Governance institutions in rural Sierra Leone
This policy brief explores data showing how customary leaders in Sierra Leone govern rural areas, mainly through coordinating the provision of public goods. It highlights key findings and policy considerations, focusing on governance and state capacity development in contexts such as rural Sierra Leone.
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Rodríguez-Policy-Brief-April-2025.pdf
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- This policy brief discusses data showing how customary leaders in Sierra Leone govern rural areas, mainly through coordinating the provision of public goods.
- Data from this project reveals how rural citizens' contributions to local public goods appear uniform along the wealth dimension. This implies that low-income households contribute a more significant proportion of their resources.
- The previous result pattern does not change when using survey proxies for material wealth or community rankings about wellbeing.
- Women and men contribute almost the same frequency to local public goods, providing evidence that women also bear the costs of informal tax contributions.
- Social proximity to local customary leaders is also relevant for how much and what type of contributions citizens engage with. This speaks to the strategic component these leaders must address when raising funds for local projects.
- Finally, the brief highlights some policy considerations derived from this data, focusing on governance and state capacity development in contexts such as rural Sierra Leone.