Micronesia, Federated States of (2003) | Sierra Leone (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 states; Chuuk (Truk), Kosrae (Kosaie), Pohnpei (Ponape), Yap | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 38.4% (male 21,163; female 20,335)
15-64 years: 58.5% (male 31,746; female 31,477) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 1,558; female 1,864) (2003 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | black pepper, tropical fruits and vegetables, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), betel nuts, sweet potatoes; pigs, chickens | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish |
Airports | 7 (2002) | 10 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
Area | total: 702 sq km
land: 702 sq km water: 0 sq km (fresh water only) note: includes Pohnpei (Ponape), Chuuk (Truk) Islands, Yap Islands, and Kosrae (Kosaie) |
total: 71,740 sq km
land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC (land area only) | slightly smaller than South Carolina |
Background | In 1979 the Federated States of Micronesia, a UN Trust Territory under US administration, adopted a constitution. In 1986 independence was attained under a Compact of Free Association with the US. Present concerns include large-scale unemployment, overfishing, and overdependence on US aid. | 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. |
Birth rate | 26.47 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 45.76 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $161 million ($69 million less grants)
expenditures: $160 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
revenues: $96 million
expenditures: $351 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Palikir | name: Freetown
geographic coordinates: 8 30 N, 13 15 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; heavy year-round rainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southern edge of the typhoon belt with occasionally severe damage | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) |
Coastline | 6,112 km | 402 km |
Constitution | 10 May 1979 | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times |
Country name | conventional long form: Federated States of Micronesia
conventional short form: none former: Ponape, Truk, and Yap Districts (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) abbreviation: FSM |
conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone
conventional short form: Sierra Leone local long form: Republic of Sierra Leone local short form: Sierra Leone |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
Death rate | 5.1 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 23.03 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $53.1 million (FY 02/03 est.) | $1.61 billion (2003 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Larry M. DINGER
embassy: address NA, Kolonia mailing address: P. O. Box 1286, Kolonia, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia 96941 telephone: [691] 320-2187 FAX: [691] 320-2186 |
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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Jesse Bibiano MAREHALAU
chancery: 1725 N Street NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 223-4383 FAX: [1] (202) 223-4391 consulate(s) general: Honolulu and Tamuning (Guam) |
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 |
Disputes - international | none | 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | under terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US pledged $1.3 billion in grant aid during the period 1986-2001 | $297.4 million (2003 est.) |
Economy - overview | Economic activity consists primarily of subsistence farming and fishing. The islands have few mineral deposits worth exploiting, except for high-grade phosphate. The potential for a tourist industry exists, but the remote location, a lack of adequate facilities, and limited air connections hinder development. In November 2002, the country experienced a further reduction in future revenues from the Compact of Free Association - the agreement with the US in which Micronesia received $1.3 billion in financial and technical assistance over a 15-year period until 2001. The country's medium-term economic outlook appears fragile due not only to the reduction in US assistance but also to the slow growth of the private sector. Geographical isolation and a poorly developed infrastructure remain major impediments to long-term growth. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | NA kWh | 242.4 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | NA kWh | 260.6 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 0%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Dolohmwar (Totolom) 791 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m |
Environment - current issues | overfishing, climate change, pollution | 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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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 |
Ethnic groups | nine ethnic Micronesian and Polynesian groups | 20 African ethnic groups 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 |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used 1 | leones per US dollar - 2,889.6 (2005), 2,701.3 (2004), 2,347.9 (2003), 2,099 (2002), 1,986.2 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Joseph J. URUSEMAL (since 11 May 2003); Vice President Redley KILLION; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Joseph J. URUSEMAL (since 11 May 2003); Vice President Redley KILLION; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet elections: president and vice president elected by Congress from among the four senators at large for four-year terms; election last held 11 May 2003 (next to be held NA May 2007); note - a proposed constitutional amendment to establish popular elections for president and vice president failed election results: Joseph J. URUSEMAL elected president; percent of Congress vote - NA%; Redley KILLION elected vice president; percent of Congress vote - NA% |
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 (eligible for a second term); election last held 14 May 2002 (next to be held 28 July 2007) election results: Ahmad Tejan KABBAH reelected president; percent of vote - Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (SLPP) 70.6%, Ernest KOROMA (APC) 22.4% |
Exports | $22 million (f.o.b.) (FY 99/00 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | fish, garments, bananas, black pepper | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish |
Exports - partners | Japan, US, Guam (2000) | Belgium 66.2%, Germany 13.5%, US 4.6% (2005) |
Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | calendar year |
Flag description | light blue with four white five-pointed stars centered; the stars are arranged in a diamond pattern | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $277 million
note: $277 million $277 million GDP is supplemented by grant aid, averaging perhaps $100 million annually (2002 est.) |
- |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 50%
industry: 4% services: 46% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 49%
industry: 31% services: 21% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 1% (2002 est.) | 7.5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 6 55 N, 158 15 E | 8 30 N, 11 30 W |
Geography - note | four major island groups totaling 607 islands | rainfall along the coast can reach 495 cm (195 inches) a year, making it one of the wettest places along coastal, western Africa |
Heliports | - | 2 (2006) |
Highways | total: 240 km
paved: 42 km unpaved: 198 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 43.6% (1989) |
Imports | $149 million f.o.b. (FY 99/00 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | food, manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, beverages | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals |
Imports - partners | US, Australia, Japan (2000) | Germany 18.9%, Cote d'Ivoire 11.2%, UK 8.5%, US 6.9%, China 5.6%, Netherlands 5.4%, South Africa 4.1% (2005) |
Independence | 3 November 1986 (from the US-administered UN Trusteeship) | 27 April 1961 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | tourism, construction, fish processing, specialized aquaculture, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls | diamond mining; small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining, small commercial ship repair |
Infant mortality rate | total: 32.39 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 35.65 deaths/1,000 live births female: 28.97 deaths/1,000 live births |
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.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2002 est.) | 1% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AsDB, ESCAP, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IFRCS (associate), IMF, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO, WMO | 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, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 300 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court |
Labor force | NA | 1.369 million (1981 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | two-thirds are government employees | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 958 km
border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
Land use | arable land: 5.71%
permanent crops: 45.71% other: 48.58% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 7.95%
permanent crops: 1.05% other: 91% (2005) |
Languages | English (official and common language), Trukese, Pohnpeian, Yapese, Kosrean, Ulithian, Woleaian, Nukuoro, Kapingamarangi | 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%) |
Legal system | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws | based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Congress (14 seats; members elected by popular vote; four - one elected from each state to serve four-year terms; and 10 - elected from single-member districts delineated by population to serve two-year terms)
elections: elections for four-year term seats last held 4 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2007); elections for two-year term seats last held 4 March 2003 (next to be held NA March 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 14 |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.13 years
male: 67.39 years female: 70.95 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 40.22 years
male: 38.05 years female: 42.46 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 89% male: 91% female: 88% (1980 est.) |
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.) |
Location | Oceania, island group in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to Indonesia | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | none
note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: US 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 54 ships (1000 GRT or over) 185,037 GRT/249,996 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 36, chemical tanker 3, combination ore/oil 3, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 14 (China 2, Cyprus 1, Egypt 1, Russia 1, Syria 1, UAE 3, Ukraine 4, US 1) (2006) |
Military - note | Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) is a sovereign, self-governing state in free association with the US; FSM is totally dependent on the US for its defense | - |
Military branches | - | Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF): Army (includes Air Wing, Maritime Wing) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $14.25 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.7% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 10 May (1979) | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) |
Nationality | noun: Micronesian(s)
adjective: Micronesian; Chuukese, Kosraen(s), Pohnpeian(s), Yapese |
noun: Sierra Leonean(s)
adjective: Sierra Leonean |
Natural hazards | typhoons (June to December) | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms |
Natural resources | forests, marine products, deep-seabed minerals | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite |
Net migration rate | -20.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | no formal parties | 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 |
Population | 108,143 (July 2003 est.) | 6,005,250 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 26.7% | 68% (1989 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.04% (2003 est.) | 2.3% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Colonia (Yap), Kolonia (Pohnpei), Lele, Moen | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 47% | Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% |
Sex ratio | 1.05 male(s)/female (2003 est.) | 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.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: adequate system
domestic: islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2002) |
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) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 11,000 (2001) | 24,000 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | newly installed in Pohnpei and Yap | 113,200 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 2 (1999) |
Terrain | islands vary geologically from high mountainous islands to low, coral atolls; volcanic outcroppings on Pohnpei, Kosrae, and Chuuk | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east |
Total fertility rate | 3.5 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 6.08 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 16% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | none | 800 km (600 km year round) (2005) |