Publication
26 September 2024
Impacts of displacement: Displacement linked to sea level rise on Plantain Island, Sierra Leone
The coastal zone of Sierra Leone is highly vulnerable to the increased frequency and severity of coastal erosion and sea level rise linked to the effects of climate change and human activities. Over two million people along the coastal areas in Sierra Leone are expected to be at risk from predicted sea level rise. One of them is Plantain Island.
Plantain Island, which hosts a fishing community of around 5,800 people, has been losing homes and land to the sea for several decades. Many of those who lost their homes left the island, seeking refuge in other communities in the mainland. Those who were unable to leave the island were forced to move further inland on the island itself.
Sierra Leone’s National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) and the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) conducted joint research on this displacement situation in June 2024. This report presents key findings, potential solutions and ways forward.
