Socio-economic drivers of deforestation in Sierra Leone

Purpose Deforestation remains a major environmental concern in Sierra Leone, with implications for biodiversity, climate change and livelihoods. This underscores the urgency for sustainable forest practices. The study investigated the socio-economic determinants of deforestation in Sierra Leone. Design/methodology/approach The study used annual time series data within a vector error correction and autoregressive distributed lag model to estimate both the short- and long-run drivers of deforestation in Sierra Leone. Forecast error variance decomposition and impulse response function were also employed to determine the magnitude and direction of shocks. Findings The decomposition of forecast error variance shows that biomass consumption (traditional renewable energy consumption) is the short-, medium- and long-term dominant factor. Income is found to reduce deforestation in the short term, while biomass consumption (traditional renewable energy consumption) increases it. Weak institutions, biomass consumption (traditional renewable energy consumption), natural resource rents and population increase deforestation in the long run. Originality/value The study contributes to the deforestation literature by providing new empirical evidence on the long- and short-run drivers of forest loss in Sierra Leone using a dynamic econometric framework that integrates institutional quality, income, population, natural resource rents and energy consumption. By distinguishing temporal effects and governance channels, the study advances understanding of how structural and policy factors interact over time to shape deforestation outcomes in resource-dependent developing economies, offering insights for sustainable forest management.