Yearlong Competition Launched in 2021 Elevates the Most Promising Urban Innovations to Emerge from the Pandemic. Freetown is one of 15 cities awarded $1 million dollars over 3 years to Roll out a Self-financing Impact Investment System that Sustains Tree Planting and Growing

(Freetown, Sierra Leone) January 18, 2022 — Bloomberg Philanthropies today announced the 15 winning cities of the 2021-2022 Global Mayors Challenge, a worldwide innovation competition that supports and spreads cities’ most promising ideas. These 15 winners are being recognized for designing the boldest and most ambitious urban innovations to emerge from the global COVID-19 pandemic. The winning ideas address one or more of four current issue areas in cities including economic recovery and inclusive growth; health and wellbeing; climate and environment; and gender and equality.

Freetown, Sierra Leone’s #FreetownTheTree Town is awarded one million dollars in addition to technical support and coaching over three years. The goal of #FreetownTheTreeTown Project is to implement a community-based tree growing model pioneering s elf-financing impact investment system to counter the devastating impacts of deforestation.

“The challenge of improving environmental management in the city was key to my decision to run for Mayor. Having Freetown take part in, and ultimately win, the Bloomberg Mayors’ Challenge with the participation and support of Freetonians and an amazing project team confirms that we can overcome challenges and that we will go #FurtherTogether! I am thrilled to see our idea to sustainably finance #FreetownTheTreeTown evolve with input from our residents, technical experts and project partners. Our target to increase vegetation cover by 50% means that we are not only planting trees but growing them – this intervention will enable us to do just that as the private sector and residents sustain the planting through our tree investment platform,” Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr.

 #FreetownTheTreeTown will have long lasting impact on the well-being of the residents of Freetown. Trees grown through the project will be critical for slope stabilization, which is necessary to avoid landslides and mudslides that Freetown has been experiencing in recent times. In addition, the project will create green jobs through the employment of tree growers, that will receive incentives based on growth of trees. It will also provide sources of income for the local nurseries through which we are procuring seedlings.

“As the world works to address the profound public health and economic effects of the ongoing pandemic, cities can implement innovative ideas at a pace that national governments simply can’t match,” said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg Philanthropies and Bloomberg L.P. and 108^th Mayor of New York City. “Our fifteen winners offer bold, achievable plans to improve health, reduce unemployment, empower women, and more. Collectively, they have the potential to improve millions of their residents’ lives – and the most successful solutions will inspire cities around the world to embrace them.”