Monrovia – A Research findings of the Liberia Accountability and Voice Initiatives (LAVI) in partnership with CSOs Consortium on Natural Resource Management (NRM) indicate that Community residents in nine of the fifteen counties are calling for a robust revision of section 9 of the National Budget Law governing the management of the County social Development Funds of Liberia.
The LAVI-NRM Coalition of eight CSOs, currently working on County Social Development and Concessions agenda is seeking understanding on the current status of the funds from community members in order to advocate for improved accountability, transparency and increased citizens’ participation of its management.
The survey was done through a recent nation-wide Information Gathering on the County Social Development Fund (CSDF
The CSOs Consortium on NRM said natural resources are essential assets for Peace-building and sustainable development, as such, decision makers ought to be mindful of their decisions, which are potential tools that could negatively affect or positively accelerate the development programs of community residents and the country.
Based on the results for several months of consultations with both rural and urban residents, the groups contend that contrary to the positive reform measures put in place for the Natural Resource Management sector by the current regime, much was still desired for the development of the people as many concessionaires’ areas are out of the ambit of the social development agenda.
The consortium maintains that the establishment of the County Social Development Funds (CSDF) is among others, to leverage some of the funds that are earned through concessions operations in the various counties to contribute to the socioeconomic and infrastructural development of Liberia. However, this novel intend is hugely being undermined by the political influences and interest of policy makers.
The survey respondents’ maintained that the policy regulating the funds was is not only undemocratic but to some extent anti-development, given the provisions that the “Chairperson of the County Legislative Caucus shall serve as Chairperson of the County Council and that all PMC members are subject to removal from office for cause to be determined by two thirds membership of the Legislative caucuses.”
The study indicates that of the one thousand four hundred and fifty-nine persons interviewed, over eighty percent of interviewees maintained that Section 9 of the current National Budget Law, unduly empowers County Legislative Caucuses by giving them the leverage to convene a County Council meeting, select meetings attendants, the power to remove PMC members while the Superintendent presided over meetings with the expressed consent of Caucus members.
According to LAVI-NRM finding, from the recent survey, many key informant and focus group discussants fawned on the fact that vast majority of citizens from the community only receive information on the operations of the funds from radio talk-shows.
“There is no formal mechanism for feedback and redress in the application of the funds, which has significantly contributed to majority of the citizens having limited means of participation in decision making process”–all because attendance at these Council meetings are influenced by the Legislative Caucuses.
Given the critical policy implications of the study findings, LAVI-NRM Coalition has meanwhile advanced several policy options and recommendations that are aimed at improving the management of the funds and increasing citizens’ participation in the natural resource management of the country.
Meanwhile, respondents are recommending the need to revert to the original model of the CSDF application procedures under separate administrative and management frameworks.
CSO advocates said the emergence of the funds has triggered an increase of political influence, especially from the County Legislative Caucuses, who have used positions as resource allocators to determine who gets what when and how for political gains.
The LAVI-NRM Coalition is also recommending the revision of section 9 of the Budget Law to reflect a much clearer process of citizen and CSOs participation as well as their involvement in the decisions making, allocation and utilization of the CSDF.
On the overall, there is a general agreement that the County Development Agenda (CDA) remains a good basis for determining a county’s development priorities.
Against this backdrop, the CSOs Coalition has meanwhile developed a Policy brief, which is currently being shared with policy makers and key academicians, University of Liberia Institute for Policy Research, Governance Commission, Leiti, etc.