Bo, Sierra Leone
The planned work in Bo is based on natural asset mapping and stakeholder engagements. Key priority natural assets will be mapped and socio-economic assessments undertaken, alongside in-depth consultations with various departments in the City Administration and other stakeholders.
FACTS & FIGURESS
- The population of Bo is just under 175,000 (2021 estimate). The city’s population is religiously diverse, primarily among Muslims and Christians.
- Kangari Hills Forest Reserve is home to an important forest wildlife community, including forest and savanna dependent birds, chimpanzees and elephants. Part of the reserve is located in Bo District. The forest at Kangari is part of a range of hills, the highest being Kang-ari, which is outside the reserve. The hills are drained by a number of rivers and the valleys support swamps suitable for agriculture. The region is the source of the two main rivers passing through the centre of the country – the Pampana River to the northeast and the Moa River to the southwest.
- Bo City is built amongst natural, low-lying, low-relief topography, which in combination with the tropical monsoonal climate of the country, forms natural swampland. Bo City is particularly susceptible to flooding in the rainy season because of the lack of topographic relief results in limited conveyance of floodwaters through the natural swampland drainage network.
- The low-lying wetlands provide conditions suitable for wetland crops, such as rice. The river channels and their floodplains are zones of natural, medium and high flood hazard.
Bo city has experienced significant flooding in its recent history. The September 2015 floods, which were caused by widespread torrential rain over the course of three days, are reported to have impacted over 3,300 people. - Although not a significant problem yet, there are localised areas within the city that have high landslide susceptibility – areas which appear to coincide with river embankments, which are likely to become more susceptible to small scale failures/slips during the wet season.
- A major problem with the rapid population growth and unplanned urban development in Bo City is that people now live in areas that are subject to natural hazards, particularly flooding, and can be impacted on a regular basis.
settlements occupying riversides.