Sierra Leone

§1. Sierra Leone Introduction

Background:
  The government is slowly reestablishing its authority after the 1991 to
  2002 civil war that resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the
  displacement of more than 2 million people (about one-third of the
  population). The last UN peacekeepers withdrew in December 2005, leaving
  full responsibility for security with domestic forces, but a new civilian
  UN office remains to support the government. Mounting tensions related to
  planned 2007 elections, deteriorating political and economic conditions in
  Guinea, and the tenuous security situation in neighboring Liberia may
  present challenges to continuing progress in Sierra Leone's stability.

§2. Sierra Leone Geography

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

Geographic coordinates:
  8 30 N, 11 30 W

Map references:
  Africa

Area:
  total: 71,740 km²
  land: 71,620 km²
  water: 120 km²

Area - comparative:
  slightly smaller than South Carolina

Land boundaries:
  total: 958 km
  border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km

Coastline:
  402 km

Maritime claims:
  territorial sea: 12 nm
  contiguous zone: 24 nm
  exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
  continental shelf: 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
  highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m

Natural resources:
  diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite

Land use:
  arable land: 7.95%
  permanent crops: 1.05%
  other: 91% (2005)

Irrigated land:
  290 km² (1998 est.)

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

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

Environment - international agreements:
  party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
    Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer
    Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
  signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification

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

§3. Sierra Leone People

Population:
  6,005,250 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
  0-14 years: 44.8% (male 1,321,563/female 1,370,721)
  15-64 years: 52% (male 1,494,502/female 1,625,733)
  65 years and over: 3.2% (male 90,958/female 101,773) (2006 est.)

Median age:
  total: 17.4 years
  male: 17.1 years
  female: 17.7 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
  2.3% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
  45.76 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
  23.03 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
  0.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population
  note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning
    (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
  at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
  under 15 years: 0.96 male(s)/female
  15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
  65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female
  total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
  total: 160.39 deaths/1,000 live births
  male: 177.47 deaths/1,000 live births
  female: 142.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
  total population: 40.22 years
  male: 38.05 years
  female: 42.46 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
  6.08 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
  7% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
  170,000 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
  11,000 (2001 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
  degree of risk: very high
  food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A,
    and typhoid fever
  vectorborne diseases: malaria and yellow fever are high risks in some
    locations
  water contact disease: schistosomiasis
  aerosolized dust or soil contact disease: Lassa fever (2005)

Nationality:
  noun: Sierra Leonean(s)
  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

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

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%)

Literacy:
  definition: age 15 and over can read and write English, Mende, Temne, or
    Arabic
  total population: 29.6%
  male: 39.8%
  female: 20.5% (2000 est.)

§4. Sierra Leone Government

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*

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

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 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 (APC) 22.4%

Legislative branch:
  unicameral Parliament (124 seats - 112 elected by popular vote, 12 filled
  by paramount chiefs elected in separate elections; members serve five-year
  terms)
  elections: last held 14 May 2002 (next to be held 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 [Ben KANU]; Peace and Liberation Party or PLP
  [Darlington MORRISON, interim chairman]; Sierra Leone People's Party or
  SLPP [Sama BANYA]; numerous others

Political pressure groups and leaders:
  trade unions and student unions

International organization participation:
  ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM,
  IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIGA,
  NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO,
  WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
  chief of mission: Ambassador Ibrahim M. KAMARA
  chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
  telephone: [1] (202) 939-9261 through 9263
  FAX: [1] (202) 483-1793

Diplomatic representation from the US:
  chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas N. HULL
  embassy: Corner of Walpole and Siaka Stevens Streets, Freetown
  mailing address: use embassy street address
  telephone: [232] (22) 226481 through 226485
  FAX: [232] (22) 225471

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

§5. Sierra Leone Economy

Economy - overview:
  Sierra Leone is an extremely poor African nation with tremendous inequality
  in income distribution. While it possesses substantial mineral,
  agricultural, and fishery resources, its economic and social infrastructure
  is not well developed, and serious social disorders continue to hamper
  economic development. 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. Alluvial diamond mining remains the major source of hard currency
  earnings, accounting for nearly half of Sierra Leone's exports. The fate of
  the economy depends upon the maintenance of domestic peace and the
  continued receipt of substantial aid from abroad, which is essential to
  offset the severe trade imbalance and supplement government revenues. The
  IMF has completed a Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility program that
  helped stabilize economic growth and reduce inflation. A recent increase in
  political stability has led to a revival of economic activity, such as the
  rehabilitation of bauxite mining.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
  $5.022 billion (2005 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
  $1.107 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
  5.5% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
  $900 (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
  agriculture: 49%
  industry: 31%
  services: 21% (2001 est.)

Labor force:
  1.369 million (1981 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
  agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%

Unemployment rate:
  NA%

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

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
  lowest 10%: 0.5%
  highest 10%: 43.6% (1989)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
  62.9 (1989)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  1% (2002 est.)

Budget:
  revenues: $96 million
  expenditures: $351 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000
    est.)

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

Industries:
  diamond mining; small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes,
  footwear); petroleum refining, small commercial ship repair

Industrial production growth rate:
  NA%

Electricity - production:
  260.6 million kWh (2003)

Electricity - consumption:
  242.4 million kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports:
  0 kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports:
  0 kWh (2003)

Oil - production:
  0.8361 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - consumption:
  6,510 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:
  NA bbl/day

Oil - imports:
  NA bbl/day

Natural gas - production:
  0 m³ (2003 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
  0 m³ (2003 est.)

Exports:
  $185 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:
  diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish

Exports - partners:
  Belgium 61.6%, Germany 11.8%, US 5.4% (2004)

Imports:
  $531 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:
  foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals

Imports - partners:
  Germany 14%, Cote d'Ivoire 10.7%, UK 9.1%, US 8.4%, China 5.6%, Netherlands
  5%, South Africa 4.1% (2004)

Debt - external:
  $1.61 billion (2003 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
  $297.4 million (2003 est.)

Currency (code):
  leone (SLL)

Exchange rates:
  leones per US dollar - 2,889.6 (2005), 2,701.3 (2004), 2,347.9 (2003),
  2,099 (2002), 1,986.2 (2001)

Fiscal year:
  calendar year

§6. Sierra Leone Communications

Telephones - main lines in use:
  24,000 (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
  113,200 (2003)

Telephone system:
  general assessment: marginal telephone and telegraph service
  domestic: the national microwave radio relay trunk system connects Freetown
    to Bo and Kenema
  international: country code - 232; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat
    (Atlantic Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations:
  AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999)

Television broadcast stations:
  2 (1999)

Internet country code:
  .sl

Internet hosts:
  277 (2004)

Internet users:
  2,005 (2005)

§7. Sierra Leone Transportation

Airports:
  10 (2005)

Airports - with paved runways:
  total: 1
  over 3,047 m: 1 (2005)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
  total: 9
  914 to 1,523 m: 7
  under 914 m: 2 (2005)

Heliports:
  2 (2005)

Roadways:
  total: 11,300 km
  paved: 904 km
  unpaved: 10,396 km (2002)

Waterways:
  800 km (600 km year round) (2005)

Merchant marine:
  total: 8 ships (1000 GRT or over) 43,420 GRT/73,931 DWT
  by type: cargo 3, chemical tanker 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 3
  foreign-owned: 3 (Russia 1, Ukraine 1, UAE 1) (2005)

Ports and terminals:
  Freetown, Pepel, Sherbro Islands

§8. Sierra Leone Military

Military branches:
  Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF): Army (includes Air Wing,
    Maritime Wing)

Military service age and obligation:
  18 years of age (est.); no conscription (2001)

Manpower available for military service:
  males age 18-49: 1,110,077 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
  males age 18-49: 552,785 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
  $14.25 million (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
  1.7% (2005 est.)

§9. Sierra Leone Transnational Issues

Disputes - international:
  domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs
  in Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone perpetuate
  insurgencies, street violence, looting, arms trafficking, ethnic conflicts,
  and refugees in border areas; UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) has
  maintained over 4,000 peacekeepers in Sierra Leone since 1999; Sierra Leone
  pressures Guinea to remove its forces from the town of Yenga occupied since
  1998

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
  refugees (country of origin): 65,433 (Liberia) (2005)


<Factbook 2006>
