2000 Edition

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. A peace agreement, signed on 7 July 1999, offers hope that the country will be able to rebuild its devastated economy and infrastructure, but previous peace efforts have failed. As of late 1999, up to 6,000 UN peacekeepers were in the process of deploying to bolster the peace accord.

Area

land

71,620 sq km

total

71,740 sq km

water

120 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly smaller than South Carolina

Climate

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

Coastline

402 km

Elevation extremes

highest point

Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m

lowest point

Atlantic Ocean 0 m

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, Nuclear Test Ban, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification

Geographic coordinates

8 30 N, 11 30 W

Irrigated land

290 sq km (1993 est.)

Land boundaries

border countries

Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km

total

958 km

Land use

arable land

7%

forests and woodland

28%

other

33% (1993 est.)

permanent crops

1%

permanent pastures

31%

Location

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

Map references

Africa

Maritime claims

continental shelf

200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

territorial sea

200 nm

Natural hazards

dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (November to May); sandstorms, dust storms

Natural resources

diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite

Terrain

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

Age structure

0-14 years: 44.73% (male 1,148,264; female 1,192,533) 15-64 years: 52.16% (male 1,305,039; female 1,424,076) 65 years and over: 3.11% (male 81,291; female 81,421) (2000 est.)

Birth rate

45.63 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate

19.58 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Ethnic groups

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

Infant mortality rate

148.66 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)

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%)

Life expectancy at birth

female

48.21 years (2000 est.)

male

42.37 years

total population

45.25 years

Literacy

definition

age 15 and over can read and write English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic

female

18.2% (1995 est.)

male

45.4%

total population

31.4%

Nationality

adjective

Sierra Leonean

noun

Sierra Leonean(s)

Net migration rate

10.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)

note

by the end of 1999 refugees from Sierra Leone are assumed to be returning

Population

5,232,624 (July 2000 est.)

Population growth rate

3.67% (2000 est.)

Religions

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

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: 1 male(s)/female

total population

0.94 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

Total fertility rate

6.08 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Administrative divisions

3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western*

Capital

Freetown

Constitution

1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times

Country name

conventional long form

Republic of Sierra Leone

conventional short form

Sierra Leone

Data code

SL

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission

Ambassador Joseph MELROSE

embassy

Corner of Walpole and Siaka Stevens Streets, Freetown

mailing address

use embassy street address

telephone

(22) 226481 through 226485

Diplomatic representation in the US

chancery

1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009

chief of mission

Ambassador John Ernest LEIGH

telephone

(202) 939-9261 through 9263

Executive branch

cabinet

Ministers of State appointed by the president with the approval of the House of Representatives; the cabinet is responsible to the president

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

election results

Ahmad Tejan KABBAH elected president; percent of vote - Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (SLPP) 59.5%, John Karefa-Smart (UNPP) 40.5%

elections

president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election held 26-27 February and 15 March 1996 (next to be held NA 2001); note - president's tenure of office is limited to two five-year terms

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

FAX

(202) 483-1793

(22) 225471

Flag description

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

Government type

constitutional democracy

Independence

27 April 1961 (from UK)

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, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Legal system

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

Legislative branch

unicameral House of Representatives (80 seats - 68 elected by popular vote, 12 filled by paramount chiefs elected in separate elections; members serve five-year terms)

election results

percent of vote by party - SLPP 36.1%, UNPP 21.6%, PDP 15.3%, APC 5.7%, NUP 5.3%, DCP 4.8%, other 11.2%; seats by party - SLPP 27, UNPP 17, PDP 12, APC 5, NUP 4, DCP 3; note - first elections since the former House of Representatives was shut down by the military coup of 29 April 1992

elections

last held 26-27 February 1996 (next to be held NA 2001)

National holiday

Republic Day, 27 April (1961)

Political parties and leaders

All People's Congress or APC [Edward Mohammed TURAY, chairman]; Democratic Centre Party or DCP [Adu Aiah KOROMA]; National Democratic Alliance or NDA ; National Republican Party or NRP ; National Unity Party or NUP ; People's Democratic Party or PDP ; People's Progressive Party or PPP ; Revolutionary United Front Party or RUFP ; Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP ; United National People's Party or UNPP [John KARIFA-SMART in exile, Raymond KAMARA, acting leader]

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Agriculture - products

rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish

Budget

expenditures

$150 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1996 est.)

revenues

$96 million

Currency

1 leone (Le) = 100 cents

Debt - external

$1.15 billion (1998)

Economic aid - recipient

$203.7 million (1995)

Economy - overview

Sierra Leone has 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. 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. Bauxite and rutile mines have been shut down by civil strife. The major source of hard currency is found in the mining of diamonds, the large majority of which are smuggled out of the country. The resurgence of internal warfare in 1999 brought another substantial drop in GDP. The fate of the economy in 2000 depends on the mid-1999 peace accord holding and the rebels reopening territory under their control.

Electricity - consumption

219 million kWh (1998)

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (1998)

Electricity - imports

0 kWh (1998)

Electricity - production

235 million kWh (1998)

Electricity - production by source

fossil fuel

100%

hydro

0%

nuclear

0%

other

0% (1998)

Exchange rates

leones (Le) per US$1 - 2,324.77 (January 2000), 1,804.20 (1999), 1,563.62 (1998), 981.48 (1997), 920.73 (1996), 755.22 (1995)

Exports

$41 million (f.o.b., 1998)

Exports - commodities

diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish

Exports - partners

Benelux 49%, Spain 10%, US 8%, UK 3% (1997)

Fiscal year

1 July - 30 June

GDP

purchasing power parity - $2.5 billion (1999 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture

52%

industry

16%

services

32% (1996)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $500 (1999 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

-10% (1999 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 0.5% highest 10%: 43.6% (1989)

Imports

$166 million (f.o.b., 1998)

Imports - commodities

foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals

Imports - partners

UK 24%, Cote d'Ivoire 14%, Benelux 10%, US 8% (1997)

Industrial production growth rate

NA%

Industries

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

30% (1999 est.)

Labor force

1.369 million (1981 est.)

note

only about 65,000 wage earners (1985)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%

Population below poverty line

68% (1989 est.)

Unemployment rate

NA%

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

NA

Radio broadcast stations

AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999)

Radios

1.12 million (1997)

Telephone system

marginal telephone and telegraph service

domestic

national microwave radio relay system made unserviceable by military activities

international

satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

Telephones - main lines in use

17,000 (1995)

Telephones - mobile cellular

NA

Television broadcast stations

2 (1999)

Televisions

53,000 (1997)

Airports

10 (1999 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total

1 over 3,047 m: 1 (1999 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total

9 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 2 (1999 est.)

Heliports

1 (1999 est.)

Highways

paved

904 km

total

11,300 km

unpaved

10,396 km (1999 est.)

Merchant marine

ships by type

specialized tanker 1 (1999 est.)

total

1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,105 GRT/1,307 DWT

Ports and harbors

Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel

Railways

narrow gauge

84 km 1.067-m gauge

total

84 km used on a limited basis because the mine at Marampa is closed

Waterways

800 km; 600 km navigable year round

Military branches

Army

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$46 million (FY96/97)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

2% (FY96/97)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 1,119,540 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 543,124 (2000 est.)

Disputes - international

none

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