Why Quality Matters : Rebuilding Trustworthy Local Government in Post-Conflict Sierra Leone

A broad consensus has emerged among practitioners and researchers that failure to build accountable and legitimate institutions is a critical risk factor associated with vicious circles of repeated violence. Despite this consensus, very few studies have tested the extent to which local government performance and decentralized service provision shape citizens' beliefs toward political authorities. This paper contributes to fill this gap by examining the antecedents of trustworthy local government authorities in a post-conflict and fragile setting, Sierra Leone. Taking advantage of a unique longitudinal survey, the National Public Services, it examines the impact of sub-national variation in local government performance on citizens' beliefs about the trustworthiness of local government authorities. To test the hypothesis, it uses multilevel models to exploit variation over time and within and across sub-national units in Sierra Leone. The results suggest that improvements in the quality of decentralized service delivery, as well as perceptions of local councillors' honesty, are positively associated with perceptions of local government officials as trustworthy political authorities. These findings speak to the possibility that local service provision can play a role in shaping the relationships between citizens and the state and in overcoming the root causes of fragility and conflict.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Sacks, Audrey, Larizza, Marco
Language:	English
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2012-04
Subjects:	ACCESS TO EDUCATION, ACCESS TO INFORMATION, BASIC SERVICE, BRIBES, CAPACITY BUILDING, CENSUS OF POPULATION, CITIZEN, CITIZEN NEEDS, CITIZENS, CIVIC ACTIVISM, CIVIC ENGAGEMENT, CIVIL WAR, CLINICS, COERCION, COLLAPSE, COMMUNITY ACTION, COMMUNITY GROUPS, COMMUNITY MEMBERS, COMMUNITY SURVEY, COMPLAINTS, COMPLICATIONS, CONFIDENCE, CORRUPT, CORRUPTION, DEMOCRACY, DEMOCRATIC ACCOUNTABILITY, DEMOCRATIC PROCESS, DEMOGRAPHIC FACTORS, DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, DEVELOPMENT PLANS, DEVELOPMENT POLICY, DEVELOPMENT PROCESS, DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS, ELECTORAL COMMISSION, ELF, ETHNIC GROUP, ETHNIC GROUPS, EXPERIENCED VIOLENCE, EXPOSURE TO VIOLENCE, FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSIONS, GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY, GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, GOVERNMENT CAPACITY, GOVERNMENT LEADERS, GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, GOVERNMENT POLICIES, GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS, GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATIVES, GOVERNMENT SERVICES, HEALTH CARE, HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE, HOSPITAL, HOUSEHOLD LEVEL, HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS, HYGIENE, INFORMATION AVAILABILITY, INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY, INVESTIGATION, ISOLATION, JUSTICE, KINSHIP, LARGE POPULATION, LAWS, LEADERSHIP, LOCAL AUTHORITIES, LOCAL COMMUNITIES, LOCAL DEVELOPMENT, LOCAL ELECTIONS, LOCAL GOVERNMENT, LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, LOCAL POPULATION, LOOTING, MALARIA, MEDIA, MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, MINORITY, MOBILE PHONE, MODERNIZATION, MONOPOLY, NATIONAL ELECTIONS, NATIONAL GOVERNMENT, NATIONAL GOVERNMENTS, NATIONAL POPULATION, NEWBORN, OFFICEHOLDERS, ORDINARY CITIZENS, OUTREACH ACTIVITIES, PARTY AFFILIATION, PATRONAGE, PEACE, PERSONAL SAFETY, POLICE, POLICY DISCUSSIONS, POLICY IMPLICATIONS, POLICY MAKING, POLICY RESEARCH, POLICY RESEARCH WORKING PAPER, POLITICAL MOBILIZATION, POLITICAL PARTIES, POLITICAL PARTY, POLITICAL STABILITY, POLITICIANS, POPULATION DENSITY, POPULATION SIZE, PRACTITIONERS, PRIMARY SCHOOL, PRIVATE GAIN, PROGRESS, PUBLIC GOODS, PUBLIC HEALTH, PUBLIC OFFICIALS, PUBLIC SECTOR, PUBLIC SERVICE, PUBLIC SERVICES, QUALITY OF EDUCATION, QUALITY OF HEALTH CARE, QUALITY OF SERVICES, RADIO, REFUGEE, REFUGEES, RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN CITIZENS, RESOURCE ALLOCATIONS, RESPECT, RULING PARTY, RURAL AREAS, SANCTION, SANITATION, SCARCE RESOURCES, SERVICE DELIVERY, SERVICE PROVIDERS, SERVICE PROVISION, SERVICE QUALITY, SMALL VILLAGES, SOCIAL COHESION, SOCIAL POLICIES, SOCIAL PROGRAMS, SOCIAL TENSIONS, SOCIAL WELFARE, SPOUSE, TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, TELEVISION, TRANSPARENCY, TRUST IN GOVERNMENT, UNIONS, URBAN AREAS, VIOLENCE, WARTIME VIOLENCE,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2012/04/16200029/quality-matters-rebuilding-trustworthy-local-government-post-conflict-sierra-leone https://hdl.handle.net/10986/6024
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