United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has handed two Toyota Landcruiser hardtop vehicles to Sierra Leone Meteorological Agency (SLMET) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) respectively to boost their monitoring capacity on weather related and environmental management activities around the country. 

UNDP recognizes that these two agencies are established on different mandates but with a shared interest on natural resources management and environment quality, which are directly related to human activities and affect human health.

“Today’s handover to the EPA is to support implementation of the Agency’s activities adding that UNDP is always committed to intervene and to ameliorate environmental issues and challenges,”  says Rokya Ye Dieng, UNDP Deputy Resident Representative while handing the keys to EPA’s Executive Chairperson, Bondi Gevao.

Handing the second Toyota Landcruiser to SLMET, UNDP Team Lead for Sustainability and Local Economic Development (SLED) Cluster, Tanzila Watta Sankoh stated that the donation to SLMET is to ensure that all weather stations eight (8) of which are funded by UNDP, are monitored, maintained, and are transmitting climate information. 

Receiving the vehicle on behalf of the Agency, Head of Climatology at the Sierra Leone Meteorological Agency, Patrick Musa commended UNDP for supporting the Agency’s capacity development over the past decades.

The EPA Executive Chairperson, Bondi Gevao also expressed similar sentiments during the handover while receiving one Toyota Landcruiser hardtop vehicle on behalf of his Agency, stating that he believes the vehicle support from UNDP will significantly boost EPA’s operations as the vehicle brand is most reliable for handling the harshest conditions and toughest situations which life can throw at it.

Sierra Leone environmental sustainability is faced with numerous challenges including deforestation and rapid urbanization. Similarly, residents in Freetown have witnessed first-hand escalating trail of destruction left in the wake of floods, sea rises, mudslides, landslides and more. Against this background, UNDP recent capacity boost to the two agencies complements national efforts to improve natural resources management and weather services provided to the agriculture industry, building and construction, tourism, mining, insurance and aerospace, and persons living within and outside Sierra Leone.