Sierra Leone (2002) | Bulgaria (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* | 28 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast); Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Dobrich, Gabrovo, Khaskovo, Kurdzhali, Kyustendil, Lovech, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pernik, Pleven, Plovdiv, Razgrad, Ruse, Shumen, Silistra, Sliven, Smolyan, Sofiya, Sofiya-Grad, Stara Zagora, Turgovishte, Varna, Veliko Turnovo, Vidin, Vratsa, Yambol |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 44.7% (male 1,230,530; female 1,280,084)
15-64 years: 52.1% (male 1,397,070; female 1,528,986) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 87,256; female 90,817) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 14.6% (male 572,961; female 543,004)
15-64 years: 68.5% (male 2,569,199; female 2,648,461) 65 years and over: 16.9% (male 540,109; female 747,603) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish | vegetables, fruits, tobacco, livestock, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers, sugar beets |
Airports | 10 (2001) | 215 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 128
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 19 1,524 to 2,437 m: 15 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 92 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 87
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 75 (2002) |
Area | total: 71,740 sq km
land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
total: 110,910 sq km
land: 110,550 sq km water: 360 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | slightly larger than Tennessee |
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. After several setbacks, the end to the eleven-year conflict in Sierra Leone may finally be near at hand. With the support of the UN peacekeeping force and contributions from the World Bank and international community, demobilization and disarmament of the RUF and Civil Defense Forces (CDF) combatants has been completed. Reestablishment of government authority throughout the country is slowly proceeding and national elections took place in May 2002. | The Bulgars, a Central Asian Turkic tribe, merged with the local Slavic inhabitants in the late 7th century to form the first Bulgarian state. In succeeding centuries, Bulgaria struggled with the Byzantine Empire to assert its place in the Balkans, but by the end of the 14th century the country was overrun by the Ottoman Turks. Bulgaria regained its independence in 1878, but having fought on the losing side in both World Wars, it fell within the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1990, when Bulgaria held its first multiparty election since World War II and began the contentious process of moving toward political democracy and a market economy while combating inflation, unemployment, corruption, and crime. Today, reforms and democratization keep Bulgaria on a path toward eventual integration into NATO and the EU - with which it began accession negotiations in 2000. |
Birth rate | 44.58 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 8.05 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $96 million
expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) (2000 est.) |
revenues: $5.57 billion
expenditures: $5.68 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Freetown | Sofia |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) | temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers |
Coastline | 402 km | 354 km |
Constitution | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times | adopted 12 July 1991 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone
conventional short form: Sierra Leone |
conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria
conventional short form: Bulgaria |
Currency | leone (SLL) | lev (BGL) |
Death rate | 18.83 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 14.42 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (2000) | $10.3 billion (2001 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Peter Russell CHAVEAS
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 James William PARDEW
embassy: 1 Suborna Street, Sofia 1000 mailing address: American Embassy Sofia, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5740 telephone: [359] (2) 937-5100 FAX: [359] (2) 981-89-77 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ibrahim M. KAMARA
chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9261 through 9263 FAX: [1] (202) 483-1793 |
chief of mission: Ambassador-designate Elena POPTODOROVA
chancery: 1621 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 387-7969 FAX: [1] (202) 234-7973 consulate(s): New York |
Disputes - international | ongoing conflict in Sierra Leone has engendered refugee movements into neighboring Guinea and Liberia | because of a shift in the Danube course since the last correction of the boundary in 1920, a joint Bulgarian-Romanian team will recommend sovereignty changes to several islands and redefine the boundary |
Economic aid - recipient | $103 million (2001 est.) | $300 million (2000 est.) |
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, following a 10-year civil war. 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. There are plans to reopen bauxite and rutile mines shut down during the conflict. The major source of hard currency consists of the mining of diamonds. The fate of the economy depends upon the maintenance of domestic peace and the continued receipt of substantial aid from abroad. | Bulgaria, a former communist country striving to enter the European Union, has experienced macroeconomic stability and positive growth rates since a major economic downturn in 1996 led to the fall of the then socialist government. A $300 million stand-by agreement negotiated with the IMF at the end of 2001 will help the government maintain economic stability as it seeks to overcome high rates of poverty and unemployment and, at the same time, cut the budget deficit and contain inflation. |
Electricity - consumption | 227.85 million kWh (2000) | 34.42 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 3.2 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 1.5 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 245 million kWh (2000) | 38.84 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 48%
hydro: 8% nuclear: 44% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m |
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Musala 2,925 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 | air pollution from industrial emissions; rivers polluted from raw sewage, heavy metals, detergents; deforestation; forest damage from air pollution and resulting acid rain; soil contamination from heavy metals from metallurgical plants and industrial wastes |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | 20 native African tribes 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 | Bulgarian 83.6%, Turk 9.5%, Roma 4.6%, other 2.3% (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) (1998) |
Exchange rates | leones per US dollar - 2,212.47 (January 2002), 1,985.89 (2001), 2,092.13 (2000), 1,804.20 (1999), 1,563.62 (1998), 981.48 (1997) | leva per US dollar - 2.2147 (January 2002), 2.1847 (2001), 2.1233 (2000), 1.8364 (1999), 1,760.36 (1998), 1,681.88 (1997)
note: on 5 July 1999, the lev was redenominated; the post-5 July 1999 lev is equal to 1,000 of the pre-5 July 1999 lev |
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 last held 14 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007); note - president's tenure of office is limited to two five-year terms election results: Ahmad Tejan KABBAH reelected president; percent of vote - Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (SLPP) 70.6%, Ernest KOROMA 22.4% |
chief of state: President Georgi PURVANOV (since 22 January 2002); Vice President Angel MARIN (since 22 January 2002)
head of government: Chairman of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) Simeon SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA (since 24 July 2001); Deputy Prime Ministers Nikolay VASILEV (since 24 July 2001), Kostadin PASKALEV (since 24 July 2001), and Lidiya SHULEVA (since 24 July 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the National Assembly elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 11 November and 18 November 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); chairman of the Council of Ministers (prime minister) nominated by the president; deputy prime ministers nominated by the prime minister election results: Georgi PURVANOV elected president; percent of vote - Georgi PURVANOV 54.13%, Petar STOYANOV 45.87% |
Exports | $65 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) | $5.3 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
Exports - commodities | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish | clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, fuels |
Exports - partners | NZ 33.7%, Belgium 32.6%, US 7.4%, France 5.1% (2000) | Italy 14%, Turkey 10%, Germany 9%, Greece 8%, Serbia and Montenegro 8% (2001) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue | three equal horizontal bands of white (top), green, and red; the national emblem formerly on the hoist side of the white stripe has been removed - it contained a rampant lion within a wreath of wheat ears below a red five-pointed star and above a ribbon bearing the dates 681 (first Bulgarian state established) and 1944 (liberation from Nazi control) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.7 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $50.6 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 43%
industry: 27% services: 30% (2000) |
agriculture: 14%
industry: 29% services: 58% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $500 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,600 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2001 est.) | 3.4% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 30 N, 11 30 W | 43 00 N, 25 00 E |
Geography - note | rainfall along the coast can reach 495 cm (195 inches) a year, making it one of the wettest places along coastal, western Africa | strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia |
Heliports | 2 (2002) | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total: 11,700 km
paved: 936 km unpaved: 10,764 km (2002) |
total: 37,288 km
paved: 33,786 km (including 324 km of expressways) unpaved: 3,502 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 44% (1989) (1989) |
lowest 10%: 5%
highest 10%: 23% (1997) |
Illicit drugs | - | major European transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and, to a lesser degree, South American cocaine for the European market; limited producer of precursor chemicals; some money laundering of drug-related proceeds through financial institutions |
Imports | $145 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) | $6.9 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals | fuels, minerals, and raw materials; machinery and equipment; metals and ores; chemicals and plastics; food, textiles |
Imports - partners | Czech Republic 26.7%, UK 26.6%, US 5.1%, Netherlands 4.6% (2000) | Russia 19.9%, Germany 15.3%, Italy 9.6%, France 6.0% (2001) |
Independence | 27 April 1961 (from UK) | 3 March 1878 (from Ottoman Empire) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 2% (2002 est.) |
Industries | mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining | electricity, gas and water; food, beverages and tobacco; machinery and equipment, base metals, chemical products, coke, refined petroleum, nuclear fuel |
Infant mortality rate | 144.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 14.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 15% (2000 est.) | 5.9% (2002 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, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2001) | 200 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 290 sq km (1998 est.) | 8,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court | Supreme Administrative Court; Supreme Court of Cassation; Constitutional Court (12 justices appointed or elected for nine-year terms); Supreme Judicial Council (consists of the chairmen of the two Supreme Courts, the Chief Prosecutor, and 22 other members; responsible for appointing the justices, prosecutors, and investigating magistrates in the justice system; members of the Supreme Judicial Council elected for five-year terms, 11 elected by the National Assembly and 11 by bodies of the judiciary) |
Labor force | 1.369 million
note: only about 65,000 wage earners (1985) (1981 est.) |
3.83 million (2000 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 26%, industry 31%, services 43% (1998 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 958 km
border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
total: 1,808 km
border countries: Greece 494 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 148 km, Romania 608 km, Serbia and Montenegro 318 km, Turkey 240 km |
Land use | arable land: 6.76%
permanent crops: 0.78% other: 92.46% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 39%
permanent crops: 1.8% other: 59.2% (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%) | Bulgarian, secondary languages closely correspond to ethnic breakdown |
Legal system | based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | civil law and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament (124 seats - 112 elected by popular vote, 12 filled by paramount chiefs elected in separate elections; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 14 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - SLPP 70.06%, APC 22.35%, PLP 3%, others 4.59%; seats by party - SLPP 83, APC 27, PLP 2 |
unicameral National Assembly or Narodno Sobranie (240 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 June 2001 (next to be held NA June 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NMS2 42.74%, UtdDF 18.18%, CFB 17.15%, MRF 7.45%; seats by party - NMS2 120, UtdDF 51, CFB 48, MRF 21; note - seating as of March 2003 - NMS2 110, UtdDF 50, CFB 48, MRF 20, independents 12 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 45.96 years
male: 43.01 years female: 49.01 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 71.5 years
male: 67.98 years female: 75.22 years (2002 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: 98% male: 99% female: 98% (1999) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 NM
contiguous zone: 24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM |
contiguous zone: 24 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 77 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 881,758 GRT/1,312,833 DWT
ships by type: bulk 43, cargo 15, chemical tanker 4, container 2, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 3, short-sea passenger 1, specialized tanker 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army (RSLAF) | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces (subordinate to Ministry of Defense), Internal Forces (subordinate to Ministry of Interior), Civil Defense Forces (subordinate to the president) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $10.3 million (FY01) | $356 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.5% (FY01) | 2.7% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,203,682 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,873,052 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 583,946 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 1,566,816 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 56,104 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) | Liberation Day, 3 March (1878) |
Nationality | noun: Sierra Leonean(s)
adjective: Sierra Leonean |
noun: Bulgarian(s)
adjective: Bulgarian |
Natural hazards | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms | earthquakes, landslides |
Natural resources | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite | bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land |
Net migration rate | 6.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: by the end of 1999 refugees from Sierra Leone are assumed to be returning (2002 est.) |
-4.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | - | petroleum products 525 km; natural gas 1,500 km (1999) |
Political parties and leaders | All People's Congress or APC [Alhaji Sat KOROMA, interim chairman]; Citizens United for Peace and Progress or CUPP [Alfred Musa CONTEH, interim chairman]; Coalition for Progress Party or CPP [Jeridine WILLIAM-SARHO, interim leader]; Democratic Center Party or DCP [Adu Aiah KOROMA]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [George E. L. PALMER]; Democratic Party or DP [Henry BALO, acting chairman]; National Alliance Democratic Party or NADP [Mohamed Yahya SILLAH, chairman]; National Democratic Alliance or NDA [Amadu M. B. JALLOH]; National People's Party or NPP [Andrew TURAY]; National Republican Party or NRP [Stephen Sahr MAMBU]; National Unity Movement or NUM [Sam LEIGH, interim chairman]; National Unity Party or NUP [John BENJAMINE, interim leader]; Peace and Liberation Party or PLP [Darlington MORRISON, interim chairman]; People's Democratic Alliance or PDA [Cpl. (Ret.) Abdul Rahman KAMARA, interim chairman]; People's Democratic Party or PDP [Osman KAMARA]; People's National Convention or PNC [Edward John KARGBO]; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Abass Chernok BUNDU, chairman]; Revolutionary United Front Party or RUFP [Foday Saybana SANKOH, chairman]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Andrew Victor LUNGAY]; Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP [Ahmad Tejan KABBAH, chairman]; United National People's Party or UNPP [John KAREFA-SMART in exile, Raymond KAMARA, acting leader]; Young People's Party or YPP [Cornelius DEVEAUS, interim chairman] | Bulgarian Socialist Party or BSP [Sergei STANISHEV]; Coalition for Bulgaria or CfB (coalition of parties dominated by BSP) [Sergei STANISHEV]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization or VMRO [Krasimir KARAKACHANOV]; Movement for Rights and Freedoms or MRF [Ahmed DOGAN]; National Movement for Simeon II or NMS2 [Simeon SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA]; People's Union or PU (includes Bulgarian Agrarian National Union and Democratic Party) [Anastasiya MOZER]; St. George's Day [Lyuben DILOV, Jr.]; Union of Democratic Forces or UDF [Ekaterina NADEZHDA]; Union of Free Democrats or UFD [Stefan SOFIYANSKI]; United Democratic Forces or UtdDF (a coalition between the UDF and PU, dominated by the former) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Trade Unions and Student Unions | agrarian movement; Bulgarian Democratic Center; Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria or CITUB; Democratic Alliance for the Republic or DAR; New Union for Democracy or NUD; Podkrepa Labor Confederation; numerous regional, ethnic, and national interest groups with various agendas |
Population | 5,614,743 (July 2002 est.) | 7,621,337 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 68% (1989 est.) | 35% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 3.21% (2002 est.) | -1.11% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel | Burgas, Lom, Nesebur, Ruse, Varna, Vidin |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) | AM 31, FM 63, shortwave 2 (2001) |
Radios | 1.12 million (1997) | 4.51 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 84 km
narrow gauge: 84 km 1.067-m gauge note: Sierra Leone has no common carrier railroads; the existing railroad is private and used on a limited basis while the mine at Marampa is closed (2001) |
total: 4,294 km
standard gauge: 4,049 km 1.435-m gauge (2,710 km electrified) narrow gauge: 245 km 0.760-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% | Bulgarian Orthodox 83.8%, Muslim 12.1%, Roman Catholic 1.7%, Jewish 0.1%, Protestant, Gregorian-Armenian, and other 2.3% (1998) |
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: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: marginal telephone and telegraph service
domestic: The national microwave radio relay trunk system connects Freetown to Bo and Kenema (April 2001) international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: extensive but antiquated
domestic: more than two-thirds of the lines are residential; telephone service is available in most villages; a fairly modern digital cable trunk line now connects switching centers in most of the regions, the others are connected by digital microwave radio relay international: direct dialing to 58 countries; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 2 Intelsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 25,000 (2001) | 3,186,731 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 30,000 (2001) | 1.054 million (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1999) | 39 (plus 1,242 repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east | mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast |
Total fertility rate | 5.94 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.13 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 18% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 800 km (of which 600 km navigable year round) | 470 km (1987) |