What are the key issues facing the private security sector in Sierra Leone? What role do private security companies (PSCs) play and what is their relationship with the public security apparatus? This report from the Department of International Politics at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth, examines the private security sector in Sierra Leone. It finds that PSCs in Sierra Leone are largely unregulated and provide services of varying quality. The Sierra Leone authorities must improve regulation and oversight of PSCs, include them in security sector reform (SSR) and consider how they contribute to development.
Perceived insecurity and lack of confidence in the police service have led to substantial growth in the private security sector in Sierra Leone. One of the key issues facing the sector is the arming of PSCs. While the sector is currently unarmed, working with armed police where firearms are needed, there are exceptions to this rule in the mining sector. One body of opinion holds that the current arrangements, with the police providing armed support, will be inadequate for future security needs. However, others view armed PSCs as dangerous and unnecessary and see current PSC-police cooperation as a model that should be extended throughout the mining sector.
- Qualifications and training: There are no government regulations or minimum standards for qualifications and training for security personnel. Training is left to individual PSCs and varies widely.
- Recruitment: While foreign PSCs are required to recruit suitable applicants through the Ministry of Labour, this regulation is not applied to local firms. Unreliable data prevents PSCs from ensuring employees have no criminal records.
- Monitoring and review: There is little evidence of effective governmental monitoring or review of PSCs, with the exception of checks on foreign firms’ labour standards.
Wages and working conditions: Adherence to regulations on pay and working conditions varies widely. There is evidence of significant exploitation of guards in terms of both pay and hours, which undermines the reliability of PSCs.
- Regulation and oversight of the private security sector must be improved. Given the limited resources and capacity of state authorities, self-regulation may in the short term be the best option for providing a professional and trustworthy private security sector.
- To ensure that security guards are sufficiently remunerated, the Ministry of Labour must enforce labour laws for both local and international PSCs.
- The private security sector should be regarded as an integral part of SSR. PSCs are an important part of Sierra Leone’s security sector, making dialogue between PSCs, the Government and international actors essential to the SSR process.
- The Government should consider the relationship between PSCs and development. While an effective private security sector will encourage foreign investment, private security could create economic enclaves that exacerbate socio-political tensions.
