The impact of archives and records management legislation on administrative transparency and accountability in Sierra Leone Public Archives

Abstract

Records and archives are the building blocks of transparency and accountability. The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of archives and records management legislation on administrative transparency and accountability in Sierra Leone Public Archives and to determine factors limiting the public archives from providing a framework for conducting records and archival functions in the country. A sample of eight respondents was purposively covered from a population of 10 public archives staff members who were present during the research. A mixed methods research design was employed, whereby qualitative data were collected through interviews and observation of the eight respondents stated above, while quantitative data were collected using a questionnaire. The study revealed that poor records management legislation is hampering transparency and accountability. The results further suggest that the public archives lacks the capacity to regulate current records, which are tomorrow’s archives. Poor supervision has contributed to low priority given to records management. The study recommends that the public archives should be given the power and authority to regulate the management of current records, to provide regular technical training and advice, and to review the records management legislation to promote transparency and accountability.