Forest conservationActive

Gola Rainforest REDD+

The Gola REDD Project conserves around 71,000 hectares of Upper Guinean tropical rainforest in eastern Sierra Leone on the Liberia border. Run by Gola Rainforest Conservation LG, a partnership of the Government of Sierra Leone, the Conservation Society of Sierra Leone and the RSPB, it was validated under Verra VCS and CCB (Double Gold) in 2015 as the first such REDD+ project in West Africa. The 30-year project avoids deforestation emissions while supporting forest-edge community livelihoods.

Gola Rainforest National Park, Eastern Province, Sierra LeoneTropical Upper Guinean rainforestVerra VCS + CCB (Double Gold), VCS 1201
Image credit
Rödel et al. 2014, CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia CommonsImage source ↗
OperatorGola Rainforest Conservation LG (Govt, CSSL and RSPB)
EcosystemTropical Upper Guinean rainforest
StandardVerra VCS + CCB (Double Gold), VCS 1201
StatusActive
LocationGola Rainforest National Park, Eastern Province, Sierra Leone
Overview

Inside the project

Gola protects Sierra Leone's largest remaining Upper Guinean rainforest, home to threatened birds, western chimpanzees, pygmy hippos, pangolins and forest elephants.

Launched in 2013 and validated in 2015 under Verra registry ID VCS 1201, it was the first VCS+CCB REDD+ project in West Africa, carrying a CCB Double Gold rating.

Around 122 forest-edge communities, about 24,000 people across seven Gola Chiefdoms, benefit, with carbon revenue intended to flow to communities and support sustainable cocoa.

As viewed in September 2026, Verra's registry shows 2,672,520 units issued and 2,265,093 retired for VCS 1201, with a verification approval requested.

71,070 ha
Rainforest protected
500,000 tCO2e/yr
Emissions avoided
24,000
People in 122 forest-edge communities
19,000,000 t
Carbon stored in the forest
Acraea camaena butterfly from Gola Rainforest National Park
Image credit
NSG group, Lund, Sweden, CC0 via Wikimedia CommonsImage source ↗
Expand image

Objectives

  • Conserve Sierra Leone's largest Upper Guinean rainforest and prevent deforestation
  • Protect threatened biodiversity including chimpanzees and pygmy hippos
  • Support sustainable community livelihoods such as cocoa
  • Ensure equitable distribution of carbon revenue to communities

Approach

  • The project follows VCS and CCB methodology with independent third-party validation and verification audits, with monitoring reports in 2015 and 2020.
  • Field monitoring uses camera traps, bioacoustics, eDNA and chimpanzee nest surveys, alongside SMART patrols by community ecoguards.

Published documents

Monitoring report: Gola REDD project, Verra registry page (VCS 1201) →

Sources

Inspect 3 sources
  1. registry.verra.org ↗https://registry.verra.org/app/projectDetail/VCS/1201
  2. golarainforest.org ↗https://golarainforest.org/gola-redd-project
  3. rspb.org.uk ↗https://www.rspb.org.uk/helping-nature/what-we-do/protecting-species-and-habitats/international/gola-rainforest

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