About Us
Background of NMJD
The Network Movement for Justice and Development (NMJD) is a national civil society organization
The Network Movement for Justice and Development (NMJD) is a national civil society and human rights organization. It is a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), established in 1988 in Kenema, eastern Sierra Leone, with the objective of working towards building a just and self–reliant Sierra Leone, where the marginalized and exploited are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge and empowered to take control of their own lives.
The inspiration to form the organization was borne out of the collective commitment of the founders to the Preferential ‘Option for the Poor’ Orientation and the ‘See, Judge, Act’ Methodology of ‘Training for Transformation.’ NMJD focuses on empowering the people and communities, as well as strengthening their capacity, to build a free, just and democratic society where there is respect for human rights and sustainable development for the benefit of all.
NMJD is registered with the Government of Sierra Leone through the Ministry of Development and Economic Planning as a National Non-Governmental Organization (NNGO)and the Corporate Affairs Commission as a Company Limited by Guarantee Without a Share Capital. NMJD is a founding member of the Sierra Leone Association of Non-Governmental Organizations (SLANGO) and National Election Watch, a Coalition of local and international organizations in Sierra Leone with a common objective of supporting and promoting free, fair, credible, and peaceful elections. It is a member of its Strategic Management Committee.
NMJD is an NGO in Special Consultation Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations; and also Provisional Observer Status with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).
Today, NMJD has not only become a national organization with offices and staff in all the regions of the country (Freetown, Makeni, Kamakwie, Kenema, Bo, and Kono), but it has also become a vanguard for the promotion of social change. It has played (and continues to play) a pivotal role in organizing and mobilizing CSOs, CBOs, and social movements around the country into strong networks and coalitions for effective and creative engagements with strategic stakeholders at local, national, and international levels. NMJD has extended its niche of capacity building to these networks and coalitions by organizing training and other learning events for them. NMJD has also made immense progress in collaboration with like-minded organizations in creating a conducive environment, confidence, and trust for civil society to work collaboratively with government MDAs on issues that affect the general citizenry.
NMJD is a member of many national, regional, and continental civil society movements, coalitions, and networks including inter-country alliances and cross-border civil society networks such as The Mano River Union Civil Society Platform on Natural Resource Rights and Governance (MRU Platform), African Initiative on Mining Environment and Society (AIMES), International Alliance on Natural Resources in Africa (IANRA), the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme Civil Society Coalition (KP CSC). Our partners include active citizens’ movements and public and private institutions.
NMJD Strategic Plan 2021-2025
This is the second five-year Strategic Plan carved out of the twenty-five year strategic direction in the history of the Network Movement for Justice and Development (NMJD). It represents the organization’s intention to ensure that it delivers on its mandate by being focused, effective and efficient. NMJD realizes that even as available resources continue to shrink, public expectation and demand for quality services continue to rise. As such, NMJD will have to deliver more with less. This requires greater efficiency and application of resources where they are most needed.
Year Strategic Plan_2016-2020
This document describes NMJD’s preferred framework and approaches to bridging the gap between the present economic, social, cultural, environmental, technological and political trends and situations and the desired future. The gap in the context presents a unique challenge for NMJD, its partners and beneficiaries. Therefore, to enhance its ability to adapt to and manage well consequences of the change in context, the strategic direction is informed by a review of the operating context in Sierra Leone; to assess evidence of change in the environment and build the understanding of the impact of the change on the organization’s work through programme implementation experiences, strategy review workshops facilitated by “Think Africa Institute”, contributions by key stakeholders and various conversations with Management.
25 Years Strategic Plan
The purpose of this NMJD strategic direction is to provide a framework for engagement in Sierra Leone in the next 25 years. The strategy establishes a baseline, highlights a number of “drivers of change”, key assumptions and risks Sierra Leone will face as it moves toward 2041. In February 2012 the government of Sierra Leone (GOSL) organized the Sierra Leone Conference on Development and Transformation (SLCDT) with the aim of presenting a vision of Sierra Leone transformed into a middle income country by 2035 and into a net lender within 50 years. Both NMJD and the Government are consistent in terms of adopting long range strategic directions for Sierra Leone....
OUR VISION
A just and self-reliant society (Sierra Leone) where women, men, children and communities are conscientized and live-in dignity without fear and discrimination, especially on grounds of sex, race, faith, socio-economic and political status.
OUR MISSION
The Network Movement for Justice and Development is a Sierra Leonean civil society organization that engages in advocacy and strengthens/enhances the capacity of civil society organizations to effectively engage women, men, children, communities, government and other actors for the transformation of society.
NMJD Core Values
We believe in resilience, perseverance and motivation to work together in pursuance of genuine and progressive change in society.
We believe in the promotion of a culture of inclusion and participation of all partners and stakeholders.
We recognize the importance of mutual accountability and transparency as a practice, which promote trust and sustainable development without discrimination. We regard these as values that NMJD is obliged not only to promote through its work and those it interacts with, but a culture to be role modeled for others.
We recognize the dignity of every person and strive to listen to the views and opinions of others and promote and protect this dignity in all our activities.
We recognize the value of women’s contribution to society and that this value has been demeaned and undermined for a long time. We thus seek to raise their status and empower them not only to be recognized, but to speak up and be heard. We believe that this can best be achieved by women, together with men, who are sensitive to and aware of the unequal treatment and injustice suffered by women. We commit to promote such instruments like CEDAW etc.
We believe that all persons have a right to self-determination and, as such, ensure that this right is promoted and protected in all aspects of our work.
We believe that by working in teams we are able to support one another and thus create greater impacts in our work.
We believe in socio-cultural and economic transformation at all levels as the basic solution to poverty in Sierra Leone. We also believe that self-transformation among individuals is the force necessary to drive and achieve collective change. We therefore strive in all our activities to institute systems and practices, which promote reflection, learning and sharing as a vehicle to achieve social and economic change.
We believe in partnership as a strong means to realizing our mission and vision. We therefore believe that all stakeholders (primary and secondary) should be involved in decision-making and implementation of all NMJD’s activities. “Mutuality in Development Cooperation” is our watch phrase.
We believe in solidarity with all those with whom we think alike and remaining steadfast in our commitment to stand by the poor in their struggle to address the root causes of poverty.
NMJD aspires to continue to be the vanguard for social change by facilitating the mobilization and organization of social movements and enhancing their capacity to engage at all levels for socio-economic, cultural and political transformation using innovative approaches and promoting alternative value systems.
For the purposes of its work, NMJD understands poverty as “A condition where individuals, families and local communities are unable to meet their basic requirements for survival with dignity on a sustainable basis; and government is unable to fulfil its obligations to the people”.
CORE DISTINCTIVE ADVANTAGES
NMJD is a national Civil Society Organization established in 1988. We have many years of development, campaigning and influencing experience using participatory and human rights-based approaches. We take part in rights-based programmes with other partners from analysis, programme design, reviews and implementation. We work towards enabling people to achieve social change by facilitating the mobilization and organization of Social Movements and enhancing their capacity to engage at all levels for socio-‐economic, cultural, technological and political transformation using innovative approaches and promoting alternative value systems.
We have national presence and capacity to understand opportunities and threats in the operating environment of Sierra Leone and a wide constituency reach. We work in diverse contexts and adapt our work accordingly. We are present in all the regions of the country, namely Southern, Eastern, Northern, North-Western and Western regions of Sierra Leone.
NMJD is well positioned to work in partnership. We have long standing experience working with local and international partners, communities and their representative organizations. We have strategic and project relationships with partners. We are a member of many national, regional and continental civil society movements, coalitions and networks including inter-country alliances and cross-border civil society networks such as The Mano River Union Civil Society Platform on Natural Resource Rights and Governance (MRU Platform), African Initiative on Mining Environment and Society (AIMES), International Alliance on Natural Resources in Africa (IANRA), the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme Civil Society Coalition (KP CSC). Our partners include active citizens movements, public and private institutions.