The General Services Section (GSS) was responsible for providing logistical and administrative support to all areas of the Court. The services provided by the section included facilities management, transport, general supply, travel, traffic, mail services, and inventory control. The section also generated 24 hour power on-site and was responsible for the provision of all utility services. Throughout the work of the Court the GSS provided multi-services to all areas of the Court. The outfitting of all work areas and the daily upkeep of the Court and grounds were managed by the Section. In addition, the Transport Section successfully managed the acquisition of a reliable transport fleet, met the demands of the steady growth in staff numbers over the years, and provided focused support to the Court positions principals.
During the initial years of the Court’s operations, GSS focused on the development of the necessary physical and support infrastructure of the Court. This included the completion of the containerized office accommodation and the consolidation of all operational activities at the complex at New England, Freetown. The issuance of the indictments in March 2003 necessitated the identification/renovation of a provisional detention facility at Bonthe, Sherbro Island located 150 km from the complex in Freetown. After the establishment of the physical infrastructure for the Court’s complex, activities focused on bringing the on-site Detention Facility up to international standards and included the renovation of one former cell block into a temporary courthouse which was suitable for holding the initial judicial proceedings. Simultaneously, an international competition was conducted for the design of the permanent courthouse. This was followed by an international competition for the actual construction of the courthouse, which was officially inaugurated on 10 March 2004.