Sierra Leone has a growing youth population which is faced with limited economic opportunities in their local communities. 74.5 per cent of Sierra Leone's population is made up of youth under 35 years and about 65 per cent of the youth population within employment age do not have access to secure and sustainable jobs. The country has a youth structural unemployment rate of 70 per cent, which is amongst the highest in the West African region. Consequentially, a large number of youth migrate to urban areas or resort to risky irregular migration outside the country in search for better livelihood and opportunities, leading to rapid urbanization and heightened risk of exploitation. In light of the above, the objective of this project is to contribute to reducing the push factors towards rural-to-urban and irregular migration of youth in Sierra Leone. The project will seek to do so by leading the National Commission for Social Action (NaCSA) to support inclusive and gender-sensitive job creation and livelihood opportunities for youth in Sierra Leone (Outcome 1) by making available evidence on gender-sensitive labour market needs in the project' s target communities (Output 1.1) and subsequently implementing gender-sensitive community-based livelihood projects in the target communities on the basis of the needs identified (Output 1.2). By enhancing local economic opportunities through tailored catalytic community and youth empowerment projects, the project will attempt to tap into local economic potentials for sustainable growth and economic opportunity enhancement, thereby addressing drivers of irregular migration. While the project will aim to target two communities selected on the basis of priority, evidenced by high numbers of youth departure, successful pilot projects could be replicated and scaled-up across the country.