January 7, 2021 – Today, Freetown was selected as a recipient of the inaugural Global Cities Fund for Inclusive Pandemic Response, a $1,000,000 initiative to respond to the unmet needs of cities as they support migrants, refugees, and internally displaced people (IDPs) during COVID19. Launched by the Mayors Migration Council, a mayor-led advisory organization that helps cities influence national and international policy on migration and refugee issues, the Global Cities Fund will provide direct financial and technical support over one year to Freetown and four other cities from low-to-middle income countries to implement projects related to health and sanitation, livelihoods and employment, and inclusive social services.

Freetown will receive $174,000 to support the establishment of 40 sustainable waste management micro-enterprises to deliver waste collection services within informal settlements and to other Freetown residents. Through this program, the city will ensure that more youth living in informal settlements, many of whom are rural migrants, access the opportunity to jointly
improve their livelihoods and improve public health outcomes for many communities and the city. Successful applicants will be provided with initial business investment support that includes a motorized tricycle cart, sanitation tools, business registration, training and business development mentoring. The income generated from the waste collection will help the
entrepreneurs pay back 80% of the cost of equipment over the course of a year, which will in turn unlock funds for a new set of youth to participate in the program next year. The program builds on gains made by 80 existing waste management micro-enterprises who, through
Freetown’s support over the last year, are providing waste collection services to almost 30,000 households.