Sierra Leone (2001) | Guernsey (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* | none (British crown dependency); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 10 parishes including St. Peter Port, St. Sampson, Vale, Castel, St. Saviour, St. Pierre du Bois, Torteval, Forest, St. Martin, St. Andrew |
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:
16.22% (male 5,285; female 5,151) 15-64 years: 66.67% (male 21,264; female 21,630) 65 years and over: 17.11% (male 4,546; female 6,466) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish | tomatoes, greenhouse flowers, sweet peppers, eggplant, fruit; Guernsey cattle |
Airports | 11 (2000 est.) | 2 (2000 est.) |
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 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
10 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
71,740 sq km land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
total:
194 sq km land: 194 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Alderney, Guernsey, Herm, Sark, and some other smaller islands |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | slightly larger than 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. | The island of Guernsey and the other Channel Islands represent the last remnants of the medieval Dukedom of Normandy, which held sway in both France and England. The islands were the only British soil occupied by German troops in World War II. |
Birth rate | 45.11 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.9 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$96 million expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$381.3 million expenditures: $368.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Freetown | Saint Peter Port |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) | temperate with mild winters and cool summers; about 50% of days are overcast |
Coastline | 402 km | 50 km |
Constitution | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times | unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Sierra Leone conventional short form: Sierra Leone |
conventional long form:
Bailiwick of Guernsey conventional short form: Guernsey |
Currency | leone (SLL) | British pound (GBP); note - there is also a Guernsey pound |
Death rate | 19.19 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.87 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.28 billion (1999) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | British crown dependency |
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 (British crown dependency) |
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 (British crown dependency) |
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. | Financial services - banking, fund management, insurance, etc. - account for about 55% of total income in this tiny Channel Island economy. Tourism, manufacturing, and horticulture, mainly tomatoes and cut flowers, have been declining. Light tax and death duties make Guernsey a popular tax haven. The evolving economic integration of the EU nations is changing the rules of the game under which Guernsey operates. |
Electricity - consumption | 223.2 million kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production | 240 million kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Sark 114 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 | NA |
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 | UK and Norman-French descent |
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) | Guernsey pounds per US dollar - 0.6764 (January 2001), 0.6596 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6106 (1997), 0.6403 (1996); note - the Guernsey pound is at par with the British pound |
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) head of government: Lieutenant Governor and Commander-in-Chief Lt. Gen. Sir John FOLEY (since NA 2000) and Bailiff De Vic G. CAREY (since NA) cabinet: Advisory and Finance Committee appointed by the Assembly of the States elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; lieutenant governor appointed by the monarch; bailiff appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $65 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $NA |
Exports - commodities | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish | tomatoes, flowers and ferns, sweet peppers, eggplant, other vegetables |
Exports - partners | Belgium 38%, US 6%, Italy 4%, UK 4% (1999) | UK (regarded as internal trade) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue | white with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint of England) extending to the edges of the flag and a yellow equal-armed cross of William the Conqueror superimposed on the Saint George cross |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.7 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.3 billion (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
43% industry: 26% services: 31% (1999) |
agriculture:
3% industry: 10% services: 87% (2000) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $510 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $20,000 (1999 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.2% (2000 est.) | 5.7% (1999 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 30 N, 11 30 W | 49 28 N, 2 35 W |
Geography - note | - | large, deepwater harbor at Saint Peter Port |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
11,300 km paved: 904 km unpaved: 10,396 km (1997) |
total:
NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
0.5% highest 10%: 43.6% (1989) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $145 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $NA |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals | coal, gasoline, oil, machinery and equipment |
Imports - partners | UK 34%, US 8%, Italy 7%, Nigeria 5% (1999) | UK (regarded as internal trade) |
Independence | 27 April 1961 (from UK) | none (British crown dependency) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining | tourism, banking |
Infant mortality rate | 146.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 5 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 15% (2000 est.) | 3.99% (2000 est.) |
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 | none |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | NA |
Irrigated land | 290 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court | Royal Court |
Labor force | 1.369 million (1981 est.)
note: only about 65,000 wage earners (1985) |
31,322 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | - |
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:
NA% permanent crops: NA% permanent pastures: NA% forests and woodland: NA% other: NA% |
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, French, Norman-French dialect spoken in country districts |
Legal system | based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | English law and local statute; justice is administered by the Royal Court |
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 Assembly of the States; consists of the Bailiff, 10 Douzaine (parish council) representatives, 45 People's Deputies elected by popular franchise, 2 Alderney representatives, HM Procureur (Attorney General), HM Comptroller (Solicitor General) and HM Greffier (Court Recorder and Registrar General)
elections: last held 12 April 2000 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - all independents |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
45.6 years male: 42.69 years female: 48.61 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
79.78 years male: 76.78 years female: 82.88 years (2001 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:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia | Western Europe, islands in the English Channel, northwest of France |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
200 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
exclusive fishing zone:
12 NM territorial sea: 3 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.) |
none (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) | Liberation Day, 9 May (1945) |
Nationality | noun:
Sierra Leonean(s) adjective: Sierra Leonean |
noun:
Channel Islander(s) adjective: Channel Islander |
Natural hazards | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms | NA |
Natural resources | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite | cropland |
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 |
3.89 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 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] | none; all independents |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Trade Unions and Student Unions | none |
Population | 5,426,618 (July 2001 est.) | 64,342 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 68% (1989 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.61% (2001 est.) | 0.39% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel | Saint Peter Port, Saint Sampson |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1.12 million (1997) | NA |
Railways | total:
84 km used on a limited basis because the mine at Marampa is closed narrow gauge: 84 km 1.067-m gauge |
0 km |
Religions | Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% | Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Baptist, Congregational, Methodist |
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:
1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 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:
NA domestic: NA international: 1 submarine cable |
Telephones - main lines in use | 17,000 (1997) | 44,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 650 (1999) | 12,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1999) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east | mostly level with low hills in southwest |
Total fertility rate | 6.01 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 0.5% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | 800 km (of which 600 km navigable year round) | none |