Yvonne’s Story
Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr OBE is more than a Mayor — she is a movement. A force rooted in purpose, fueled by resilience, and committed to transforming lives from the grassroots up. Her leadership journey weaves through global finance, public crisis response, and community rebuilding, always returning home to Freetown with one mission: to turn hope into reality.
Born in Freetown, raised with a fierce sense of duty and excellence, Yvonne’s life has been defined by service. She stood up for Sierra Leone during the civil war, fought for lives during the Ebola outbreak, and led her city through tragedy after the 2017 mudslide each time showing that leadership is not a title, but an act of courage.
1968 -1993
EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION
Born in Freetown in January 1968, Yvonne spent her early years between Ghana and Canada before returning to Sierra Leone at age 10. Her parents, Prof. Hector and Mrs. Marion Morgan, nurtured in her a deep sense of purpose and confidence. She attended St. Joseph’s Secondary School where she served as Head Girl the first signs of a leader in the making. By age 16, she was at university. She earned her BSc in Economics from Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, then went on to the London School of Economics, completing an MSc in Politics of the World Economy by age 22. By 1993, she was a Chartered Accountant in the UK. Her leadership acumen also shone through early global engagement as the first African member of AIESEC’s International Exchange Committee.
COMMUNITY SERVICE
During the civil war, she campaigned against blood diamonds. In 1999, Yvonne co-founded the Sierra Leone War Trust, a charity dedicated to supporting disadvantaged children and youth in Sierra Leone. For decades, she has remained a champion of education, shelter, and hope for youth and girls across Sierra Leone.
2014-2015
EBOLA OUTBREAK (2014-2015)
During the 2014–2015, Yvonne served as the Director of Planning at the National Ebola Response Centre, helping lead the strategy that ended the epidemic. Her leadership was pivotal in developing and implementing strategies that effectively combated the crisis. She then led the President’s Recovery Priorities program post-Ebola, coordinating 11 ministries in Sierra Leone’s national recovery. Her work on “Operation Clean Freetown” foreshadowed her mayoral success. For this, she was awarded the Ebola Gold Medal and later appointed an Officer of the British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth II.
2018 - Current
MAYOR & POLITICAL LEADERSHIP
In 2018, she became Freetown’s first directly elected female mayor, launching the visionary Transform Freetown Agenda. She planted over 1.2 million trees, built the city’s first wastewater plant, reformed property taxation, and created thousands of jobs for women and youth. Every achievement was data-driven, people-centered, and grounded in integrity. She delivered her four-year plan covering 11 sectors and 19 targets from sanitation and housing to jobs and public health. She digitized the tax system, expanded the city’s tax base from 57,000 to over 120,000 properties, and introduced the #FreetownTheTreeTown campaign, surpassing her target of planting 1 million trees. Her climate leadership made headlines. She linked environmental action with job creation and citizen ownership. Her work has been showcased at global climate summits, and she’s advocated fiercely for African cities on the world stage.
INTERNATIONAL
Her work has echoed from Freetown’s hills to the world’s biggest stages from the UN to COP, from TED Talks to TIME100. She’s not just building a greener city; she’s rewriting the narrative of African leadership. Today, she is a global figure. As Co-Chair of C40 Cities, she helps set the climate agenda for nearly 100 major cities. She has served on numerous global commissions and councils, bringing African experience to international platforms.
Mayor of Freetown
Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr
Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr OBE was Mayor of Freetown from May 2018 to February 2023 and was re-elected to serve for a second term in June 2023. A finance professional with over 25 years of private sector experience in strategic planning, risk management consulting and project management, Mayor Aki-Sawyerr has adopted an inclusive, data-driven approach to addressing challenges in the city. In her first term, she championed the 4-year “Transform Freetown” plan which detailed 19 concrete targets across 11 sectors; annually published Transform Freetown reports that document progress made against targets can be found on the FCC Website. Mayor Aki-Sawyerr’s notable achievements include the construction and operation of Freetown’s first ever wastewater treatment plant, the digitalization and expansion of the city’s property rate system, the planting and tracking of 1.2m trees against #FreetownTheTreeTown’s 1m trees target and securing the recently concluded feasibility study for the introduction of a mass transit cable car system for the city.
Mayor Aki-Sawyerr’s second term development agenda “Transform Freetown – Transforming Lives” is focused on the creation of 120,000 decent jobs for women and youth through climate action, the growth of heritage tourism and the digital economy underpinned by investments in human development.
Mayor Aki-Sawyerr is the Laureate of the German Africa Award 2024, she was listed in the inaugural Forbes Sustainability Leaders 2024 List, she was a Schwab Foundation Outstanding Public Social Innovator for the Year 2023, was featured by Time Magazine in the inaugural Time100 Climate List 2023, the Time100 Next 2021 List and by the BBC in the BBC 100 Women 2020 List. Mayor Aki-Sawyerr is Co-Chair of C40 Cities, a network of almost 100 cities committed to addressing climate change. Mayor Aki-Sawyerr’s TedTalk, “How to turn dissatisfaction into action” has had over 2.2 million views.
A team player with a demonstrable record of leading institutional change, Mayor Aki-Sawyerr is passionate about the development of Sierra Leone and the transformation of Freetown. She is a Chartered Accountant and holds an MSc in Politics of the World Economy from the London School of Economics and a BSc Hons in Economics from Fourah Bay College. She is married with two children.
No More Delay – Yvonne Sabi Di Way!
Now, as she steps forward as APC Flagbearer Aspirant, Yvonne envisions a Sierra Leone where dignity meets development, where communities rise, and where hope is more than a promise, it’s a plan.
Her TED Talk — “How to turn dissatisfaction into action” — has been viewed over 2.2 million times, inspiring people worldwide with her story of purpose and perseverance.
This is the YAS Story — rooted in service, built with courage, and destined to inspire.