Opportunities and Challenges of Public Finance Management in Sierra Leone

Abstract

The public sector of the economy, as a rule,  established itself as a leading  choice in the economy of Sierra Leone. The effective functioning of this sector depends on qualified management, to make management decisions with respect to such organizations.

It should be noted that the most modern management technologies in the field of finance developed and proved to be successful in practice for commercial organizations. Commercial organizations are aimed at profit and welfare of its shareholders. These goals are easily measurable and formalized in enough indicators showing the achievement of the organization's business objectives.

The entities of the public sector are significantly different from commercial organizations. The purpose of entity of public sector is to provide public goods, such as services in the field of law enforcement, health, education and others, rather than increasing shareholder wealth. The economic effect of such services is difficult to measure. The effect of the provision of those services cannot be measured by referring to the cost benefits, because the benefits of such services are impossible to calculate in monetary terms. For example, benefits from the provision of health services, is to increase the public health of the nation. The complexity in measuring of the effectiveness of public sector entities requires the use of appropriate tools by management in the field of public finance management.