The Local Governance and Services Tracker (LGST) is an innovative tool designed for citizens and authorities to work together in monitoring progress towards improved governance and service delivery. Co-hosted by the Ministry of Local Government and Institute for Governance Reform (IGR), the LGST generates regular reports using key indicators agreed by three parties (Central Government Ministries, local government and CSOs). Regular updates are presented to responsible decision makers and elected officials for action.
Data is gathered through citizen surveys and secondary sources provided by central government ministries and local councils from the six project intervention districts. This dashboard serves not only to track progress and indicate areas where action needs to be taken, but also to foster collaboration among citizens, service providers, CSOs, media, and local and central government structures. Through established feedback mechanisms like learning events, open meetings, workshops, and improved media communication, all stakeholders can work together to enhance service delivery for citizens.
Methodology of surveys
Citizens surveys use a sample size of 1920 Sierra Leoneans of 18 years of age and above. This sample size produces a 2.24% margin of error with 95% confidence interval, which exceeds the standards of baseline studies commonly used in development projects. We use a bigger sample size, to generate valid data about agricultural service delivery, which is only researched with the help of farmer respondents. According to the 2015 census, 59% of Sierra Leonean households consisted of at least one person who engaged in farming activities. This calculation means a probable 1152 respondents who will answer the farmer’s questionnaire which will still produce a 2.89% margin of error. The number of respondents and Enumeration Areas (EA) determined proportionately to the population size of the district according to the latest (2021) population census of Sierra Leone. A random sampling was used to select EAs, households and respondents with regards to the gender balance.
