economic trees that the communities with have a share benefit with the project undertakers. 

• This will be achieved through the planting of 50 acres of trees on degraded land in the Mano-Daseh Chiefdom of Moyamba District.
• This will create a wider impact to many people to realized deforestation as one of the main causes of Climate Change and Tree planting as the solution to prevent it.
• The link between climate change and disaster will be properly understood for prevention by more than 10,000 people along the route from Freetown to Mano
• The chiefdom people will manage the planted trees for sustainability
• he participants will additionally benefit from yield of the economic trees planted as these trees will no longer be cut for burning charcoal.

No

Objective

Activity

Indicator

1

To engage the community charcoal burners and their female counterparts youth of these areas to undertake solving community and national problem and strategies for addressing deforested ecosystem/biodiversity restoration for replication in similar parts of the country.

Community Dialogue Forum in each of the four places with the right bearers and duty bearers- the community and the leaders/chiefs/Government Officials

Byelaw produce for reducing deforestation in the chiefdom

2

To conduct series of sensitization workshops on the effect of deforestation of the Forest and other sources of carbon sink along the Port Loko District communities.

Carry out one workshop in each of the four selected section towns of the chiefdom in the Moyamba District.

Workshop Report including pictures of workshop highlights

3

To work with community to indentify the places affected by the uncontrolled charcoal burning that is to be rejuvenated with trees   and the labour force

The demarcation of the acreage to be restored with the forest plant

500 acres identified and available for the project’s tree economic planting.

4

To rehabilitee the former forest land with fresh forest trees

The actual planting of the seedlings of the trees on the demarcated land.

500 acres of deforested land planted with economic trees and properly maintained.

5

To educate the masses on the components of the Climate Change and related accompanying disasters that the community and country are prone to Climate Change.

To do the first Under Brushing and put in modalities for the maintenance of the trees/forest especially the creation of fire belts during the dry season

The planted trees well kept through proper under brushing and Firebelth construction. (no tree burn as a result of wide fire).

6

Routine maintenance of the trees

Continuous under brushing and plant care

The tree growing properly and unhindered to fruiting.

• This project’s theory of change believes that for “effective change to take place, the beneficiaries/participants should be the best object of change where they are involved in all aspect of the process leading to the change from the planning to the implementation stage” They must identify it as a problem  (felt-need/problem) and collaboratively puffer solution that will address the problem bearing in mind the challenges/obstacles to surmount and means of solving and surmounting/overcoming them. Thus the strength, weakness, opportunities and threat (SWORT) analysis based on both the community observation/experience and research findings on the issue of deforestation also played key roles in this project planning, since we have been working with the chiefdom for the past two years and planted some 60 acres of fast growing trees in collaboration with the Forestry Division of the Ministry of the Environment.   

No

Objectives

Activities

Output

Outcome

Remarks

1

To engage the community charcoal burners and their female counterparts youth of these areas to undertake solving community and national problem and strategies for addressing deforested ecosystem/biodiversity restoration for replication in similar parts of the country.

Community Dialogue Forum in each of the four places with the right bearers and duty bearers- the community and the leaders/chiefs/Government Officials

1) The major drivers of climate change and community induced environmental problem/issues identified among them the destruction of the Forest.

2) Rehabilitation/ rejuvenation of the Forest and the sustainable charcoal production given as the best solution to solving the ecological/biodiversity/environmental damage

Duty bearers and the community (right holders) jointly managed the deforestation issues

The Dialogue will target 15 community leaders (1:3 gender consideration) and 20 community beneficiaries’ representatives

(1:3 gender consideration). Since this is a very important aspect of the project planning stage with the community, 2 days will be used in each community.

2

To conduct series of sensitization workshops on the effect of deforestation of the Forest and other sources of carbon sink along the Port Loko District communities.

Carry out one workshop in each of the four selected chiefdom headquarter town sections in the Port Loko District.

Development of Strategic Document  on the restoration of the forest and its sustainable management

Strategic Document Developed on the restoration of the forest and its sustainable management

Some 140 community people target with at least 2:3 gender consideration and with 2 days per community

3

To work with community to indentify the places affected by the uncontrolled charcoal burning that is to be rejuvenated with trees   and the labour force

The demarcation of the acreage to be restored with the forest plant

The existence of 50 acres of marked plots in each of the four location in the Bonthe  District for reforestation with the project tree plants

50 Acres of economic tree planted

50 acres demarcated with  one Thousand acres in each location

4

To rehabilitee the former forest land with fresh forest trees

The actual planting of the seedlings of the trees on the demarcated land.

The existence of 50 acres of rehabilitated Forest trees in each of the targeted communities

50 acres of economic trees planted are well cared for

The community youths, women and other members are temporarily engaged with economic reward to do the labour

5

To educate the masses on the components of the Climate Change and related accompanying disasters that the community and country are prone to Climate Change.

To do the first Under Brushing and put in modalities for the maintenance of the trees/forest especially the creation of fire belts during the dry season

The existence of well kept and properly  fast growing trees in each of the four targeted communities within the Project phase

50 acres of economic trees planted are well cared for and fire protected

Modalities put

in place for the fire control through fire belts construction

6

Routine maintenance of the trees

Continuous under brushing and plant care

well kept and properly  fast growing trees in each of the four targeted communities within the Project phase

50 acres of economic trees planted are well maintained.

Modalities put

in place for the fire control through fire belts construction in 5 above continue to operate

In this project, the communities make the nurses of the trees in plastic bags designed for nursery other than nursing them in a head as traditionally done. This is to get the plant with much manure during transplanting unlike the traditional method that transplants with little or no soil around the plant.

For the trees, we use organic manure where the community learn the act of compost making. This will aid the fast growing of the trees. The trees are grown with the expected research distances apart in through the triangular pegging distances as opposed to the non-pegging traditional methods of uneven distancle and jumble planting of trees (with more trees than needed on any acre computing for space and food all of which hinders plant growth

SCCA Capacity Building and Training needs assessment provided the organisation in getting  its human resources  and since then, the organisation have been using this method to build the capacity of communities in which it operated, It helps to provide the necessary logistics and human Resources for the implementation of SCCA vision and mission. The Capacity Building and Training have enhanced SCCA for the promotion of Sierra Leone’s action to address Climate Change.

SCCA works with various groups/classes of people ranging from gender consideration to the physically challenged and the concerns of the elderly.

The core values of SCCA include the following:

• Respect: Show respect and appreciates the views of social, ethnical, racial and economic diversities of people and societies. ·
• Tolerance: Exhibit religious and social tolerance by accepting those of different faiths and beliefs. · Integrity: Demonstrated highly by every member of the organisation at all levels and for the good of all.
•  Transparency & Accountability: We maintain a transparent working environment and ensure social accountability with all stakeholders in our operation areas.
•  Creativity: We work innovatively for optimum utilization of resources ensuring result oriented performance.
•  Review: We review the works of the organisation through social feedbacks to maintain its quality standard. ·
• Alliance: We promote team work and partnerships. ·
• Sustainability: We believe in Sustainable and Environment friendly growth of the society. ·
• Medical, Health and Family Welfare ·
• Environment and Aforestation ·
• Education, Skills Development & Vocational Training · Women and Children's Development 

In implementing any project, SCCA make sure that there is “value for money” where the project resources are used judiciously for the benefit of the participants/beneficiaries. The community or project beneficiaries provide the labour and expertise within their community and capacity. Outsourcing only happens when the participants lack the capacity for such task.

In such cases, they are adequate to master the required skill where necessary/possible.

Staff upgrade themselves through seminars/workshops, online course etc.

•  SCCA in the organisations experimental work, purchase some 20 acres of land (15 acres of lowland and 5 acres of swamp) that are used for vegetable to rice production. The proceeds are used to partly pay for the staff. We hope to expand this activities to include poultry, pig and goat and sheep rearing