Freetown City Council (FCC) has concluded six days engagement with about 4,800 residents across 48 communities in transformation talks.

The mayor of freetown- Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr said that she was pleased to join the FCC facilitators at EMIMAN Primary School in Jalloh Terrace for that engagement as it was exciting to see women, youth, the elderly, religious and traditional leaders deciding on their development priorities and proposing interventions for FCC to do in their community.

She revealed that, the result of the 6 days citywide community engagement confirmed that the number one priority for people is access to water, followed by improved drainage (infrastructure upgrades) and access to basic education and skills development.

The Mayor also held a roundtable discussion with partners ahead of the next phase of the FCC 2024-2028 Development Plan, where they shared the “Transform Freetown-Transforming Lives framework.”

The British High Commissioner, the American Ambassador, the EU Ambassador, the Deputy UN Res Cord, World Bank, Irish Aid, UNCDF, CRS, GOAL, GIZ, UNDP, IGC, JICA, IOM, Aurora representatives and representatives of several other organizations formed part of the roundtable discussion held by the Mayor and team.

Mayor Aki-Sawyer revealed that, From 23rd May to 6th June, 2024 they will hold a series Planning Labs during which they will identify key development interventions within the 11 critical pathways that will lead to the achievement of their target – the creation of 120,000 dignified jobs for women and youth by 2028 a  pathway that also improved access to water which will be prioritized in accordance with the results of their community engagement adding that, they are also looking forward to the continued participation of development partners, NGOs, government MDAs, the private sector and civil society in the Planning Labs as they move to the next phase of the FCC Development Plan process.