[{"bbox": [97, 121, 1134, 176], "category": "Text", "text": "friendly behaviour through the provision of alternative income opportunities and better public and inclusive services. The action combines therewith a top-down and bottom-up approach."}, {"bbox": [97, 200, 1134, 307], "category": "Text", "text": "The action contributes and builds on Sierra Leone's national development plan and related sector policies. It addresses particularly SDG 13 but also SDGs 2, 4, 5, 15 and 16. The action is cross-sectoral and addresses the MIP priorities Green Economy, Human Development and Governance. It will contribute to the Team Europe Initiative Green Pact with Sierra Leone in collaboration with Germany and Ireland."}, {"bbox": [85, 362, 323, 393], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## 2. RATIONALE"}, {"bbox": [85, 428, 215, 455], "category": "Section-header", "text": "### 2.1 Context"}, {"bbox": [97, 473, 1134, 554], "category": "Text", "text": "**Sierra Leone remains a vulnerable and fragile country.** Since the end of the civil war (1991-2002), several major setbacks constrained Sierra Leone's development and economic progress: 2014-2016 Ebola crisis and iron ore price slump; 2019-2021 Covid-19; 2022 economic downturn due to the Russian aggression on Ukraine."}, {"bbox": [97, 564, 1134, 1070], "category": "Text", "text": "**General Elections** took place in June 2023. The incumbent President Bio was declared winner by the Electoral Commission. However, some international Election Observation Missions including the EU EOM observed inter alia a lack of transparency in the results management process of the elections. Aditionally, a parallel vote tabulation by a national NGO consortium questioned the results announced by the Electoral Commission (ECSL). For the same reasons, the opposition did not recognize the results and started a boycott of the institutions. This lack of transparency further contributed to the pre-existing **political tensions** between main political parties. The political landscape is characterised by a high degree of polarisation and deep regional divides and many of the factors that led to civil war still persist (interplay of poverty, marginalisation, greed and grievances). In the meantime, the Government announced a “National Electoral Systems Review Committee” to “assess the planning and management of the 2023 electoral cycle” and to “improve ECSL’s continued planning and conduct of transparent and fair elections”. President Bio announced that the objective of this Committee would be two-fold: to “review the prevailing legal framework, related institutional and operational arrangements, and local and international observer missions’ reports”, and to “propose key reforms for institutionalising the recommendations to enhance the operations of the entire electoral architecture”. The Committee, open to “Development Partners, Civil Society and Professional Organisations”, will be chaired by the Vice-President, and therefore there are some questions about its independence. However, in principle, the Government’s openness to the review and improvement of electoral processes could provide a favourable context for the implementation of the recommendations of the 2023 EU EOM final report. Attempts of dialogue between Government and opposition are increasing. The EU will continue the dialogue with Sierra Leone on inclusive governance."}, {"bbox": [97, 1081, 1134, 1186], "category": "Text", "text": "Sierra Leone introduced **positive reforms** such as the abolition of the death penalty and the repeal of the criminal libel law. It is an example of religious tolerance and contributed actively to peace-building processes especially in the ECOWAS region. **Sierra Leone has just been elected member of the UN Security Council** for the period 2024-2025."}, {"bbox": [97, 1200, 1134, 1387], "category": "Text", "text": "**Poverty remains high** at 57% with more than 10% in abject poverty, affecting disproportionately rural areas, home to 75% of the poor, though there is a rapid migration of mainly poor youth to urban centres. Sierra Leone's **HDI score 2021 (0.477)** is one of the **lowest in the world** and positions the country at 181 out of 195. Among the indicators that integrate HDI, the “mean years of schooling” have significant impact in poverty conditions. In the case of Sierra Leone, this indicator is 4,6 years. Girls drop out of school at a higher rate which can be largely attributed to the intersection of poverty and gender norms, involving issues such as early marriage, teenage pregnancy, and the burden of having to perform a disproportionate share of household chores¹."}, {"bbox": [97, 1398, 1134, 1479], "category": "Text", "text": "Education (Basic Education and TVET) are fundamental and transformative keys, not only to reduce gender inequities but also to improve the main challenges facing Sierra Leone (poverty, economic growth, social protection, environmental degradation and others)."}, {"bbox": [97, 1490, 1134, 1544], "category": "Text", "text": "In Sierra Leone, more than half of 15-year-olds and above (57%) are illiterate and half of those leaving primary school are unable to read or write, depriving them of any foundational competence and preparedness to face internal"}, {"bbox": [85, 1597, 1142, 1647], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹ MBSSE National Policy on Radical Inclusion in Schools. p. 5. https://mbsse.gov.sl/wpcontent/uploads/2021/04/Radical-Inclusion-Policy.pdf"}, {"bbox": [1038, 1682, 1143, 1706], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 4 of 33"}]