NGO POLICY REGULATIONS

POLICIES AND GUIDELINES FOR THE OPERATIONS OF NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS IN SIERRA LEONE

The participation of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in the National Development efforts of Sierra Leone dates back to the early 1960s. Religious bodies working in parishes took the lead in stimulating development activities at grassroots level with the active participation of the people.

Increased awareness of the vital role of NGOs has continued to attract local, private and public donations as well as international donor funding for implementing specific activities throughout the country since the 1970s. A consultative forum in the form of a workshop resulted in the formulation of the NGO Policy document in 1994.

The 1980s witnessed a steady increase in the number of NGOs operating in Sierra Leone as bilateral and multilateral agencies shifted their aid strategy to channel resources directly to beneficiaries through their grassroots organisations. The big influx of Liberian Refugees and internally displaced Sierra Leoneans in the 1990s has resulted in the proliferation of both national and international NGOs undertaking Relief and Development activities with mixed results. At the same time, ineffective coordination, monitoring and evaluation mechanisms have made it difficult to assess the impact of the variety of interventions, avoid costly duplication of efforts and derive maximum benefits for the country and people.

The January 1999 crisis saw a mass exodus of expatriate staff of International Non-Governmental Organisations (INGOs). This development led to the suspension or scaling down of programmes implemented by most INGOs. Government recognized that the National Non Government Organisations (NNGOs) continued with their programmes despite financial and other constraints and they were most hit by the destruction of life and property during this period. Thus, in addition to the lack of access to resources, building national capacity has to be urgently undertaken.

While the Government of Sierra Leone (GOSL) recognises the valuable role NGOs play in promoting national development, both parties must work closely to ensure mutual trust, confidence and transparency. The increasing demand by NGOs for GOSL counterpart contributions in the form of grants, waivers and other logistics including storage, transportation and personnel gives cause for rationalisation of their activities. The Ministry of Development and Economic Planning (MODEP) is the GOSL agency mandated to coordinate and monitor the activities of both national and international NGOs and enhance the cooperation between GOSL and NGOs.

The absence of a legal framework to regulate the operations of NGOs since the restoration of democracy has put pressure on MODEP to develop this new Policy which is an improvement on the decree of 1994 and the draft of 1999 which was discussed at a workshop for NGOs in March, 2000.

An examination of the current draft NGO register in the Ministry discloses a lot of deficiencies as there are a significant number of vital omissions. In addition, the acceptance of a large number of Community Based Organisations as NGOs according to the current definition, hastens the need for a clear definition and the eventual re-registration of all NGOs. A comparison of the lists of NGOs registered with MODEP and the submission from the Ministry of Finance shows wide and vital discrepancies.

The procedures, guidelines and policies outlined herein are geared towards the effective coordination and monitoring of the activities of both National and International NGOs in order to enhance their cooperation with the GOSL and ensure maximum benefits to the people of Sierra Leone.

(Source : Introduction to the NGO Policy Regulations)