Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone Police Force set to maintain peace and order for the 2007 Elections.

25-06-2007

A project worth over a million U.S Dollars and funded from the Peace Building Fund, has been set up to support improved public order management capacity, of the Sierra Leone Police force. This project will also address the need for improved operational capacity of the Sierra Leone Police Force, as well as strengthen their moral, professionalism and increased public order ahead of the country’s presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for the 11th August 2007.

Since the end of the brutal decade war, the Sierra Leone Police (SLP), has been a major player in the country’s recovery efforts providing necessary security to the population.

Not long too ago, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report, highlighted the deplorable condition of the service of the Police force as a factor of corruption and instability. Even the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) stressed the need for the proper equipment of the Police force for the police personnel to “play their roles in the national security system and also provide services to the people”.

In setting up this project, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Integrated Office for Sierra Leone (UNIOSIL) and the Department for International Development (DFID), are focussed to strengthening the Police’s capacity to ensure public order and reduce criminality through the provision of adequate modern equipment, including riot gear for the operational support Division (OSD) and the Crowd Control Units (CCU), who are all tasked with the managing of large crowds, demonstrations and gatherings. “This equipment will serve as an essential component of the security sector reform and the efforts targeted at strengthening the Sierra Leone Police force” says Victor Angelo Executive Representative of the Secretary General in Sierra Leone.

The Current project is therefore designed to fill an immediate gap and therefore ensure that the Sierra Leone Police can properly ensure that public order is maintained I the coming months and hat the democratic process, in all is manifestations and expressions, including demonstrations, proceeds peacefully. As such, the Sierra Leone Police can demonstrate that it is a force for peace and democracy.

Beneficiaries of the equipment within the Sierra Leone Police Force have recently received training in crowd control and riot response through DFID funded and UNIOSIL facilitated training.

The Project will be managed by a joint Steering Committee, Chaired by the Government of Sierra Leone (GoSL) and UNDP for a period of one year.