Sierra Leone (2001) | Somalia (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* | 18 regions (plural - NA, singular - gobolka); Awdal, Bakool, Banaadir, Bari, Bay, Galguduud, Gedo, Hiiraan, Jubbada Dhexe, Jubbada Hoose, Mudug, Nugaal, Sanaag, Shabeellaha Dhexe, Shabeellaha Hoose, Sool, Togdheer, Woqooyi Galbeed |
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:
44.54% (male 1,670,320; female 1,665,329) 15-64 years: 52.69% (male 1,993,750; female 1,952,437) 65 years and over: 2.77% (male 91,511; female 115,426) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish | cattle, sheep, goats; bananas, sorghum, corn, sugarcane, mangoes, sesame seeds, beans; fish |
Airports | 11 (2000 est.) | 62 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
5 over 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
10 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total:
57 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 11 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
71,740 sq km land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
total:
637,657 sq km land: 627,337 sq km water: 10,320 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | slightly smaller than Texas |
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. | A SIAD BARRE regime was ousted in January 1991; turmoil, factional fighting, and anarchy followed for nine years. In May of 1991, northern clans declared an independent Republic of Somaliland which now includes the administrative regions of Awdal, Woqooyi Galbeed, Togdheer, Sanaag, and Sool. Although not recognized by any government, this entity has maintained a stable existence, aided by the overwhelming dominance of the ruling clan and economic infrastructure left behind by British, Russian, and American military assistance programs. The regions of Bari and Nugaal comprise a neighboring self-declared Republic of Puntland, which has also made strides towards reconstructing legitimate, representative government. Beginning in 1993, a two-year UN humanitarian effort (primarily in the south) was able to alleviate famine conditions, but when the UN withdrew in 1995, having suffered significant casualties, order still had not been restored. A Transitional National Government (TNG) was created in October 2000 in Arta, Djibouti which was attended by a broad representation of Somali clans. The TNG has a three-year mandate to create a permanent national Somali government. The TNG does not recognize Somaliland or Puntland as independent republics but so far has been unable to reunite them with the unstable regions in the south; numerous warlords and factions are still fighting for control of Mogadishu and the other southern regions. |
Birth rate | 45.11 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 47.23 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$96 million expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | Freetown | Mogadishu |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) | principally desert; December to February - northeast monsoon, moderate temperatures in north and very hot in south; May to October - southwest monsoon, torrid in the north and hot in the south, irregular rainfall, hot and humid periods (tangambili) between monsoons |
Coastline | 402 km | 3,025 km |
Constitution | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times | 25 August 1979, presidential approval 23 September 1979
note: the Transitional National Government formed in October 2000 has a mandate to create a new constitution and hold elections within three years |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Sierra Leone conventional short form: Sierra Leone |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Somalia former: Somali Republic, Somali Democratic Republic |
Currency | leone (SLL) | Somali shilling (SOS) |
Death rate | 19.19 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 18.35 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.28 billion (1999) | $2.6 billion (1999 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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Somalia; US interests are represented by the US Embassy in Nairobi at Moi Avenue and Haile Selassie Avenue; mail address: P. O. Box 30137, Unit 64100, Nairobi; APO AE 09831; telephone: [254] (2) 334141; FAX [254] (2) 340838 |
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 |
Somalia does not have an embassy in the US (ceased operations on 8 May 1991) |
Disputes - international | civil war has engendered massive refugee movements into neighboring Guinea and Liberia | most of the southern half of the boundary with Ethiopia is a Provisional Administrative Line; territorial dispute with Ethiopia over the Ogaden |
Economic aid - recipient | $203.7 million (1995) | $191.5 million (1995) |
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. | One of the world's poorest and least developed countries, Somalia has few resources. Moreover, much of the economy has been devastated by the civil war. Agriculture is the most important sector, with livestock accounting for about 40% of GDP and about 65% of export earnings. Nomads and semi-nomads, who are dependent upon livestock for their livelihood, make up a large portion of the population. Livestock and bananas are the principal exports; sugar, sorghum, corn, fish, and qat are products for the domestic market. The small industrial sector, based on the processing of agricultural products, accounts for 10% of GDP; most facilities have been shut down because of the civil strife. Moreover, ongoing civil disturbances in Mogadishu and outlying areas have interfered with any substantial economic advance and with international aid arrangements. Due to the civil strife, economic data is susceptible to an exceptionally wide margin of error. |
Electricity - consumption | 223.2 million kWh (1999) | 241.8 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 240 million kWh (1999) | 260 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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:
Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Shimbiris 2,416 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 | famine; use of contaminated water contributes to human health problems; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification |
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:
Endangered Species, Law of the Sea signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban |
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 | Somali 85%, Bantu, Arabs 30,000 |
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) | Somali shillings per US dollar - 11,000 (November 2000), 2,620 (January 1999), 7,500 (November 1997 est.), 7,000 (January 1996 est.), 5,000 (1 January 1995), 2,616 (1 July 1993)
note: the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared independent country not recognized by any foreign government, issues its own currency, the Somaliland shilling |
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:
ABDIKASSIM Salad Hassan (since 26 August 2000); note - Interim President ABDIKASSIM was chosen for a three-year term by a 245-member National Assembly serving as a transitional government; the present political situation is still unstable, particularly in the south, with interclan fighting and random banditry head of government: ALI Khalifa Galaydh, appointed by the president 8 October 2000 cabinet: appointed by the prime minister and sworn in on 20 October 2000 election results: ABDIKASSIM Salad Hassan was elected president of an interim government at the Djibouti-sponsored Arta Peace Conference on 26 August 2000 by a broad representation of Somali clans that comprised a transitional National Assembly. |
Exports | $65 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $186 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) |
Exports - commodities | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish | livestock, bananas, hides, fish (1999) |
Exports - partners | Belgium 38%, US 6%, Italy 4%, UK 4% (1999) | Saudi Arabia 53%, Yemen 19%, UAE 14%, Italy 5%, Pakistan 2% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | NA |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue | light blue with a large white five-pointed star in the center; design based on the flag of the UN (Italian Somaliland was a UN trust territory) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.7 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4.3 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
43% industry: 26% services: 31% (1999) |
agriculture:
60% industry: 10% (largely shut down in 2000) services: 30% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $510 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $600 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.2% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 8 30 N, 11 30 W | 10 00 N, 49 00 E |
Geography - note | - | strategic location on Horn of Africa along southern approaches to Bab el Mandeb and route through Red Sea and Suez Canal |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
11,300 km paved: 904 km unpaved: 10,396 km (1997) |
total:
22,100 km paved: 2,608 km unpaved: 19,492 km (1996) |
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.) | $314 million (f.o.b., 1999 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals | manufactures, petroleum products, foodstuffs, construction materials (1995) |
Imports - partners | UK 34%, US 8%, Italy 7%, Nigeria 5% (1999) | Djibouti 24%, Kenya 14%, Brazil 13%, Saudi Arabia 10%, India 9% (1999) |
Independence | 27 April 1961 (from UK) | 1 July 1960 (from a merger of British Somaliland, which became independent from the UK on 26 June 1960, and Italian Somaliland, which became independent from the Italian-administered UN trusteeship on 1 July 1960, to form the Somali Republic) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining | a few small industries, including sugar refining, textiles, petroleum refining (mostly shut down), wireless communication |
Infant mortality rate | 146.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 123.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 15% (2000 est.) | over 100% (businesses print their own money) (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 | ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 290 sq km (1993 est.) | 1,800 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court | following the breakdown of national government, most regions have reverted to Islamic (Shari'a) law with a provision for appeal of all sentences |
Labor force | 1.369 million (1981 est.)
note: only about 65,000 wage earners (1985) |
3.7 million (very few are skilled laborers) (1993 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture (mostly pastoral nomadism) 71%, industry and services 29% |
Land boundaries | total:
958 km border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
total:
2,366 km border countries: Djibouti 58 km, Ethiopia 1,626 km, Kenya 682 km |
Land use | arable land:
7% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 31% forests and woodland: 28% other: 33% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 69% forests and woodland: 26% other: 3% (1993 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%) | Somali (official), Arabic, Italian, English |
Legal system | based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | NA |
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 People's Assembly or Golaha Shacbiga
note: fledgling parliament; a transitional 245-member National Assembly began to meet on 13 August 2000 in the town of Arta, Djibouti and is now based in Mogadishu |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
45.6 years male: 42.69 years female: 48.61 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
46.6 years male: 44.99 years female: 48.25 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:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 24% male: 36% female: 14% (1990 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia | Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, east of Ethiopia |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
200 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
territorial sea:
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.) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army | A Somali National Army is being reformed under the interim government; numerous factions and clans maintain independent militias, and the Somaliland and Puntland regional governments maintain their own security and police forces |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $46 million (FY96/97) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (FY96/97) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,161,790 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
1,825,302 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
563,631 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
1,011,400 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) | Foundation of the Somali Republic, 1 July (1960) |
Nationality | noun:
Sierra Leonean(s) adjective: Sierra Leonean |
noun:
Somali(s) adjective: Somali |
Natural hazards | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms | recurring droughts; frequent dust storms over eastern plains in summer; floods during rainy season |
Natural resources | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite | uranium and largely unexploited reserves of iron ore, tin, gypsum, bauxite, copper, salt |
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 |
5.96 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 15 km |
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 | numerous clan and subclan factions are currently vying for power |
Population | 5,426,618 (July 2001 est.) | 7,488,773
note: this estimate was derived from an official census taken in 1975 by the Somali Government; population counting in Somalia is complicated by the large number of nomads and by refugee movements in response to famine and clan warfare (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 68% (1989 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.61% (2001 est.) | 3.48% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel | Bender Cassim (Boosaaso), Berbera, Chisimayu (Kismaayo), Merca, Mogadishu |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) | AM 0, FM 0, shortwave 4 (1988) |
Radios | 1.12 million (1997) | 470,000 (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% | Sunni Muslim |
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:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 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:
the public telecommunications system was completely destroyed or dismantled by the civil war factions; all relief organizations depend on their own private systems domestic: recently, local cellular telephone systems have been established in Mogadishu and in several other population centers international: international connections are available from Mogadishu by satellite |
Telephones - main lines in use | 17,000 (1997) | NA |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 650 (1999) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1999) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east | mostly flat to undulating plateau rising to hills in north |
Total fertility rate | 6.01 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 7.11 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA% |
Waterways | 800 km (of which 600 km navigable year round) | none |