Monrovia – The Institute for Research and Democratic Development (
At a one-day policy dialogue with major stakeholders in Monrovia recently, the Executive Director of IREDD, Harold Aidoo noted that an assessment conducted by the organization showed that the service centers across the country are plagued with several challenges affecting effective service delivery.
The government of Liberia under former president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, with support from international partners launched the decentralization and de-concentration drive which among other things aimed at bringing government services close to the people, especially in the rural parts of the country.
Unquestionably, one of the main accomplishments of this policy has been the construction and operation of service Centers across the country.
Through these centers, citizens supposed to attain basic services such as birth certificates, drivers and business licenses, permits and a host of others, thereby discouraging citizens in rural areas from travelling to Monrovia and in the process incurring extensive travel and transportation costs just to access them.
But IREDD said findings from an assessment conducted in four counties point out that these centers are not serving their purpose owing to series of challenges grappling them.
IREDD named inadequate funding, lack of transparency, lack of technical training and logistical support as some of the challenges affecting the service centers.
It added that lack of robust awareness is causing a huge number of rural residents to unaware of these centers; adding that people residing in the county’s capitals where these centers are situated have access the service centers more than people living outside of the capital.
Recommendations
IREDD, in the report called for more financial, technical and logistical support for effective service delivery and increased revenue generation.
In addition, the organization called for a robust public information dissemination mechanism to adequately inform the public of the presence of the centers and the services they offer.
“Improve the incentives of coordinators and provide necessary training needed to effect full service delivery at the centers; improve on customer service relations to encourage more communities to seek the services provided,” IREDD recommends.
Meanwhile, stakeholders attending the event lauded IREDD for the study and pledged, in their respective capacities, to act and resuscitate the centers.
Representative Larry Younquoi of Nimba County District #8, who chairs the House’s Committee on Governance and Government Reform called for improved budgetary allotment and noted that in as much as the hard component of development which include infrastructure development is important, government should also prioritize the soft aspect of development which include data availability and dissemination.
Rep. Younquoi vowed to champion the cause for government to also prioritize the soft component of development as he currently doing with the overdue National Housing and Population Census issue which is expected to be conducted in December 2019.noted that it requires the collective effort of every citizen to make the centers effective.
He also blamed the lack of donor support to be a major factor of the problem and noted that he has been creating awareness through Townhall meetings and encouraging his constituents to make use of the centers in the county.
“In my role as member of the legislature and head of this committee, I want to pledge that anything that I can do to help the government in data collection I will do it,” he promised.
Also speaking, the Minister of Commerce, Prof. Wilson Tarpeh called for a strategic review of the service centers and called for the structures to be turned over to the counties where rent will be paid for the operation of the centers and money can be used to meet some of the basic operational needs.
The Assistant Minister for Technical Services at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Lusine Saryon, speaking on behalf of Internal Affairs Minister Varney A. Sirleaf, revealed that ministry is clothed with the responsibility to ensure that government’s decentralization program and has planned to engage all sector ministries and agencies to address the challenges.
Earlier, the Director of the Bureau of Vital Services at the Ministry of Health, Prince Kaba Momolu, and Bong County Acting Superintendent, Anthony B. Sheriff called for the allocation of portion of the funds that are being generated by these centers for operational fund.
“Some of the money that is being collected should stay for operational fund. But if the money is transferred to LRA, it can be difficult to get fund,” Director Momolu noted.
Mr. Sheriff revealed that despite Bong County Service Center generating US$143,000 in 2018 alone, the center sometimes does not have fuel and electricity to operate. He added no logistics and lack of coordination among staff are some of the challenges; nothing that only one motor bike the center has.
He noted that some of the important documents such as driver license cannot be completely processed at the center.