The establishment of Advisory Councils, County Councils and other local governance structures is important. But their existence alone will not improve the daily lives of citizens who must travel long distances to access government services, whose communities lack basic infrastructure or whose local authorities have little funding to respond to pressing needs.
The central challenge is therefore not simply to establish local government institutions, but to make them functional.
The FY2027 National Budget presents an opportunity to address this gap by making local service delivery a clearly funded national priority. Rather than concentrating primarily on administrative structures and capacity-building exercises, government must ensure that county authorities have the resources, personnel and facilities to perform defined public responsibilities.
This requires three fundamental commitments. First, predictable funding for county services. The national budget should provide transparent and reliable allocations for local priorities, including community roads, water facilities, sanitation, public markets and the maintenance of existing infrastructure. These allocations should reflect population, poverty levels, geographical challenges and the scale of service gaps across counties.
Second, functioning local service institutions. County Service Centers should be properly equipped and staffed to provide government services closer to citizens. Residents should be able to complete eligible administrative transactions, obtain information and access relevant public services without unnecessary travel to Monrovia. County administrations also need operational funding, trained personnel and functioning financial management systems.
Third, actual transfer of responsibilities and resources. Decentralization cannot work if county authorities are expected to respond to community needs without the legal authority, funding and institutional capacity to do so. The government must clearly define which responsibilities will be transferred, which ministries will retain national oversight and how resources will follow the functions assigned to local institutions.
These commitments must be reflected across the budgets of relevant ministries and agencies, not left solely to the Ministry of Local Government. The Ministry of Finance and Development Planning should provide a consolidated account of funding for county-level service delivery, identifying allocations by county, implementing institution, intended service and expected result. The Legislature should also demand measurable implementation targets and regular public reporting on funds released, projects completed and services made available.
Liberia's decentralization framework has already established the policy and legal direction. The challenge now is implementation. A county administration should not be judged by the number of meetings it holds or councils it establishes, but by whether it can help ensure that communities have functioning public facilities, accessible government services and a meaningful voice in decisions affecting their lives.
The fundamental test of the FY2027 budget should be whether it brings government closer to the people—not merely through the creation of local institutions, but through the actual delivery of services.
