UK Aid Cuts Threaten Sierra Leone’s Hard Won Health Gains

Britain is set to sharply reduce its development assistance to Sierra Leone as part of changes to its foreign aid budget. UK bilateral aid to Sierra Leone is expected to fall from 16 million pounds in 2025–26 to 9 million pounds in 2026–27, and then to 5 million pounds from 2027–28.
The reduction has raised concerns about the future of Sierra Leone’s health sector, which still depends heavily on external funding. Donor support has helped finance maternal and child healthcare, immunisation, medicines, malaria programmes and other essential services.

Sierra Leone has made major progress in reducing deaths among mothers and children. Under-five mortality fell from about 165 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2009 to about 91 in 2024, while maternal mortality also recorded a major decline.

The Free Health Care Initiative, introduced in 2010, has helped make healthcare more accessible to pregnant women, lactating mothers and children under five. However, experts say the improvements also resulted from wider investments in health workers, immunisation, malaria control and sanitation.