Decentralization in Sierra Leone - Research for Development

Decentralization in Sierra Leone1. IntroductionDFID Sierra Leone and other donors have been supporting a long term project to re-establishdecentralised governance in the towns and districts of Sierra Leone. Local councils have nowbeen in operation for seven years and are set to receive greater fiscal transfers from centralgovernment. With options now opening up to channel additional resources throughdecentralised local councils, this study was commissioned to assess: a) the impact of localcouncils on the delivery of pro-poor development, particularly the delivery of basic servicesand on opportunities for poor people to articulate their voice; b) the institutional strategiesand power relationships that affect local councils’ capacity to fulfil this design purpose. Thefundamental question here is whether elected local councils have provided a more effectivemeans – or perceived to be more effective – of delivering development outcomes andresponding to the needs of the poor.The specific questions addressed in the study are: Have local councils had a material impact on development outcomes in terms of thedelivery of basic services? Have local councils improved pro-poor decision making and enhanced poor people’svoice in local level political structures? To what degree have local councils used their power to deliver development outcomesthat would not otherwise have taken place? To what degree have established local power networks – particularly chiefs – beenaffected by the establishment of local councils? What are the major constraints to making local councils more powerful actors indelivering pro-poor development and enhancing poor people’s voice in local decisionmaking? How do local people and civil society groups perceive local council operations,particularly in comparison and contrast to existing chieftaincy structures?Approach and MethodologyThe research had four components:1. A review of the literature on local government reform and decentralization in SierraLeone, including comparative references to international literature on localgovernment reform in post-conflict states.2. Key informant interviews with policy makers and opinion formers at the nationallevel and local council leaders and operatives in the districts.3. Focus group discussions with local councillors and representatives ofdecentralization’s target population, notably women and youths.4. Quantitative survey of four districts in Sierra Leone to ask people about theirexperiences of local councils, local council service delivery, their ability to engageand participate in local council governance structures and how they view theirinteraction with chiefdom governance structures.The four districts included in the survey are: Bo, Bombali, Kono and Western Area RuralDistrict (WARD). The selected districts capture socio-economic and political differencesbetween north and south, metropolitan and provincial areas, areas with a history of miningand in-migration and those with history of small-holder farming and out-migration. Thesalient characteristics of the four districts are: Bo, a district containing Sierra Leone’s second city of the same name. Bo Districtbenefits from a comparatively strong private sector and has a long history ofgrassroots investment in modern education. It is a stronghold of the SLPP.Fanthorpe Consultancy Ltd Page 9