Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what reports she has received on (a) a proposed revision to the 2009 NGO Policy Regulations by the government of Sierra Leone and (b) the views of civil society organisations on that proposed revision.

The Government of Sierra Leone is consulting on revising the NGO policy guidelines. The DFID team in Sierra Leone is talking to the government, other development partners and civil society organisations. Civil society organisations we have engaged accept that government should have adequate oversight of their work, particularly where they are being funded to support government programmes and objectives. They are keen to work with government to ensure that new administrative requirements, fees and taxes are appropriate and proportionate. It will be important that the guidelines strike the right balance.