The National Monitoring and Evaluation Directorate (NaMED) has completed a day’s consultation on the draft bill entitled: “The National Monitoring and Evaluation Act 2023”.

Director General of the Directorate, Dr. James Edwin said the proposed bill will transform the directorate into an agency that will in turn give them authority to do proper monitoring.

The purpose of the bill, he said, is to make provision for the establishment of the national monitoring and evaluation agency as an autonomous body with the authority to ensure greater accountability and transparency in the disbursement and use of public fund.

Dr. Edwin said the consultation will help stakeholders to provide ideas that they think will give the directorate more monitoring power and will in addition, address all policies and programs that will be implemented by the government.

The National Monitoring and Evaluation Directorate (NaMED) was established in 2018, to provide technical leadership and coordination for the overall national M&E agenda of Sierra Leone, within the newly re-created Ministry of Planning and Economic Development (MoPED).

President Dr. Julius Maada Bio later transferred the National Monitoring and Evaluation Department (NaMED) to National Monitoring and Evaluation Directorate (NaMED) to operate from the office of the President with his Excellency providing direct oversight in order to obtain credible data and information required for the formulation and implementation of development plans that will enable Government and its development partners to track their implementation progress and ascertain the extent to which development goals and set targets have been met.

National M&E has the potential to inform intervention tracking, inform corrective actions, planning and resource allocation, increase accountability of service providers and authorities towards citizens, and inform regulation of services and service providers.