SFCG Sierra Leone Evaluations

2008 External Review of ENCISS Project

Commissioned by the UK Department for International Development, this review was conduted in June 2007 by independent consultants Dr Mary Myers and Momoh Taziff Koroma. SFCG has been implement a media and outreach component of the ENCISS programme in Sierra Leone. ENCISS is a large DFID-funded programme and stands for: Enhancing the Interaction and Interface between Civil society and the State to improve Poor People's Lives. SFCG has a two year contract through CARE to implement this sub-project, entitled 'Using Media and Outreach for National and Community Engagement to Support Decentralisation and the Poverty Reduction Strategy with Civil Society Development' (2006-2008). Between 8th and 16th of June 2007 the consultnats travelled to ENCISS's three focus districts (Western Area Rural, Bonthe (including Bonthe island) and Bombali), met partners in Bo town, and conducted interviews and reviewed documents in the capital, Freetown. The findings were presented for review by DFID, CARE, ENCISS and SFCG senior staff on 15th June.

Download 2008 ENCISS Project Review

2007 Internal Evaluation of SFCG-SL Election Strategy

The strategy was assessed on five key criteria. Key findings include:

• Coverage and Reach of the Strategy Tools: The majority of respondents listened to IRN across the study areas. NEW observers were seen in the polling stations. Their roles were clearly understood by respondents. The TV episodic drama Insai di Saloon did not have the intended reach and reached only a section of the target population.
• Effectiveness and Impact of the Strategy Tools: IRN had an impact in that it effectively provided the appropriate information on the electoral process before the election. NEW observers were seen as being unbiased, not "wearing party colours" as one participant said. Although the TV drama did not have a large reach, those in the study locations who did watch Insai di saloon showed a clear understanding of the messages and the character behaviour models.
• Coordination of Strategic Partners: Discussions with strategy actors at national, regional and local levels showed that, all in all, the coordination was very good and was key in helping the strategy partners reach their goal of contributing to making the elections free from violence.
• Complementarity of and Coherence between Strategic Partners: Discussions with various partners of the strategy clearly showed that all shared the same vision of a peaceful and transparent election, and the approach of each component of the strategy was not only complementary to the others, but also necessary for the success of the other.
• Credibility of Strategic Partners: Participants showed that they trusted the NEW observers and thought the information provided on IRN radios was true. SFCG-TDS is constantly assessing its credibility among the population. The responses to questions about preferred radio programs, is a proof of respect and acceptance of TDS productions.

Download 2007 Sierra Leone Internal Evaluation
Download Appendices to 2007 Sierra Leone Internal Evaluation

2004 Evaluation of Search for Common Ground Activities in Sierra Leone

This full-programme evaluation was conducted in August by Paul Everett, Tennyson Williams and Mary Myers. The overall goal of the Talking Drum Studio programme is to build a tolerant, inclusive society for a sustainable peace. Some of the key findings include:

• Through its programming, TDS has been very successful in insuring that a flow of national information is available at the local level.
• TDS’ media programmes and similar community radio strands have been exposing issues relating to governance and development and stimulating discussions around them.
• TDS should consider developing a strategy to promote awareness and appreciation of the media among parliamentarians perhaps by forming an alliance with an appropriate parliamentary body.
• TDS’ work building alliances to engage specific issues and problems has enabled diverse and sometimes opposing groups to come together to address their common concerns

Download 2004 Sierra Leone Evaluation
Download Summary of 2004 Sierra Leone Evaluation

2002 Evaluation of Talking Drum Studio- Sierra Leone

An external evaluation by Amr Abdalla, Susan Shepler and Suleiman Hussein was conducted in March, 2002. Though each radio programming strand has a different format, each of them have the same goal: to encourage peace and reconciliation. Key findings include:

• There was a tremendous increase in listenership from about 40% in 2000 to almost 90% in 2002
• Many interviewees emphasized TDS-SL's wide reach to all regions of the country. This was regarded as a pioneering effort, especially as TDS-SL has taken the risk of reaching out to people in rebel controlled areas
• The ethnic and lingual diversity of the TDS-SL staff facilitates their sending their messages effectively to various groups of people
• The success of TDS-SL in working with children has been recognized by all. The Golden Kids program has had a great positive influence on so many children, and adults as well. This was also coupled with successes in addressing trauma healing issues among the younger generations

Download Sierra Leone 2002 Evaluation