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Compare Sierra Leone (2001) - British Virgin Islands (2007)

Compare Sierra Leone (2001) z British Virgin Islands (2007)

 Sierra Leone (2001)British Virgin Islands (2007)
 Sierra LeoneBritish Virgin Islands
Administrative divisions 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* none (overseas territory of the UK)
Age structure 0-14 years:
44.73% (male 1,190,207; female 1,237,326)

15-64 years:
52.12% (male 1,351,455; female 1,477,155)

65 years and over:
3.15% (male 84,364; female 86,111) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 20.2% (male 2,410/female 2,337)


15-64 years: 74.5% (male 9,004/female 8,534)


65 years and over: 5.4% (male 665/female 602) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish
Airports 11 (2000 est.) 3 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total:
1

over 3,047 m:
1 (2000 est.)
total: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
10

914 to 1,523 m:
7

under 914 m:
3 (2000 est.)
total: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)
Area total:
71,740 sq km

land:
71,620 sq km

water:
120 sq km
total: 153 sq km


land: 153 sq km


water: 0 sq km


note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Jost van Dyke
Area - comparative slightly smaller than South Carolina about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC
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 in July 1999, collapsed in May 2000 after the RUF took over 500 UN peacekeepers hostage. The RUF stepped up attacks on Guinea in December 2000, despite a cease-fire that it signed with the Freetown government one month earlier. As of late 2000, up to 13,000 UN peacekeepers were protecting the capital and key towns in the south. A UK force of 750 was helping to reinforce security and train the Sierra Leone army. First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands from 1872-1960; they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency.
Birth rate 45.11 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 14.82 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues:
$96 million

expenditures:
$351 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
revenues: $204.7 million


expenditures: $180.4 million (2004)
Capital Freetown name: Road Town


geographic coordinates: 18 27 N, 64 37 W


time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds
Coastline 402 km 80 km
Constitution 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times 13 June 2007
Country name conventional long form:
Republic of Sierra Leone

conventional short form:
Sierra Leone
conventional long form: none


conventional short form: British Virgin Islands


abbreviation: BVI
Currency leone (SLL) -
Death rate 19.19 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $1.28 billion (1999) $36.1 million (1997)
Dependency status - overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph H. MELROSE, Jr.

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
none (overseas territory of the UK)
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador John Ernest LEIGH

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

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

FAX:
[1] (202) 483-1793
none (overseas territory of the UK)
Disputes - international civil war has engendered massive refugee movements into neighboring Guinea and Liberia none
Economic aid - recipient $203.7 million (1995) $NA
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. 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, with GNP recovering part of the way in 2000. The fate of the economy depends upon the maintenance of domestic peace and the continued receipt of substantial aid from abroad. The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 820,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 2005. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, made the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the US dollar as its currency since 1959.
Electricity - consumption 223.2 million kWh (1999) 41.85 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 240 million kWh (1999) 45 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
100%

hydro:
0%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m

highest point:
Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m


highest point: Mount Sage 521 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 limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments)
Environment - international agreements party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
-
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-18th century), refugees from Liberia's recent civil war, small numbers of Europeans, Lebanese, Pakistanis, and Indians black 83%, other 17% (includes white, Indian, Asian and mixed)
Exchange rates leones per US dollar - 1,653.39 (January 2001), 2,092.13 (2000), 1,804.20 (1999), 1,563.62 (1998), 981.48 (1997), 920.73 (1996) the US dollar is used
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 held 26-27 February and 15 March 1996 (next to be held NA September 2001); note - president's tenure of office is limited to two five-year terms

election results:
Ahmad Tejan KABBAH elected president; percent of vote - Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (SLPP) 59.5%, John KAREFA-SMART (UNPP) 40.5%
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor David PEAREY (since 18 April 2006)


head of government: Premier Ralph T. O'NEAL (since 23 August 2007)


cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the House of Assembly


elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed premier by the governor
Exports $65 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand
Exports - partners Belgium 38%, US 6%, Italy 4%, UK 4% (1999) Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2006)
Fiscal year calendar year 1 April - 31 March
Flag description three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful)
GDP purchasing power parity - $2.7 billion (2000 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
43%

industry:
26%

services:
31% (1999)
agriculture: 1.8%


industry: 6.2%


services: 92% (1996 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $510 (2000 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 4.2% (2000 est.) 1% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 8 30 N, 11 30 W 18 30 N, 64 30 W
Geography - note - strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico
Heliports 1 (2000 est.) -
Highways total:
11,300 km

paved:
904 km

unpaved:
10,396 km (1997)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
0.5%

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


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs - transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering
Imports $145 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery
Imports - partners UK 34%, US 8%, Italy 7%, Nigeria 5% (1999) Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2006)
Independence 27 April 1961 (from UK) none (overseas territory of the UK)
Industrial production growth rate NA% NA%
Industries mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center
Infant mortality rate 146.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 16.13 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 18.82 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 13.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 15% (2000 est.) 2% (2005)
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 Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate), UPU
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 1 (2000) -
Irrigated land 290 sq km (1993 est.) NA
Judicial branch Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction
Labor force 1.369 million (1981 est.)

note:
only about 65,000 wage earners (1985)
12,770 (2004)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% agriculture: 0.6%


industry: 40%


services: 59.4% (2005)
Land boundaries total:
958 km

border countries:
Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km
0 km
Land use arable land:
7%

permanent crops:
1%

permanent pastures:
31%

forests and woodland:
28%

other:
33% (1993 est.)
arable land: 20%


permanent crops: 6.67%


other: 73.33% (2005)
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%) English (official)
Legal system based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction English law
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)

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

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
unicameral House of Assembly (13 elected seats and 1 non-voting ex officio member in the attorney general; members are elected by direct popular vote, 1 member from each of nine electoral districts, 4 at-large members; to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 20 August 2007 (next to be held in 2011)


election results: percent of vote by party - VIP 45.2%, NDP 39.6%, independent 15.2%; seats by party - VIP 10, NDP 2, independent 1
Life expectancy at birth total population:
45.6 years

male:
42.69 years

female:
48.61 years (2001 est.)
total population: 76.86 years


male: 75.71 years


female: 78.07 years (2007 est.)
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.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 97.8% (1991 est.)


male: NA%


female: NA%
Location Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico
Map references Africa Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims territorial sea:
200 NM

continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 3 nm


exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,057 GRT/3,498 DWT

ships by type:
cargo 1 (2000 est.)
-
Military - note - defense is the responsibility of the UK
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:
1,161,790 (2001 est.)
-
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
563,631 (2001 est.)
-
National holiday Independence Day, 27 April (1961) Territory Day, 1 July (1956)
Nationality noun:
Sierra Leonean(s)

adjective:
Sierra Leonean
noun: British Virgin Islander(s)


adjective: British Virgin Islander
Natural hazards dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October)
Natural resources diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite NEGL
Net migration rate 10.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

note:
by the end of 1999 refugees from Sierra Leone are assumed to be returning
8.83 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
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 [Amadu M. B. JALLOH]; National Republican Party or NRP [Sahr Stephen MAMBU]; National Unity Party or NUP [Dr. John KARIMU, chairman]; People's Democratic Party or PDP [Thaimu BANGURA, chairman]; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Abass Chernok BUNDU, chairman]; Revolutionary United Front Party or RUFP [Foday SANKOH, chairman]; Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP [President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH, chairman]; United National People's Party or UNPP [John KARIFA-SMART in exile, Raymond KAMARA, acting leader] Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL]
Political pressure groups and leaders Trade Unions and Student Unions NA
Population 5,426,618 (July 2001 est.) 23,552 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 68% (1989 est.) NA%
Population growth rate 3.61% (2001 est.) 1.923% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel -
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004)
Radios 1.12 million (1997) -
Railways total:
84 km used on a limited basis because the mine at Marampa is closed

narrow gauge:
84 km 1.067-m gauge
-
Religions Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, other 2%, none 2% (1991)
Sex ratio at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
0.96 male(s)/female

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

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

total population:
0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.031 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.055 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 1.105 male(s)/female


total population: 1.053 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
marginal telephone and telegraph service

domestic:
national microwave radio relay trunk system, made unserviceable by military activities, is now operating from Freetown to Bo and Kenema (April 2001)

international:
satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
general assessment: worldwide telephone service


domestic: NA


international: country code - 1-284; connected via submarine cable to Bermuda; the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable provides connectivity to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use 17,000 (1997) 11,700 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular 650 (1999) 8,000 (2002)
Television broadcast stations 2 (1999) 1 (plus 1 cable company) (1997)
Terrain coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly
Total fertility rate 6.01 children born/woman (2001 est.) 1.72 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% 3.6% (1997)
Waterways 800 km (of which 600 km navigable year round) -
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