By Abubakarr Turay (ABT)

The Mo Ibrahim Index 2013 shows that Sierra Leone has the largest 6-year (2007-2013) improvement in accountability with +14.9 score. The index statistically measures and compares year on year increase or decline in governance in Africa.

The Mo Ibrahim Index is produced by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation “established in 2006 with a focus on the critical importance of leadership and governance in Africa. By providing tools to support advancements in leadership and governance, the Foundation aims to bring about meaningful change on the continent”. The index is also used by civil society organisations to draw governments’ attention to the decline in certain areas of governance.

Sierra Leone ranks 31 out of 52 countries in Africa, making it the third of seven significant movers in the index.

The country’s efforts in the fight against corruption through the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) have seen it make continuous and remarkable progress in the accountability indicator. The Sierra Leone Anti-Corruption Commission has in the last few years been more robust in the fight against graft due to the government’s decision to grant the Commission more powers. The Commission has also secured more convictions in the corruption cases prosecuted in court. This has made the Commission to recover billions of leones of stolen public money.

The indicators used in the accountability category are accountability, transparency and corruption in the public sector; corruption and bureaucracy; accountability of public officials; corruption in government and public officials; and prosecution of abuse of office.

Sierra Leone’s highest rank is in the area of human rights in which it is positioned 14^th out of 52 countries.

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