Sierra Leone– 2004- Local Government Elections

In the wake of a brutal civil war, Sierra Leone embarked on a remarkable journey to rebuild its democratic institutions and renew citizens’ trust in government. The 2004 local government elections—Sierra Leone’s first in three decades—marked a turning point in this process, laying the foundations for more credible, transparent, and inclusive elections. These efforts culminated in the country’s first peaceful transfer of power from one party to another following the 2007 presidential elections.

The path to these achievements was not without challenges. Decades of political rivalry, corruption, and instability had left deep scars on Sierra Leone’s political culture. However, determined local leadership—bolstered by international support—helped drive critical reforms forward. Key innovations included the creation of a national radio network to broadcast live election results and a carefully managed system to ensure clean, transparent payments to election workers. A pivotal moment came with the appointment of Christiana Thorpe, a respected and politically independent figure, as Chief Electoral Commissioner, reinforcing public confidence ahead of the fiercely contested 2007 elections.

In this recording, Sylvia Fletcher, who served as Senior Governance Advisor for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Sierra Leone Country Office (2002–2006), tells the story of Sierra Leone’s 2004 local government elections and the subsequent electoral reforms. She highlights how national leadership, grassroots innovation, and international collaboration came together to strengthen electoral integrity, restore public trust, and help a war-torn nation chart a new democratic course.

Sylvia A. Fletcher is a senior consultant to the United Nations on democratic governance and early recovery, including assignments in Iraq, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Ukraine, Venezuela, Myanmar, and the Liptako-Gourma countries (West Africa). She served the United Nations for over 10 years in peacekeeping and post-conflict governance: UN Missions to South Sudan and Sudan as chief of Recovery, Reintegration and Peace-building and Principal Civil Affairs Officer (2010 – 2012); UNDP Iraq Governance Cluster Leader and UN Policy Group Coordinator in Baghdad (2008-2010); UNDP governance portfolios in Somalia (2006-2007) and Sierra Leone (2002-2006). She worked for USAID’s Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI) in Haiti, Nigeria, Liberia and Sierra Leone (1995-2001), participating in Sierra Leone’s peace negotiations, conflict diamonds initiatives, reintegration of ex-combatants, local governance and elections, among other issues. Ms Fletcher was a businessperson and macroeconomist for 23 years in Costa Rica, specialized in trade and international marketing.  She was President of the Costa Rican Chamber of Exporters, representing the private sector on structural adjustment, trade negotiations and GATT/WTO accession, taught international marketing and published many articles on trade and development. She co-founded an NGO for micro-credit and business development for women in Costa Rica. Born in Chile, Sylvia Fletcher holds a BA (Political Science) from Wellesley College (USA) and an MPA (economics) from Princeton University (USA).