Sierra Leone remained vulnerable in 2025 due to the long-term effects of conflict, economic instability, weak health systems, climate change, poverty, and governance challenges. Nearly 60 per cent of the population was living in poverty, facing significant challenges to health, education, and living standards.

Climate change exacerbated these problems through intensified floods, droughts, sea-level rise, and coastal erosion, which affected food production, access to clean water, and community resilience. The Global Hunger Index ranked Sierra Leone 108th of 123 nations due to widespread undernourishment and child malnutrition.

Food insecurity worsened during 2025, leaving an estimated 1.6 million people facing IPC Phase 3 (Crisis) level hunger or worse during the lean season. Child under-nutrition remained high, with stunting and wasting rates standing at 26.3 per cent and 6.3 per cent respectively. High maternal mortality rates persisted, while access to essential WASH services remained critically low.

In Sierra Leone, Action Against Hunger worked to sustainably reduce hunger, under-nutrition, and preventable mortality by strengthening shock-responsive systems, climate-resilient livelihoods, and integrated basic services, in alignment with national development priorities.

Supported by the Embassy of Ireland, we delivered nutrition-sensitive climate projects in Bonthe and Moyamba districts, and expanded activities to the remote Falaba district. In 2025, a grant from Latter-day Saints Charities enabled us to provide medical supplies and to roll out Emergency Triage, Assessment and Treatment training.

To promote climate-smart agriculture we provided 150 farmers’ groups across the Bonthe, Moyamba and Falaba districts with agricultural inputs, including seeds and vegetable cuttings, and with support from the Welthungerhilfe Anticipatory Humanitarian Action Facility we launched a flash-flood anticipatory action programme targeting vulnerable communities in Freetown.

Through awareness-raising activities, these communities developed their own anticipatory and evacuation plans for the rainy season.

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