Sierra Leone blasts private sector inaction on Adaptation, demands polluters pay at COP30

Sierra Leone’s Minister of Climate and Environment, Jiwoh Abdulai, issued a forceful rebuke of global private-sector commitments on climate adaptation on Friday, telling negotiators and observers that companies have yet to meaningfully contribute to protecting vulnerable nations.

“The private sector does not work for adaptation. If it worked, we wouldn’t be here,” Abdulai said in a pointed intervention. “Show me one successful example. Maybe at some point, the private sector will come in. But it hasn’t so far, and there’s a reason for that.”

The minister said the world’s largest emitters must be held financially accountable for worsening climate impacts in Sierra Leone, which he described as suffering a “slow-burning impact” that is eroding basic standards of living. A World Bank assessment ranks Sierra Leone among the 15 economies most affected by climate change; the country remains one of the poorest nations globally, still recovering from a decade-long civil war that killed more than 50,000 people.

Climate projections paint a stark picture: average temperatures could rise from 26.5°C today to nearly 28°C by 2050, while erratic rainfall and intensified flooding threaten to slash GDP by 9–10% by mid-century.

At COP30 in Belém, Sierra Leone is also pushing for global support to protect its forests, including access to the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF), a new multilateral mechanism designed to channel long-term funding into forest conservation.

Abdulai’s remarks reflect a growing frustration among climate-vulnerable nations, who argue that an overreliance on private finance leaves frontline communities exposed to rising heat, destructive floods, and intensifying storms. For Sierra Leone and many of its peers, he said, adaptation is not a business opportunity it is a matter of survival.