Sierra Leone (2002) | New Caledonia (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 provinces named Iles Loyaute, Nord, and Sud |
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: 29.7% (male 31,990; female 30,695)
15-64 years: 64.2% (male 68,093; female 67,205) 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 6,016; female 6,799) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish | vegetables; beef, deer, other livestock products |
Airports | 10 (2001) | 30 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 21
914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 9 (2002) |
Area | total: 71,740 sq km
land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
total: 19,060 sq km
land: 18,575 sq km water: 485 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
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. | Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island was made a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s seems to have dissipated. |
Birth rate | 44.58 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 19.45 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $96 million
expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) (2000 est.) |
revenues: $861.3 million
expenditures: $735.3 million, including capital expenditures of $52 million (1996 est.) |
Capital | Freetown | Noumea |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) | tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot, humid |
Coastline | 402 km | 2,254 km |
Constitution | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone
conventional short form: Sierra Leone |
conventional long form: Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies
conventional short form: New Caledonia local long form: Territoire des Nouvelle-Caledonie et Dependances local short form: Nouvelle-Caledonie |
Currency | leone (SLL) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique franc (XPF); note - may adopt the euro in 2003 |
Death rate | 18.83 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 5.63 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (2000) | $79 million (1998 est.) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of France since 1956 |
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 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
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 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
Disputes - international | ongoing conflict in Sierra Leone has engendered refugee movements into neighboring Guinea and Liberia | Matthew and Hunter Islands east of New Caledonia claimed by France and Vanuatu |
Economic aid - recipient | $103 million (2001 est.) | $880 million annual subsidy from France |
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. | New Caledonia has about 25% of the world's known nickel resources. Only a small amount of the land is suitable for cultivation, and food accounts for about 20% of imports. In addition to nickel, substantial financial support from France - equal to more than one-fourth of GDP - and tourism are keys to the health of the economy. Substantial new investment in the nickel industry, combined with the recovery of global nickel prices, brightens the economic outlook for the next several years. |
Electricity - consumption | 227.85 million kWh (2000) | 1.5 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 245 million kWh (2000) | 1.613 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel: 76.3%
hydro: 23.7% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Panie 1,628 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 | erosion caused by mining exploitation and forest fires |
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 |
- |
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 | Melanesian 42.5%, European 37.1%, Wallisian 8.4%, Polynesian 3.8%, Indonesian 3.6%, Vietnamese 1.6%, other 3% |
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) | Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar - 135.04 (January 2002), 133.26 (2001), 129.44 (2000), 111.93 (1999), 107.25 (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 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 of France Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995), represented by High Commissioner Daniel CONSTANTIN (since 3 July 2002)
head of government: President of the Government Pierre FROGIER (since 5 April 2001) cabinet: Consultative Committee elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; high commissioner appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; president of the government elected by the members of the Territorial Congress; note - last election held 28 November 2002 when Pierre FROGIER was reelected |
Exports | $65 million f.o.b. (2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish | ferronickels, nickel ore, fish |
Exports - partners | NZ 33.7%, Belgium 32.6%, US 7.4%, France 5.1% (2000) | Japan 20.6%, France 20.4%, Taiwan 16.3%, South Africa 11.3%, Spain 7.7%, South Korea 5.4%, Australia 5.4%, Italy 5.3% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.7 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 43%
industry: 27% services: 30% (2000) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 30% services: 65% (1997 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $500 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $14,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2001 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 8 30 N, 11 30 W | 21 30 S, 165 30 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 | consists of the main island of New Caledonia (one of the largest in the Pacific Ocean), the archipelago of Iles Loyaute, and numerous small, sparsely populated islands and atolls |
Heliports | 2 (2002) | 5 (2002) |
Highways | total: 11,700 km
paved: 936 km unpaved: 10,764 km (2002) |
total: 4,825 km
paved: 2,287 km unpaved: 2,538 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 44% (1989) (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 equipment, fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Czech Republic 26.7%, UK 26.6%, US 5.1%, Netherlands 4.6% (2000) | France 52.8%, Australia 12.7%, Singapore 9.8% (2002) |
Independence | 27 April 1961 (from UK) | none (overseas territory of France); note - a referendum on independence was held in 1998 but did not pass; a new referendum is scheduled for 2014 |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | -0.6% (1996) |
Industries | mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining | nickel mining and smelting |
Infant mortality rate | 144.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 8.06 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.76 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 15% (2000 est.) | -0.6% (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, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ESCAP (associate), FZ, ICFTU, SPC, WFTU, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2001) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 290 sq km (1998 est.) | 160 sq km (1991) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; County Courts; Joint Commerce Tribunal Court; Children's Court |
Labor force | 1.369 million
note: only about 65,000 wage earners (1985) (1981 est.) |
79,395 (including 15,018 unemployed, 1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 7%, industry 23%, services 70% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 958 km
border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 6.76%
permanent crops: 0.78% other: 92.46% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0.38%
permanent crops: 0.33% other: 99.29% (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%) | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects |
Legal system | based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | the 1988 Matignon Accords grant substantial autonomy to the islands; formerly under French law |
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 Territorial Congress or Congres Territorial (54 seats; members are members of the three Provincial Assemblies or Assemblees Provinciales elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 9 May 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPCR 24, FLNKS 12, UNI 6, FCCI 4, FN 4, Alliance pour la Caledonie 3, LKS 1 note: New Caledonia elects 1 seat to the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; New Caledonia also elects 2 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 and 16 June 2002 (next to be held by June 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 45.96 years
male: 43.01 years female: 49.01 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 73.52 years
male: 70.57 years female: 76.62 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: 91% male: 92% female: 90% (1976 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 NM
contiguous zone: 24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,261 GRT/1,600 DWT
ships by type: cargo 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Malaysia 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Army (RSLAF) | no regular indigenous military forces; French Armed Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie); Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $10.3 million (FY01) | $192.3 million (FY96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.5% (FY01) | 5.3% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,203,682 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 583,946 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Sierra Leonean(s)
adjective: Sierra Leonean |
noun: New Caledonian(s)
adjective: New Caledonian |
Natural hazards | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms | cyclones, most frequent from November to March |
Natural resources | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite | nickel, chrome, iron, cobalt, manganese, silver, gold, lead, copper |
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.) |
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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] | Alliance pour la Caledonie or APLC [Didier LE ROUX]; Federation des Comites de Coordination des Independantistes or FCCI [Francois BURCK]; Front National or FN [Guy GEORGE]; Front Uni de Liberation Kanak or FULK [Ernest UNE]; Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation or FLNKS [leader NA] (includes PALIKA, UNI, UC, and UPM); Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA [Paul NEAOUTYINE and Elie POIGOUNE]; Rally for Caledonia in the Republic (anti independent) or RPCR [Jacques LAFLEUR]; Union Nationale pour l'Independance or UNI [Paul NEAOUTYINE]; note - may no longer exist, but Paul NEAOUTYINE has since become a president of Parti de Liberation Kanak or PALIKA; Union Progressiste Melanesienne or UPM [Victor TUTUGORO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Trade Unions and Student Unions | NA |
Population | 5,614,743 (July 2002 est.) | 210,798 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 68% (1989 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.21% (2002 est.) | 1.38% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel | Mueo, Noumea, Thio |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 1.12 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) |
0 km |
Religions | Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% | Roman Catholic 60%, Protestant 30%, other 10% |
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: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 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: 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: NA
domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 25,000 (2001) | 47,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 30,000 (2001) | 13,040 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1999) | 6 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east | coastal plains with interior mountains |
Total fertility rate | 5.94 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 2.39 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 19% (1996) |
Waterways | 800 km (of which 600 km navigable year round) | none |