SPF: Innovative solutions for land dispute resolution in Sierra Leone

active

Prospective

Sierra Leone has made progress towards development goals in the face of many challenges since the end of the country’s civil war (1991-2002). The reestablishment of democracy since 2002 is an important achievement but signs of fragility remain, which include unresolved land disputes and gender inequality in the land sector that pose a significant risk to Sierra Leone’s social cohesion and economic development. Land related disputes played a prominent role in the country’s civil war, and it is estimated that 60 percent or more of all cases in the High Court arise from land disputes. Large-scale land acquisitions that ignore local rights and do not comply with international standards for good governance also fuel Sierra Leone’s fragility risks. Women are negatively affected disproportionally by land issues. These and other issues led the government to adopt a National Land Policy in 2015 and pass the Customary Land Rights Act and the National Land Commission Act in 2022. The project activities consist of four components: (1) Strengthening women’s land rights through piloting Gender Transformative Approaches; (2) Improving the functionality and gender responsiveness of the land dispute resolution system; (3) Promoting innovative governance arrangements for stakeholder dialogue and improved land governance; and (4) Bank-Executed Grant Implementation Support.

World Bank Group

Project

Commercial, Government