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Compare Reunion (2006) - Sierra Leone (2008)

Compare Reunion (2006) z Sierra Leone (2008)

 Reunion (2006)Sierra Leone (2008)
 ReunionSierra Leone
Administrative divisions none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western*
Age structure 0-14 years: 29.8% (male 120,147/female 114,589)


15-64 years: 64% (male 248,895/female 255,156)


65 years and over: 6.2% (male 19,847/female 28,950) (2006 est.)
0-14 years: 44.8% (male 1,349,878/female 1,400,297)


15-64 years: 52% (male 1,531,763/female 1,664,996)


65 years and over: 3.2% (male 92,360/female 105,268) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish
Airports 2 (2006) 10 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006)
total: 1


over 3,047 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total: 9


914 to 1,523 m: 7


under 914 m: 2 (2007)
Area total: 2,517 sq km


land: 2,507 sq km


water: 10 sq km
total: 71,740 sq km


land: 71,620 sq km


water: 120 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Rhode Island slightly smaller than South Carolina
Background The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route. Democracy is slowly being reestablished after the civil war from 1991 to 2002 that resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (about one-third of the population). The military, which took over full responsibility for security following the departure of UN peacekeepers at the end of 2005, is increasingly developing as a guarantor of the country's stability. The armed forces remained on the sideline during the 2007 presidential election, but still look to the UN Integrated Office in Sierra Leone (UNIOSIL) - a civilian UN mission - to support efforts to consolidate peace. The new government's priorities include furthering development, creating jobs, and stamping out endemic corruption.
Birth rate 18.9 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) 45.41 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $554.7 million


expenditures: $554.7 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (1998)
revenues: $96 million


expenditures: $351 million (2000 est.)
Capital name: Saint-Denis


geographic coordinates: 20 52 S, 55 28 E


time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
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, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry (May to November), hot and rainy (November to April) tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April)
Coastline 207 km 402 km
Constitution 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times
Country name conventional long form: Department of Reunion


conventional short form: Reunion


local long form: none


local short form: Ile de la Reunion


former: Bourbon Island
conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone


conventional short form: Sierra Leone


local long form: Republic of Sierra Leone


local short form: Sierra Leone
Death rate 5.49 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) 22.64 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $NA $1.61 billion (2003 est.)
Dependency status overseas department of France -
Diplomatic representation from the US none (overseas department of France) 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) 515 000 or [232] (76) 515 000


FAX: [232] (22) 225471
Diplomatic representation in the US none (overseas department of France) chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Hassan M. CONTECH


chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009


telephone: [1] (202) 939-9261 through 9263


FAX: [1] (202) 483-1793
Disputes - international none as domestic fighting among disparate ethnic groups, rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone gradually abate, the number of refugees in border areas has begun to slowly dwindle; UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) has maintained over 4,000 peacekeepers in Sierra Leone since 1999; Sierra Leone considers excessive Guinea's definition of the flood plain limits to define the left bank boundary of the Makona and Moa rivers and protests Guinea's continued occupation of these lands including the hamlet of Yenga occupied since 1998
Economic aid - recipient $NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France (2001 est.) $343.4 million (2005 est.)
Economy - overview The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrated the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. Sierra Leone is an extremely poor nation with tremendous inequality in income distribution. While it possesses substantial mineral, agricultural, and fishery resources, its physical and social infrastructure is not well developed, and serious social disorders continue to hamper economic development. Nearly half 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 and rutile mining.
Electricity - consumption 1.107 billion kWh (2003) 227.9 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2003) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2003) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 1.19 billion kWh (2003) 245 million kWh (2005)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m


highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m
Environment - current issues NA 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 depleted natural resources; overfishing
Environment - international agreements - party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
Ethnic groups French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian 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 euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001) leones per US dollar - NA (2007), 2,961.7 (2006), 2,889.6 (2005), 2,701.3 (2004), 2,347.9 (2003)
Executive branch chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Pierre-Henry MACCIONI (since 28 August 2006)


head of government: President of the General Council Nassimah DINDAR (since NA March 2004) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993)


cabinet: NA


elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils
chief of state: President Ernest Bai KOROMA (since 17 September 2007); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Ernest Bai KOROMA (since 17 September 2007)


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 11 August 2007 and 8 September 2007 (next to be held in 2012)


election results: second round results; percent of vote - Ernest Bai KOROMA 54.6%, Solomon BEREWA 45.4%
Exports NA bbl/day 431.1 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3% diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish
Exports - partners France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2004) Belgium 52.1%, US 19.1%, Netherlands 6.8% (2006)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description unofficial, local flag designed to emphasize solidarity among the people of Reunion; the field is divided vertically with three narrow stripes of blue, white, and red along the hoist edge representing the French national flag; the remainder of the field is divided diagonally into four triangles colored (clockwise from the hoist side) blue, golden yellow, red, and green; in the center, the apexes of the triangles are surmounted by a white disk; the only official flag is the national flag of France three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 8%


industry: 19%


services: 73% (2000 est.)
agriculture: 49%


industry: 31%


services: 21% (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 2.5% (2005 est.) 6.8% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 21 06 S, 55 36 E 8 30 N, 11 30 W
Geography - note this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean 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 (2007)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: 0.5%


highest 10%: 43.6% (1989)
Imports NA bbl/day 8,864 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals
Imports - partners France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2004) Cote d'Ivoire 9.3%, US 7.7%, China 7.7%, Brazil 6.9%, UK 6.7%, Netherlands 5.5%, South Africa 4.5%, India 4.3%, France 4.2% (2006)
Independence none (overseas department of France) 27 April 1961 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate NA% NA%
Industries sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction diamond mining; small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining, small commercial ship repair
Infant mortality rate total: 7.63 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 8.37 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 6.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
total: 158.27 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 175.39 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 140.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) NA% 1% (2002 est.)
International organization participation InOC, UPU, WFTU ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIT, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Irrigated land 120 sq km (2003) 300 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court
Labor force 299,000 (2002) 1.369 million (1981 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 13%


industry: 12%


services: 75% (2000)
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: 13.94%


permanent crops: 1.59%


other: 84.47% (2005)
arable land: 7.95%


permanent crops: 1.05%


other: 91% (2005)
Languages French (official), Creole widely used 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 French law based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms)


elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA); Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2010)


election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council (second round) - percent of vote by party - PCR 44.9%, UMP 32.8%, PS-Greens 22.3%; seats by party - PCR 27, UMP 11, PS-Greens 7


note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held in 2001 (next to be held in 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRC 1, UDF 1, UMP 1; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UMP 3, PS 1, independent 1
unicameral Parliament (124 seats; 112 members elected by popular vote, 12 filled by paramount chiefs elected in separate elections; to serve five-year terms)


elections: last held on 11 August 2007 (next to be held in 2012)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - APC 59, SLPP 43, PMDC 10
Life expectancy at birth total population: 74.18 years


male: 70.78 years


female: 77.75 years (2006 est.)
total population: 40.58 years


male: 38.36 years


female: 42.87 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 88.9%


male: 87%


female: 90.8% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic


total population: 35.1%


male: 46.9%


female: 24.4% (2004 est.)
Location Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia
Map references World Africa
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm
Merchant marine registered in other countries: 1 (Bahamas 1) (2006) total: 113 ships (1000 GRT or over) 314,549 GRT/419,409 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 85, chemical tanker 4, combination ore/oil 1, container 4, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 4


foreign-owned: 47 (Belgium 1, China 8, Greece 1, Romania 2, Russia 5, Syria 8, Turkey 7, Ukraine 8, UAE 7) (2007)
Military - note defense is the responsibility of France -
Military branches no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) (2005) Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF): Army (includes Air Wing, Navy (Maritime Wing)) (2007)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP - 2.3% (2006)
National holiday Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) Independence Day, 27 April (1961)
Nationality noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)


adjective: Reunionese
noun: Sierra Leonean(s)


adjective: Sierra Leonean
Natural hazards periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms
Natural resources fish, arable land, hydropower diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) 0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population


note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2007 est.)
Political parties and leaders Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Elie HOARAU]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Michel VERGOZ]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP All People's Congress or APC [Ernest Bai KOROMA]; Peace and Liberation Party or PLP [Darlington MORRISON]; People's Movement for Democratic Change or PMDC [Charles MARGAI]; Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP [Solomon BEREWA]; numerous others
Political pressure groups and leaders NA trade unions and student unions
Population 787,584 (July 2006 est.) 6,144,562 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% 70.2% (2004)
Population growth rate 1.34% (2006 est.) 2.292% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001) AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (2001)
Religions Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) Muslim 60%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs 30%
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female


total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 0.964 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.877 male(s)/female


total population: 0.938 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis


domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network


international: country code - 262; radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia
general assessment: marginal telephone 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) (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use 300,000 (2001) 24,000 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular 579,200 (2004) 113,200 (2003)
Television broadcast stations 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001) 2 (1999)
Terrain mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east
Total fertility rate 2.45 children born/woman (2006 est.) 6.01 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 31% (2002) NA%
Waterways - 800 km (600 km year round) (2005)
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