Sierra Leone
Overtime, WFD has supported the establishment of a vibrant research department, build the capacity of its Hansards, broadened the space for south-to-south learnings, and parliamentary regional integrations among Members of Parliament. WFD programmes also promote the inclusion of persons with disabilities (PWDs) in electoral and political processes in Sierra Leone. During the COVID-19 era, WFD supported evidenced based programming on gender inclusion and coordination.
Political context
Sierra Leone has made notable strides in democratic governance since the end of its civil war, with increasing emphasis on transparency, accountability, and citizen participation. The Parliament of Sierra Leone has emerged as a key actor in promoting openness, partly due to sustained institutional support from WFD since 2001.
Despite progress, challenges remain around political polarization, limited civic trust, and the full onboarding of the new wave of women in governance due to the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) Act. However, the government's ongoing commitments to the Open Government Partnership (OGP), post-legislative scrutiny and PDMAT present strategic opportunities to deepen inclusive governance through the Grant-in-Aid (GIA) programme.
Key areas of work
Current programmes
Grant-in-Aid (GIA)
In 2023-2024, the WFD Sierra Leone GIA programme helped established critical structures such as the Parliament-CSO Network and the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Working Group, which aim to amplify citizens' voices in the legislative process. In 2024-2025, the programme is building on last year’s investments to sustain transformative gains in inclusion, transparency, accountability, and political pluralism.
Aligned with the UK’s International Women and Girls Strategy (2023–2030) which aims to empower women and girls to unlock their political, economic, and social potential, this programme also focuses on supporting women’s political participation and leadership, as well as nurturing an environment for the implementation of the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Act 2022. Furthermore, the programme continues to bring citizens closer to the Parliament, notably through the Parliament to the People tour, as well as strengthening parliamentary oversight on legislation through capacity building on Post-legislative scrutiny. In addition, the strengthening of parliamentary oversight of public debt in Sierra Leone has taken place, through the conducting of Public Debt Management Assessment Tool (PDMAT) in country, as well as dedicated training sessions for members of parliament (MPs) and civil society organisations (CSOs) to enhance their understanding of debt management and oversight mechanisms.
Strengthening Environmental Democracy through Piloting and Innovation Programme
The project aims to strengthen participatory citizen engagement in environmental governance through the Parliament’s Environment Committee. The project fosters community-driven policymaking by enabling the committee to engage directly with citizens, gather their insights, and incorporate their inputs into decision-making. As part of the initiative, the Environment Committee is actively engaging communities through participatory theatre activities to ensure their voices are reflected in legislative and policy discussions.
Completed programmes
Inclusive and Accountable Politics (IAP) (November 2018 to March 2022)
To support the Parliament of Sierra Leone in smoothly and efficiently performing its functions, WFD is leading the facilitation process of the re-commitment to the principles of the Bo Declaration. This FCDO–funded programme helped rebuild commitment for positive and non-combative parliamentary processes and party dialogue. The IAP programme also focused on building on the success of the Open Government Partnership (OGP). To do this, WFD provided technical support to the Parliament of Sierra Leone Staff, OGP Steering Committee Partners, MPs, and Citizens through civil society organisations (CSOs) partners.
Improving accountability and gender sensitivity of COVID-19 response in Sierra Leone (July – November 2020)
As democratic representatives of the people, parliaments have the key responsibility of examining policies and their impact on citizens. In July 2020, WFD launched a project focused on supporting the Parliament of Sierra Leone by improving its access to crucial gender–sensitive data during the COVID-19 pandemic. This data helped inform MPs’ inputs in parliamentary debates, oversight, and law-making processes that focus on the effect of COVID-19 on vulnerable groups such as women and girls. This is in addition to holding the Government to account on its COVID-19 response. The project was funded by the British High Commission in Sierra Leone.
Commonwealth Partnership for Democracy programme (2018 – 2020)
Parliaments and local governments are essential for effective, inclusive democratic governance. Through funding from the Commonwealth Partnership for Democracy (CP4D), WFD focused on advancing disability rights in Sierra Leone. The programme supported PWDs in the country in advancing disability issues in Parliament and local councils after the 2018 elections. It targeted the Sierra Leone Parliament to demonstrate leadership in taking concrete steps to raise awareness and integrate disability friendly policy within its operations. WFD also collaborated and supported disability coordination within the Ministry of Social Welfare Gender and Children’s Affairs, the Freetown City Council, and the Sierra Leone Union on Disability Issues (SLUDI).
Key results
First National Agenda for the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the electoral and political process launched involving community groups, political parties, and institutions.
Parliament of Sierra Leone makes first breakthrough in creating a platform for citizens to interact with the Parliament using technology (Parliament of Sierra Leone App).
Stronger disability coordination mechanisms in three institutions (Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender & Children Affairs, Freetown City Council, and SLUDI).
WFD has been recognised to serve as a National Steering Committee Member in open government partnership (OGP) in Sierra Leone.
Supported the Parliament of Sierra Leone in establishing its first service charter that increases citizens involvement in its work. Find out more.
First consensus building framework for political parties’ involvement (Bo Declaration) launched and tabled in parliament for the inclusion of MPs in decision making irrespective of their political affiliations.
WFD has supported Parliament Open Day’s where both the Speaker and Clerk of Parliament present their annual report (performance and financial) to citizens, as well as opening up Parliament to citizens and civil society organisations.
WFD hosted the first OGP hybrid summit that brought together legislations to share best practices and corporation on openness and transparency.
First-ever training on post-legislative scrutiny (PLS) with Parliamentarians, parliamentary staff, and members of civil society.
Support for the reimagining and strengthening of the Female Parliamentary Caucus through dedicated capacity building, engagement, and technical assistance.
Strengthened parliamentary capacity to align its annual work plan with strategic objectives and donor priorities.
Support in the development and launch of the first-ever Sierra Leone Parliamentary and Civil Society Network (ParlCSOnet), which has deepened CSO–Parliament ties through joint planning and engagement.
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Sierra Leone