Sierra Leone (2001) | Qatar (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* | 10 municipalities (baladiyat, singular - baladiyah); Ad Dawhah, Al Ghuwayriyah, Al Jumayliyah, Al Khawr, Al Wakrah, Ar Rayyan, Jarayan al Batinah, Madinat ash Shamal, Umm Sa'id, Umm Salal |
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: 24.7% (male 102,938; female 98,934)
15-64 years: 72.4% (male 415,302; female 176,183) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 17,199; female 6,496) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish | fruits, vegetables; poultry, dairy products, beef; fish |
Airports | 11 (2000 est.) | 4 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
over 3,047 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
10 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total:
71,740 sq km land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
total: 11,437 sq km
land: 11,437 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
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. | Ruled by the Al Thani family since the mid-1800s, Qatar transformed itself from a poor British protectorate noted mainly for pearling into an independent state with significant oil and natural gas revenues. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Qatari economy was crippled by a continuous siphoning off of petroleum revenues by the amir, who had ruled the country since 1972. He was overthrown by his son, the current Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa Al Thani, in a bloodless coup in 1995. In 2001, Qatar resolved its longstanding border disputes with both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Oil and natural gas revenues enable Qatar to have a per capita income not far below the leading industrial countries of Western Europe. |
Birth rate | 45.11 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 15.68 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$96 million expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $5 billion
expenditures: $5.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.2 billion (FY 02/03 est.) |
Capital | Freetown | Doha |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) | arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers |
Coastline | 402 km | 563 km |
Constitution | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times | provisional constitution enacted 19 April 1972; in July 1999 Amir HAMAD issued a decree forming a committee to draft a permanent constitution; in the 29 April 2003 referendum, 96.6% of Qatari voters approved the new constitution |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Sierra Leone conventional short form: Sierra Leone |
conventional long form: State of Qatar
conventional short form: Qatar local long form: Dawlat Qatar local short form: Qatar note: closest approximation of the native pronunciation falls between cutter and gutter, but not like guitar |
Currency | leone (SLL) | Qatari rial (QAR) |
Death rate | 19.19 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.43 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.28 billion (1999) | $15.4 billion (2002 est.) |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Maureen E. QUINN
embassy: Al-Luqtas District, 22 February Road, Doha mailing address: P. O. Box 2399, Doha telephone: [974] 488 4101 FAX: [974] 488 4298 |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Badr Umar al-DAFA
chancery: 4200 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: [1] (202) 274-1600 FAX: [1] (202) 237-0061 consulate(s) general: Houston |
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. | Oil and gas account for more than 55% of GDP, roughly 85% of export earnings, and 70% of government revenues. Oil and gas have given Qatar a per capita GDP comparable to that of the leading West European industrial countries. Proved oil reserves of 14.5 billion barrels should ensure continued output at current levels for 23 years. Production and export of natural gas are becoming increasingly important to the economy. Qatar's proved reserves of natural gas exceed 17.9 trillion cubic meters, more than 5% of the world total and third largest in the world. Long-term goals feature the development of offshore natural gas reserves. Since 2000, Qatar has consistently posted trade surpluses largely because of high oil prices and increased natural gas exports, and Qatar's economy is expected to receive an added boost as it begins to increase liquid natural gas exports. |
Electricity - consumption | 223.2 million kWh (1999) | 8.616 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 240 million kWh (1999) | 9.264 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Qurayn Abu al Bawl 103 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 are increasing dependence on large-scale desalination facilities |
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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
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 | Arab 40%, Pakistani 18%, Indian 18%, Iranian 10%, other 14% |
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) | Qatari rials per US dollar - 3.64 (2002), 3.64 (2001), 3.64 (2000), 3.64 (1999), 3.64 (1998) |
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: Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa Al Thani (since 27 June 1995 when, as crown prince, he ousted his father, Amir KHALIFA bin Hamad Al Thani, in a bloodless coup); Crown Prince JASIM bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, third son of the monarch (selected crown prince by the monarch 22 October 1996); note - Amir HAMAD also holds the positions of minister of defense and commander-in-chief of the armed forces
head of government: Prime Minister ABDALLAH bin Khalifa Al Thani, brother of the monarch (since 30 October 1996); Deputy Prime Minister MUHAMMAD bin Khalifa Al Thani, brother of the monarch (since 20 January 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary note: in April 2003, Qatar held nationwide elections for a 29-member Central Municipal Council (CMC), which has consultative powers aimed at improving the provision of municipal services; the first election for the CMC was held in March 1999 |
Exports | $65 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish | petroleum products, fertilizers, steel |
Exports - partners | Belgium 38%, US 6%, Italy 4%, UK 4% (1999) | Japan 40.1%, South Korea 16.6%, Singapore 8.2%, US 4.1% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue | maroon with a broad white serrated band (nine white points) on the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.7 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $15.91 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
43% industry: 26% services: 31% (1999) |
agriculture: 0.4%
industry: 67.6% services: 32% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $510 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $20,100 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.2% (2000 est.) | 4.6% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 30 N, 11 30 W | 25 30 N, 51 15 E |
Geography - note | - | strategic location in central Persian Gulf near major petroleum deposits |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total:
11,300 km paved: 904 km unpaved: 10,396 km (1997) |
total: 1,230 km
paved: 1,107 km unpaved: 123 km (1999 est.) |
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 (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals | machinery and transport equipment, food, chemicals |
Imports - partners | UK 34%, US 8%, Italy 7%, Nigeria 5% (1999) | France 17.8%, Japan 10.1%, US 8.5%, UK 8.3%, Germany 8%, Italy 6.7%, UAE 5.1%, Saudi Arabia 4.1%, South Korea 4% (2002) |
Independence | 27 April 1961 (from UK) | 3 September 1971 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining | crude oil production and refining, fertilizers, petrochemicals, steel reinforcing bars, cement |
Infant mortality rate | 146.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 20.03 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 23.59 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 15% (2000 est.) | 1.9% (2002) |
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 | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDB, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 290 sq km (1993 est.) | 130 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court | Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 1.369 million (1981 est.)
note: only about 65,000 wage earners (1985) |
280,122 (1997 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | - |
Land boundaries | total:
958 km border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
total: 60 km
border countries: Saudi Arabia 60 km |
Land use | arable land:
7% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 31% forests and woodland: 28% other: 33% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 1.27%
permanent crops: 0.27% other: 98.46% (1998 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%) | Arabic (official), English commonly used as a second language |
Legal system | based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | discretionary system of law controlled by the amir, although civil codes are being implemented; Islamic law dominates family and personal matters |
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 Advisory Council or Majlis al-Shura (35 seats; members appointed)
note: no legislative elections have been held since 1970 when there were partial elections to the body; Council members have had their terms extended every four years since; the new constitution provides for a 45-member Consultative Council, or Majlis al-Shura; the public would elect two-thirds of the Majlis al-Shura; the amir would appoint the remaining members |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
45.6 years male: 42.69 years female: 48.61 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 73.14 years
male: 70.65 years female: 75.76 years (2003 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: 82.5% male: 81.4% female: 85% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia | Middle East, peninsula bordering the Persian Gulf and Saudi Arabia |
Map references | Africa | Middle East |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
200 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: as determined by bilateral agreements or the median line territorial sea: 12 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.) |
total: 23 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 638,815 GRT/995,096 DWT
ships by type: cargo 6, chemical tanker 2, combination ore/oil 2, container 7, petroleum tanker 5, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Kuwait 1, UAE 3 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $46 million (FY96/97) | $723 million (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (FY96/97) | 10% (FY00) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,161,790 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 320,835
note: includes non-nationals (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
563,631 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 168,416 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 7,192 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) | Independence Day, 3 September (1971) |
Nationality | noun:
Sierra Leonean(s) adjective: Sierra Leonean |
noun: Qatari(s)
adjective: Qatari |
Natural hazards | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms | haze, dust storms, sandstorms common |
Natural resources | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite | petroleum, natural gas, fish |
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 |
17.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 90 km; condensate/gas 209 km; gas 902 km; liquid petroleum gas 87 km; oil 722 km; oil/gas/water 41 km (2003) |
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 |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Trade Unions and Student Unions | none |
Population | 5,426,618 (July 2001 est.) | 817,052 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 68% (1989 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.61% (2001 est.) | 2.87% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel | Doha, Halul Island, Umm Sa'id (Musay'id) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (1998) |
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 |
0 km |
Religions | Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% | Muslim 95% |
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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 2.36 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 2.65 male(s)/female total population: 1.9 male(s)/female (2003 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: modern system centered in Doha
domestic: NA international: tropospheric scatter to Bahrain; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia and UAE; submarine cable to Bahrain and UAE; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat |
Telephones - main lines in use | 17,000 (1997) | 142,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 650 (1999) | 43,476 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1999) | 1 (plus three repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east | mostly flat and barren desert covered with loose sand and gravel |
Total fertility rate | 6.01 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.02 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 2.7% (2001) |
Waterways | 800 km (of which 600 km navigable year round) | none |