Map of Sierra Leone | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: Since 1991 civil war between the government and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (well over one-third of the population) many of whom are now refugees in neighboring countries. After several setbacks the end to the eleven-year conflict in Sierra Leone may finally be near at hand. With the support of the UN peacekeeping force and contributions from the World Bank and international community demobilization and disarmament of the RUF and Civil Defense Forces (CDF) combatants has been completed. Reestablishment of government authority throughout the country is slowly proceeding and national elections took place in May 2002.


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Location: Western Africa bordering the North Atlantic Ocean between Guinea and Liberia

Geographic coordinates: 8 30 N 11 30 W

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 71,740 km²
Water: 120 km²
Land: 71,620 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than South Carolina

Land boundaries
Total: 958 km
Border countries: (2) Guinea 652 km; , Liberia 306 km

Coastline: 402 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 NM
Contiguous zone: 24 NM
Exclusive economic zone: 200 NM

Climate: tropical; hot humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April)

Terrain: coastal belt of mangrove swamps wooded hill country upland plateau mountains in east

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m

Natural resources: diamonds titanium ore bauxite iron ore gold chromite

Land use
Arable land: 6.76%
Permanent crops: 0.78%
Other: 92.46% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 290 km² (1998 est.)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: dry sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms dust storms

Geography
Note: rainfall along the coast can reach 495 cm (195 inches) a year making it one of the wettest places along coastal western Africa


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Population: 5,614,743 (July 2002 est.)
Growth rate: 3.21% (2002 est.)
Below poverty line: 68% (1989 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Sierra Leonean
Adjective: Sierra Leonean

Ethnic groups: 20 native African tribes 90% (Temne 30% Mende 30% other 30%) Creole (Krio) 10% (descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area in the late-18th century) refugees from Liberia's recent civil war small numbers of Europeans Lebanese Pakistanis and Indians

Languages: English (official regular use limited to literate minority) Mende (principal vernacular in the south) Temne (principal vernacular in the north) Krio (English-based Creole spoken by the descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area a lingua franca and a first language for 10% of the population but understood by 95%)

Religions: Muslim 60% indigenous beliefs 30% Christian 10%

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 44.7% (male 1,230,530; female 1,280,084)
15-64 years: 52.1% (male 1,397,070; female 1,528,986)
65 years and over: 3.2% (male 87,256; female 90,817) (2002 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 3.21% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 44.58 births/1000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 18.83 deaths/1000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate
Note: by the end of 1999 refugees from Sierra Leone are assumed to be returning (2002 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: rapid population growth pressuring the environment; overharvesting of timber expansion of cattle grazing and slash-and-burn agriculture have resulted in deforestation and soil exhaustion; civil war depleting natural resources; overfishing
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: Environmental Modification

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male/female
Under 15 years: 0.96 male/female
15-64 years: 0.91 male/female
65 years and over: 0.96 male/female
Total population: 0.94 male/female (2002 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 144.38 deaths/1000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 45.96 years
Female: 49.01 years (2002 est.)
Male: 43.01 years

Total fertility rate: 5.94 children born/woman (2002 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 2.99% (1999 est.)
People living with hivaids: 68,000 (1999 est.)
Deaths: 8,200 (1999 est.)

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic
Total population: 31.4%
Male: 45.4%
Female: 18.2% (1995 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone
Conventional short form: Sierra Leone

Government type: constitutional democracy

Capital: Freetown

Administrative divisions: 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern Northern Southern Western*

Dependent areas

Independence: 27 April 1961 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day 27 April (1961)

Constitution: 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times

Legal system: based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (since 29 March 1996, reinstated 10 March 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (since 29 March 1996, reinstated 10 March 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Cabinet: Ministers of State appointed by the president with the approval of the House of Representatives; the cabinet is responsible to the president
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 14 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007); note - president's tenure of office is limited to two five-year terms
Election results: Ahmad Tejan KABBAH reelected president; percent of vote - Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (SLPP) 70.6%, Ernest KOROMA 22.4%

Legislative branch
Elections: last held 14 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007)
Election results: percent of vote by party - SLPP 70.06%, APC 22.35%, PLP 3%, others 4.59%; seats by party - SLPP 83, APC 27, PLP 2

Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court

Political parties and leaders: All People's Congress or APC [Alhaji Sat KOROMA interim chairman]; Citizens United for Peace and Progress or CUPP [Alfred Musa CONTEH interim chairman]; Coalition for Progress Party or CPP [Jeridine WILLIAM-SARHO interim leader]; Democratic Center Party or DCP [Adu Aiah KOROMA]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [George E. L. PALMER]; Democratic Party or DP [Henry BALO acting chairman]; National Alliance Democratic Party or NADP [Mohamed Yahya SILLAH chairman]; National Democratic Alliance or NDA [Amadu M. B. JALLOH]; National People's Party or NPP [Andrew TURAY]; National Republican Party or NRP [Stephen Sahr MAMBU]; National Unity Movement or NUM [Sam LEIGH interim chairman]; National Unity Party or NUP [John BENJAMINE interim leader]; Peace and Liberation Party or PLP [Darlington MORRISON interim chairman]; People's Democratic Alliance or PDA [Cpl. (Ret.) Abdul Rahman KAMARA interim chairman]; People's Democratic Party or PDP [Osman KAMARA]; People's National Convention or PNC [Edward John KARGBO]; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Abass Chernok BUNDU chairman]; Revolutionary United Front Party or RUFP [Foday Saybana SANKOH chairman]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Andrew Victor LUNGAY]; Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP [Ahmad Tejan KABBAH chairman]; United National People's Party or UNPP [John KAREFA-SMART in exile Raymond KAMARA acting leader]; Young People's Party or YPP [Cornelius DEVEAUS interim chairman]

International organization participation: ACP AfDB C CCC ECA ECOWAS FAO G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICFTU ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC IOM ITU NAM OAU OIC OPCW (signatory) UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNIDO UPU WCL WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTrO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Ibrahim M. KAMARA
In the us fax: [1] (202) 483-1793
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 939-9,261 through 9,263
In the us chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20,009
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Peter Russell CHAVEAS
From the us embassy: Corner of Walpole and Siaka Stevens Streets, Freetown
From the us mailing address: use embassy street address
From the us telephone: [232] (22) 226,481 through 226,485
From the us fax: [232] (22) 225,471

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of light green (top) white and light blue

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Sierra Leone is an extremely poor African nation with tremendous inequality in income distribution. It does have substantial mineral agricultural and fishery resources. However the economic and social infrastructure is not well developed and serious social disorders continue to hamper economic development following a 10-year civil war. About two-thirds of the working-age population engages in subsistence agriculture. Manufacturing consists mainly of the processing of raw materials and of light manufacturing for the domestic market. There are plans to reopen bauxite and rutile mines shut down during the conflict. The major source of hard currency consists of the mining of diamonds. The fate of the economy depends upon the maintenance of domestic peace and the continued receipt of substantial aid from abroad.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: 3% (2001 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $500 (2001 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 43%
Industry: 27%
Services: 30% (2000)

Agriculture products: rice coffee cocoa palm kernels palm oil peanuts; poultry cattle sheep pigs; fish

Industries: mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages textiles cigarettes footwear); petroleum refining

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Labor force
Note: only about 65,000 wage earners (1985) (1981 est.)
By occupation agriculture: NA%
By occupation industry: NA%
By occupation services: NA%

Unemployment rate: NA%

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 68% (1989 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 1%
Highest 10: 44% (1989) (1989)

Distribution of family income gini index: 63 (1989)

Budget
Revenues: $96 million
Expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) (2000 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 15% (2000 est.)

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $65 million f.o.b. (2000 est.)
Commodities: diamonds rutile cocoa coffee fish
Partners: NZ 33.7% Belgium 32.6% US 7.4% France 5.1% (2000)

Imports: $145 million f.o.b. (2000 est.)
Commodities: foodstuffs machinery and equipment fuels and lubricants chemicals
Partners: Czech Republic 26.7% UK 26.6% US 5.1% Netherlands 4.6% (2000)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $1.3 billion (2000)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: leones per US dollar - 2,212 (January 2002) 1985.89 (2001) 2,092 (2000) 1804.20 (1999) 1563.62 (1998) 981.48 (1997)


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Electricity
Production: 245 million kWh (2000)
Production by source fossil fuel: 100%
Production by source hydro: 0%
Production by source other: 0% (2000)
Production by source nuclear: 0%
Consumption: 227.85 million kWh (2000)
Exports: 0 kWh (2000)
Imports: 0 kWh (2000)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 25,000 (2001)
Mobile cellular: 30,000 (2001)

Telephone system
General assessment: marginal telephone and telegraph service
Domestic: The national microwave radio relay trunk system connects Freetown to Bo and Kenema (April 2001)
International: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Broadcast media

Internet
Country code: .sl
Service providers isps: 1 (2001)
Users: 20,000 (2001)

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $10.3 million (FY01)
Percent of gdp: 1.5% (FY01)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 10 (2001)
With paved runways total: 1
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1 (2002)
With unpaved runways total: 9
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 2 (2002)
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 7

Heliports: 2 (2002)

Pipelines

Railways
Total: 84 km
Narrow gauge: 84 km 1.067-m gauge
Note: Sierra Leone has no common carrier railroads; the existing railroad is private and used on a limited basis while the mine at Marampa is closed (2001)

Roadways

Waterways: 800 km (of which 600 km navigable year round)

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: ongoing conflict in Sierra Leone has engendered refugee movements into neighboring Guinea and Liberia

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs