FREETOWN, Sierra Leone – On 24 August, the FAWE Sierra Leone National Coordinator attended a symbolic partnership signing ceremony that marked the official start of a transformative initiative: “Empowering Communities through Gender-Responsive Local Governance: Building Institutional Capacity for Inclusive Service Delivery.” The ceremony, which brought together UN Women, the Ministry of Gender and Children’s Affairs, the Ministry of Local Government, and three other implementing partners, represented a significant milestone in the collective commitment to advancing gender equality and amplifying the voices of women and marginalised groups across Sierra Leone.
The project, funded by the Government of Iceland through the Embassy of Iceland in Freetown, represented a convergence of shared values and complementary strengths . The partnership formalised a collaboration between UN Women, the Government of Sierra Leone, and four implementing partners: ActionAid Sierra Leone, the Forum of African Women Educationalists (FAWE), the Women’s Advocacy and Agricultural Development Organization (WAADO), and the Girls Advocacy Development Network (GADNET) .
This initiative built on the foundation of the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) Act 2022, described by the Hon. Minister of Gender and Children’s Affairs, Dr. Isata Mahoi, as “one of Sierra Leone’s most transformative pieces of legislation” . The Act represented a landmark legislative intervention to address long-standing gender inequalities and create greater opportunities for women to participate in leadership, governance, employment, and economic activities.
The project aimed to strengthen institutional capacity, improve inclusive service delivery, and amplify grassroots advocacy for women and marginalised groups. Through collaboration between government institutions, civil society, traditional leaders, and communities, the initiative sought to ensure that no one was left behind.
– Strengthening Local Councils: Building the capacity of local councils to deliver more gender-responsive public services and effectively implement the GEWE Act 2022 .
– Expanding Economic Opportunities: Supporting entrepreneurship, business formalisation, savings groups, and improved access to markets and financial services for women and youth, with 66 enterprises already identified to benefit .
– Strengthening Policy and Accountability: Enhancing institutional coordination and accountability mechanisms to ensure that gender equality commitments translated into meaningful outcomes for women and girls .
– Preventing Gender-Based Violence: Supporting efforts to prevent and respond to gender-based violence and increase community awareness of women’s rights.
FAWE Sierra Leone’s participation in this partnership reflected the organisation’s enduring commitment to achieving gender justice and equality. For FAWE, the connection was clear: gender discrimination and violence blocked girls and women from reaching their full potential and contributing meaningfully to the development of their communities. This project provided a strategic opportunity to address these barriers at the local governance level.
The Minister of Gender and Children’s Affairs, Dr. Isata Mahoi, who had previously engaged with FAWE Sierra Leone during the chapter’s 30th-anniversary celebrations, reaffirmed her ministry’s commitment to providing leadership, coordination, and oversight for the project . She urged stakeholders to view the initiative as a shared responsibility, stating: “Gender equality is not a women’s issue alone; it is a national imperative” .
The signing ceremony took place against the backdrop of the recent launch of the Gender Accountability Framework and the 2025 Annual Report on the Implementation of the GEWE Act 2022 . This framework provided a practical mechanism to support the implementation, monitoring, and reporting of commitments under the Act, offering a structured approach for tracking progress, identifying challenges, and strengthening institutional accountability .
The Government of Iceland’s support for this initiative demonstrated its continued commitment to advancing gender equality worldwide. As Programme Adviser Mohamed Bah noted, the partnership between the Government of Iceland, the Government of Sierra Leone, and UN Women was a testament to the power of collaborative action in promoting inclusive development.
The symbolic signing ceremony marked an important step in the collective commitment to amplify traditionally unacknowledged voices of women while promoting stronger coordination and action to protect women and girls from abuse and exploitation. The project was set to be implemented in five coastal districts—Western Area Rural, Moyamba, Bonthe, Kambia, and Port Loko—targeting local council staff, gender focal persons, traditional leaders, CSOs, and vulnerable groups, including women and girls with disabilities in hard-to-reach communities.