External accountability

Building Responsible Government: Benin's National Evaluation System, 2007-2015

Author
Pallavi Nuka and Khady Thiam
Focus Area(s)
Country of Reform
Abstract

Beginning in 2007, Benin’s reformist leaders sought to strengthen the quality of governance and public management by instituting a system for evaluating public policies. National policies and programs often had little impact on development outcomes, and existing systems for monitoring and evaluating government initiatives were largely donor driven and designed to fit donors’ needs. As a result, the government struggled to define, prioritize, and coordinate policies within and across disparate sectors like agriculture, health, and education. With the support of newly elected president, Boni Yayi, Pascal Koupaki, Benin’s minister for planning, development and evaluation, created a bureau for policy evaluation to analyze public policies across different ministries, assess their impacts, and recommend improvements. Given the prevalence of inefficiency and ineffectiveness, the idea of evaluation initially enjoyed little political support. However, a small team based in Koupaki’s ministry, gradually built national evaluation capacities and increased internal demand for policy evaluation. By 2015, the bureau had become a permanent part of the administration, completed more than a dozen evaluation studies, and inspired the establishment of national evaluation mechanisms in West African neighbors Togo, Burkina Faso, and Mali.

Pallavi Nuka, ISS Associate Director, and Khady Thiam, of Sciences Po's Paris School of International Affairs drafted this case study based on interviews conducted in Cotonou and Abidjan in September 2015. This case study was funded by the French Development Agency. Case published April 2016.

Rachel Neild

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A
Focus Area(s)
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15
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Daniel Scher
Name
Rachel Neild
Interviewee's Position
Senior Adviser, Open Society Justice Initiative
Interviewee's Organization
Open Society Institute
Language
English
Nationality of Interviewee
British/American
Town/City
Washington, DC
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract

Rachel Neild describes police reform programs in Haiti, El Salvador and other parts of the world. She discusses extensively the challenges of effective recruitment and vetting, particularly in the presence of poor information. She goes on to discuss the process of integrating former combatants into police forces, noting that while starting police reform from scratch may have been necessary in Haiti, this need not be the case in other contexts if former forces are properly vetted and held to the same standards and qualifications as the rest of the police force. Neild goes on to discuss some of the challenges associated with the effective operationalization of the police force, including force composition, professionalization and community involvement. She concludes that policing is a “two-way street” that involves both developing and building trust of the police and ensuring that people “understand the nature of law and rights and responsibilities.”    

Profile

At the time of this interview, Rachel Neild was senior adviser on ethnic profiling and police reform with the Equality and Citizenship Program of the Open Society Justice Initiative. She previously worked with the Washington Office on Latin America, where she was involved in monitoring the Salvadoran peace accords and demilitarization policy in Haiti. She also worked with the Andean Commission of Jurists, Peru, and the Inter-American Institute for Human Rights, Costa Rica. Neild has done consultancies on human rights and policing for the Inter-American Development Bank, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and Rights and Democracy, among other organizations.

Full Audio File Size
97 MB
Full Audio Title
Rachel Nelid - Full Interview

Behar Selimi

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Focus Area(s)
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16
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Arthur Boutellis
Name
Behar Selimi
Interviewee's Position
Assistant Commissioner for Border Police
Interviewee's Organization
Kosovo Police Service
Language
English
Town/City
Pristina
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract

General Behar Selimi discusses the formation, structure, international aid relationship, and future of the Kosovan Police Service. He begins by explaining his personal involvement with Yugoslavian and then Kosovan public security service. General Selimi was part of the second class to graduate from the Kosovan police academy, which opened in 1999. He describes the original application process for the academy and the two systems of advancement within in the service, appointment and promotion. Appointment filled the higher ranks after examination by foreign supervisors and three weeks of senior management training under observation. Promotions filled vacancies in the service’s lower positions by selecting applicants from the rank below with the best combination of standardized test scores and interview evaluations. General Selimi then discusses the formation of the Kosovo Police Service, commenting on the roles of the UN Mission in Kosovo, International Police Officers, and Steve Bennett and others of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. He explains the shortcomings of non-locals and high turnover rates in the international supervision of the Kosovan Police Service. While some International Police Officers greatly aided Kosovo’s effort to establish a security service, many inhibited the service’s development and delayed the transition of power to Kosovan officials, he says. He then expresses approval of the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo, hoping that they help Kosovo integrate into the European Union and other international organizations. He concludes by discussing lack of specialization and employee benefits as challenges still facing the Kosovan Police Service’s development.    

Case Study: Building the Police Service in a Security Vacuum: International Efforts in Kovoso, 1999-2011

Profile

At the time of the interview, General Behar Selimi was the Assistant Commissioner for Border Police of the Kosovo Police Service (KPS) and Acting Deputy Commissioner. He began his career in law enforcement in 1984 as a police academy cadet in the Yugoslavian system. He later organized a union of Kosovan ex-police officers who had been terminated during the political unrest of the 1990s. General Selimi became an officer in the Kosovan Police Service in 2000, serving as a traffic officer, public relations officer, and police service’s first spokesperson. In 2003, he became a Lieutenant Colonel in charge of VIP and vital facility protection. By 2004, he was the Deputy Commissioner of Administration, overseeing internal affairs, recruitment, budget issues, audit and control, departmental logistics, and more. He was appointed Assistant Police Commissioner for Border Police in 2007. General Selimi has also trained in Germany and the U.S.

Full Audio File Size
40 MB
Full Audio Title
Behar Selimi Interview

Carlos Manuel Lopes Pereira

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Focus Area(s)
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22
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Nicolas Lemay-Hebert
Name
Carlos Manuel Lopes Pereira
Interviewee's Position
Dili District Deputy Commander
Interviewee's Organization
United Nations Police, East Timor
Language
English
Nationality of Interviewee
Portuguese
Town/City
Dili
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract
Carlos Manuel Lopes Pereira describes his work for United Nations missions in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s, and then recounts how he came to Timor-Leste with the U.N. Police. He focuses on legal issues of the U.N. policing mission, such as the complex legal traditions of Timor-Leste, the specific prosecuting procedures in Timorese law, and the differences between Kosovo, Bosnia and Timor-Leste. He describes in detail the way in which the UNPOL dealt with a series of student protests in Dili, and with the general problems of gangs, pickpocketing, cultural differences and with bureaucracy and absenteeism within the institution. He also discusses how UNPOL had been mentoring and training the National Police of Timor-Leste. 
Profile

At the time of this interview, Carlos Manuel Lopes Pereira was serving as Dili district deputy commander for the United Nations Police mission in Timor-Leste.  He was a member of the Portuguese police for 20 years. He was the commander of a police unit north of Lisbon, and had previously worked as chief supervisor in Portugal.  He served in U.N. missions in Croatia, Bosnia, Kosovo and  Timor-Leste.

Full Audio File Size
91MB
Full Audio Title
Carlos Manuel Lopes Pereira Interview

Building Strategic Capacity in the Police: Sierra Leone, 1998-2008

Author
Jonathan (Yoni) Friedman
Focus Area(s)
Country of Reform
Abstract

Sierra Leone’s police service had a reputation for abuse and corruption even before the 1991-2002 civil war that slashed its numbers by a third and all but destroyed its infrastructure. Taking office in 1996, President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah set a high priority on police reform to ensure stability for postwar reconstruction and economic development. The United Kingdom, acting through the Commonwealth, was the primary benefactor, providing equipment, trainers and even an inspector general to lead the service during the first years of reform. By 2008, the Sierra Leone police featured strong and capable senior leadership, improved capacity for criminal investigations, and a positive relationship with the Sierra Leonean public. Although concerns about the sustainability of these reforms and the feasibility of additional changes remained in 2008, the development of the Sierra Leone Police during the preceding decade was an example of successful post-conflict police reform in a West African state.


Jonathan Friedman wrote this policy note based on interviews by Arthur Boutellis in Freetown, Sierra Leone, in May 2008. Case published November 2011.

Associated Interview(s):  Keith Biddle, Robert Bradley, Kadi Fakondo, Osman Gbla, Garry Horlacher, Adrian Horn, Sheka Mansaray

Rajiv Bora

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A
Focus Area(s)
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1
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Rohan Mukherjee
Name
Rajiv Bora
Interviewee's Position
Commissioner and Secretary
Interviewee's Organization
Home and Political departments, Assam state, India
Language
English
Nationality of Interviewee
Indian
Town/City
Guwahati
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract

Rajiv Bora discusses some of the major issues and challenges the Assam government faced in terms of law and order, counterinsurgency, and illegal immigration. The Indian state has confronted demographic pressures stemming from the migration of people from what is now Bangladesh. The state has also witnessed several insurgencies, including the United Front for the Liberation of Asom and the Bodo minority. Bora describes his role in monitoring and implementing ceasefire agreements with these groups. He talks about government decentralization efforts as well as steps to secure the India-Bangladesh border. These efforts included constructing a border fence, increasing the number of border outposts, establishing tribunals for foreigners, and creating a national registry of citizens. Bora also outlines the objectives and outcomes of the recently implemented Police Act and the institutional steps taken to reduce police excesses. He describes several tribal and communal conflicts and how the government responded. He also highlights the debate about the effectiveness of offering rehabilitation packages for extremists who have surrendered.

Case Study: Promoting Peace Through Development: Assam State, India, 2001-2009

Profile

At the time of this interview, Rajiv Bora was commissioner and secretary of the Home and Political departments for the government of Assam in India. From 1998 to 2003, he served as commissioner and secretary of finance, a position in which he dealt with state finances and managed fiscal reforms.

Full Audio File Size
50 MB
Full Audio Title
Rajiv Bora - Full Interview

A. Plata

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J
Focus Area(s)
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13
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Matthew Devlin
Name
A. Plata
Interviewee's Position
Coordinator, Regional Coordination Center
Interviewee's Organization
Colombia
Language
Spanish with English Consecutive Translation
Nationality of Interviewee
Colombian
Town/City
Cartagena
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract
A. Plata discusses Colombian measures to gradually improve the efficacy of the police force. He discusses efforts to increase the size of the force in terms of both personnel and the number of police stations, as well as moves to improve training, mobility and equipment. He explains Colombian efforts to increase cooperation across regions, as well as with its neighbors. Colombia also established rural community policing, and engaged in community outreach measures to educate the public about the role of the police and their rights under the constitution, and to regain their trust.
Profile

At the time of this interview, A. Plata was the coordinator at the Regional Coordination Center in Colombia. A colonel, he served more than two decades as a member of the Colombian National Police Force, both as an administrator and as a policeman. He was in charge of the Montes de Maria region of Colombia.  

Full Audio File Size
70MB
Full Audio Title
Plata Interview

Robert Bradley

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Focus Area(s)
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2
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Arthur Boutellis
Name
Robert Bradley
Interviewee's Position
Interim Component Manager, Safety and Security
Interviewee's Organization
Justice Sector Development Programme
Language
English
Town/City
Freetown
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract
Robert Bradley details his past policing experiences and discusses his role as the manager of the Justice Sector Development Programme in the security sector reform in Sierra Leone. Bradley outlines the program's priorities: supporting the Complaints, Discipline, Internal Investigation Department to build capacity, working with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the inspector general of police, and encouraging police partnership boards at the grassroots level, where the community can hold the police accountable. Oversight agencies like the press, the courts, and non-governmental organizations also engaged in monitoring police activities. Bradley also highlights policing lessons drawn from his past experiences in Australia, Cambodia, Cyprus, Mozambique and other locales. He advises international organizations that are offering reform assistance to partner with locals who have knowledge of their country’s systems and laws. In the area of capacity building, he urges such organizations to design and develop training programs within the country, because people are more likely to accept homegrown solutions, and the outcomes last longer. 
 
Profile

At the time of this interview, Robert Bradley was the interim component manager ofsafety and security at the Justice Sector Development Programme in Freetown, Sierra Leone. His career in policing began in 1966 when he joined the former Australian Capital Territory police. In 1967, he was drafted into the army and he served in Vietnam. On his return to Australia in 1969, Bradley was reappointed to the ACT police. He participated in community policing in Jervis Bay and later, he worked on criminal investigations and in the Juvenile Aid Bureau. Bradley also served in the general policing division, which dealt primarily with positions related to United Nations work such as recruitment and training of officers for overseas deployment. He was a part of the U.N. missions to Cyprus, Cambodia and Mozambique. In 1995, Bradley resigned from the police force and set up police training programs in Bosnia, Eastern Slovenia, Mongolia and other areas.  

Full Audio File Size
63 MB
Full Audio Title
Robert Bradley - Full Interview

Oliver Somasa

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I
Focus Area(s)
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17
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Arthur Boutellis
Name
Oliver Somasa
Interviewee's Position
Deputy Inspector-General of Police
Interviewee's Organization
Sierra Leone
Language
English
Nationality of Interviewee
Sierra Leonean
Town/City
Freetown
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract
Oliver Somasa gives an account of the police reforms in Sierra Leone.  The main priorities during the reform process were boosting the police’s crowd-control capacity; strengthening their ability to fight organized crime, drug-trafficking and money laundering; and developing airport and border authority to maximize tax revenues.  Somasa talks about police vetting, recruitment, rank restructuring due to lack of distinct functions across positions, and training. He highlights the role of capacity building in professionalizing the police.  International donors and organizations like the United Nations participated in providing the necessary working tools for the reforms.  Somasa describes the challenges raised by such outside organizations, including administrative bottlenecks and the shuffling of advisers that affected the continuity of operations.  Somasa also explains the establishment of Family Support Units, which increased the reporting of domestic crimes as people gained more confidence in the police.  In addition, he describes the department in charge of complaints, discipline, and internal investigation, which enabled the public to report complaints and to seek redress.  For the analysis of the implemented reforms, Somasa highlights the importance of the monitoring and evaluation department, the change-management board, and public-perception surveys that were conducted by independent bodies. 
Profile
At the time of this interview, Oliver Somasa was the deputy inspector-general of police in Sierra Leone.  He joined the Sierra Leone Police in 1987 as an officer cadet.   He later underwent training in drug-enforcement analysis in Vienna and on returning, he became the head of the anti-narcotics squad in the Criminal Investigation Department. 
Full Audio Title
Audio file not available.

Ramchrisen Haveria

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Focus Area(s)
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15
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Nicolas Lemay-Hebert
Name
Ramchrisen Haveria
Interviewee's Position
Deputy District Commander
Interviewee's Organization
United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste
Language
English
Place (Building/Street)
National Police Headquarters
Town/City
Newtown Area, Baucau
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract
Ramchristen Haveria explains the role of the United Nations missions in Timor-Leste and in Kosovo. The main goal of the missions is to assist both countries to establish effective police systems through their mentoring program while working with the local communities. The implementation of the U.N. guidelines in both countries is quite similar. Haveria discusses how the United Nations Police (UNPOL) contributed in the improvement of order in Timor-Leste by teaching the local police ways of implementing and maintaining public order. Some of the challenges they faced in the missions were cultural and language barriers, logistics problems, and hostility in some areas. Haveria also discusses the U.N. internal management and its relationship with the local personnel and the rest of the population.
Profile

At the time of this interview, Ramchristen Haveria was the deputy district commander for the United Nations Integrated Mission in Baucau, Timor-Leste. He previously worked at the regional operations office in the Philippines. Also, he served concurrently as the station chief of the Police Community Relations Office and as the chief of the Internal Affairs Office. He also worked as the chief of the Drug Enforcement Unit and as the assistant chief of the Special Operations group. He was involved in U.N. missions in Timor-Leste and Kosovo. 

Full Audio File Size
56MB
Full Audio Title
Ramchristen Haveria Interview