Sierra Leone

Open Government Initiative town hall meeting in Bo District with the Presidency

24-10-2008

On Saturday, 24 October 2008, the second field visit to Bo Town in Bo District was conducted by the Open Government Initiative (OGI). The field visit consisted of two components;

1. Project and inspection visit to Bo Power Station by the Presidency and representatives from ministries

2. Town hall meeting with the people of Bo District
    

The field visit to Bo town is the second visit of the Initiative in its attempt to foster transparency and direct executive accountability through direct and open dialogue between the ordinary citizens and the Government. During the first OGI visit to Makeni, the President stated that the electricity has been the topmost priority of the Government at its inception. The Bo visit focused on the energy sector and was designed for open dialogue between the Presidency and the people of Bo District. The field visit included participation by the Vice President, Minister of Energy and Power, Minister of Information and Communication, Minister of Education, Minister of Labor, Deputy Minister of Local Government, and other public officials. Thanks to the large scale sensitization in Bo by the OGI team in advance to the visit, the town hall meeting drew a large crowd, and there were significantly more participation by women and youth compared to the first trip. Both the Bo people and the Presidency welcomed this initiative, with many from the Presidency and ministries enthusiastic and willing to repeat their participation in future visits.
 

In the morning, the Presidency and representatives from ministries made a visit to Bo Power Station. There, the Presidency inspected the plant and discussed and exchanged ideas with the representatives from Bo Kenema Power Services in order to see firsthand the challenges and the needs of the area and its people. The local representatives raised the issues such as the need for more assistance and repair of facilities, and large gap between cost of operation and revenue. In its response, the Presidency raised the issue of illegal connection and the need for change in attitude of all Sierra Leoneans, and provided its plans such as the hydropower by Bambuna and increase in power generation in Bo and Kenema through assistance by the UN Peacebuilding Fund.

In the afternoon, as many as 1,000 people from the Bo District participated in the town hall meeting held in Bo town and expressed their concerns and asked questions directly to the Presidency and representatives from Ministries. The people and the Presidency discussed various issues such as energy and power, education, health, gender, water and sanitation, and traffic safety, with the Government urging Attitudinal and Behavioral Change of every Sierra Leonean. The entire town hall meeting was broadcast nation wide by local radio stations. Click here to full report..