Sierra Leone (2005) | Guyana (2006) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* | 10 regions; Barima-Waini, Cuyuni-Mazaruni, Demerara-Mahaica, East Berbice-Corentyne, Essequibo Islands-West Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Pomeroon-Supenaam, Potaro-Siparuni, Upper Demerara-Berbice, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 44.7% (male 1,318,508/female 1,371,164)
15-64 years: 52% (male 1,494,068/female 1,637,276) 65 years and over: 3.3% (male 93,047/female 103,580) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 26.2% (male 102,551/female 98,772)
15-64 years: 68.6% (male 265,193/female 260,892) 65 years and over: 5.2% (male 17,043/female 22,794) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish | sugarcane, rice, wheat, vegetable oils; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish, shrimp |
Airports | 10 (2004 est.) | 90 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 9
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 under 914 m: 6 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 81
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 65 (2006) |
Area | total: 71,740 sq km
land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
total: 214,970 sq km
land: 196,850 sq km water: 18,120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | slightly smaller than Idaho |
Background | The 1991 to 2002 civil war between the government and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (about one-third of the population), many of whom are now refugees in neighboring countries. 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. National elections were held in May 2002 and the government continues to slowly reestablish its authority. However, the gradual withdrawal of most UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) peacekeepers in 2004 and early 2005, deteriorating political and economic conditions in Guinea, and the tenuous security situation in neighboring Liberia may present challenges to the continuation of Sierra Leone's stability. | Originally a Dutch colony in the 17th century, by 1815 Guyana had become a British possession. The abolition of slavery led to black settlement of urban areas and the importation of indentured servants from India to work the sugar plantations. This ethnocultural divide has persisted and has led to turbulent politics. Guyana achieved independence from the UK in 1966, and since then it has been ruled mostly by socialist-oriented governments. In 1992, Cheddi JAGAN was elected president in what is considered the country's first free and fair election since independence. After his death five years later, his wife, Jane JAGAN, became president but resigned in 1999 due to poor health. Her successor, Bharrat JAGDEO, was reelected in 2001. |
Birth rate | 42.84 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 18.28 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $96 million
expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $320.1 million
expenditures: $362.6 million; including capital expenditures of $93.4 million (2005 est.) |
Capital | Freetown | name: Georgetown
geographic coordinates: 6 48 N, 58 10 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) | tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy seasons (May to August, November to January) |
Coastline | 402 km | 459 km |
Constitution | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times | 6 October 1980 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone
conventional short form: Sierra Leone |
conventional long form: Cooperative Republic of Guyana
conventional short form: Guyana former: British Guiana |
Death rate | 20.61 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 8.28 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.5 billion (2002 est.) | $1.2 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas N. HULL
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 David M. ROBINSON
embassy: 100 Young and Duke Streets, Kingston, Georgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 10507, Georgetown; US Embassy, 3170 Georgetown Place, Washington DC 20521-3170 telephone: [592] 225-4900 through 4909 FAX: [592] 225-8497 |
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 Bayney KARRAN
chancery: 2490 Tracy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6900 FAX: [1] (202) 232-1297 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone perpetuate insurgencies, street violence, looting, arms trafficking, ethnic conflicts, and refugees in border areas; UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) has maintained over 4,000 peacekeepers in Sierra Leone since 1999; Sierra Leone pressures Guinea to remove its forces from the town of Yenga occupied since 1998 | all of the area west of the Essequibo (river) is claimed by Venezuela preventing any discussion of a maritime boundary; Guyana has expressed its intention to join Barbados in asserting claims before UNCLOS that Trinidad and Tobago's maritime boundary with Venezuela extends into their waters; Suriname claims a triangle of land between the New and Kutari/Koetari rivers in a historic dispute over the headwaters of the Courantyne; Guyana seeks arbitration under provisions of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to resolve the long-standing dispute with Suriname over the axis of the territorial sea boundary in potentially oil-rich waters |
Economic aid - recipient | $103 million (2001 est.) | $84 million (1995), Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative (HIPC) $253 million (1997) |
Economy - overview | Sierra Leone is an extremely poor African nation with tremendous inequality in income distribution. While it possesses substantial mineral, agricultural, and fishery resources, its 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. Plans to reopen bauxite and rutile mines shut down during an 11 year civil war have not been implemented due to lack of foreign investment. Alluvial diamond mining remains the major source of hard currency earnings. The fate of the economy depends upon the maintenance of domestic peace and the continued receipt of substantial aid from abroad, which is essential to offset the severe trade imbalance and supplement government revenues. International financial institutions contributed over $600 million in development aid and budgetary support in 2003. | The Guyanese economy exhibited moderate economic growth in 2001-02, based on expansion in the agricultural and mining sectors, a more favorable atmosphere for business initiatives, a more realistic exchange rate, fairly low inflation, and the continued support of international organizations. Growth slowed in 2003 and came back gradually in 2004, buoyed largely by increased export earnings; it slowed again in 2005. Chronic problems include a shortage of skilled labor and a deficient infrastructure. The government is juggling a sizable external debt against the urgent need for expanded public investment. The bauxite mining sector should benefit in the near term from restructuring and partial privatization. Export earnings from agriculture and mining have fallen sharply, while the import bill has risen, driven by higher energy prices. Guyana's entrance into the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME) in January 2006 might broaden the country's export market, primarily in the raw materials sector. |
Electricity - consumption | 237.4 million kWh (2002) | 724.5 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 255.3 million kWh (2002) | 779 million kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Roraima 2,835 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 | water pollution from sewage and agricultural and industrial chemicals; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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 | East Indian 50%, black 36%, Amerindian 7%, white, Chinese, and mixed 7% |
Exchange rates | leones per US dollar - 2,701.3 (2004), 2,347.9 (2003), 2,099 (2002), 1,986.2 (2001), 2,092.1 (2000) | Guyanese dollars per US dollar - 200.79 (2005), 198.31 (2004), 193.88 (2003), 190.67 (2002), 187.32 (2001) |
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 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 (APC) 22.4% |
chief of state: President Bharrat JAGDEO (since 11 August 1999); note - assumed presidency after resignation of President Janet JAGAN and reelected in 2001, and again in 2006
head of government: Prime Minister Samuel HINDS (since October 1992, except for a period as chief of state after the death of President Cheddi JAGAN on 6 March 1997) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president, responsible to the legislature elections: president elected by popular vote as leader of a party list in parliamentary elections, which must be held at least every five years (no term limits); elections last held 28 August 2006 (next to be held by August 2011); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Bharrat JAGDEO reelected; percent of vote 54.6% |
Exports | NA | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish (1999) | sugar, gold, bauxite/alumina, rice, shrimp, molasses, rum, timber |
Exports - partners | Belgium 61.6%, Germany 11.8%, US 5.4% (2004) | Canada 18.9%, US 18.9%, UK 11.7%, Portugal 8.1%, Jamaica 5.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.2% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue | green, with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) superimposed on a long, yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow, black border between the red and yellow, and a narrow, white border between the yellow and the green |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 49%
industry: 30% services: 21% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 37%
industry: 20.3% services: 42.7% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $600 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 6% (2004 est.) | -3% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 30 N, 11 30 W | 5 00 N, 59 00 W |
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 | the third-smallest country in South America after Suriname and Uruguay; substantial portions of its western and eastern territories are claimed by Venezuela and Suriname respectively |
Heliports | 2 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 11,300 km
paved: 904 km unpaved: 10,396 km (2002) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 43.6% (1989) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for narcotics from South America - primarily Venezuela - to Europe and the US; producer of cannabis; rising money laundering related to drug trafficking and human smuggling |
Imports | NA | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals (1995) | manufactures, machinery, petroleum, food |
Imports - partners | Germany 14%, Cote d'Ivoire 10.7%, UK 9.1%, US 8.4%, China 5.6%, Netherlands 5%, South Africa 4.1% (2004) | US 26.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 23.9%, Cuba 6.6%, UK 5%, China 4.1% (2005) |
Independence | 27 April 1961 (from UK) | 26 May 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA% |
Industries | diamonds mining; small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining, small commercial ship repair | bauxite, sugar, rice milling, timber, textiles, gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 143.64 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 161.06 deaths/1,000 live births female: 125.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 32.19 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 35.8 deaths/1,000 live births female: 28.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2002 est.) | 6.9% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, CSN, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OIC, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 290 sq km (1998 est.) | 1,500 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court | Supreme Court of Judicature, consisting of the High Court and the Judicial Court of Appeal, with right of final appeal to the Caribbean Court of Justice |
Labor force | 1.369 million (1981 est.) | 418,000 (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
Land boundaries | total: 958 km
border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
total: 2,462 km
border countries: Brazil 1,119 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km |
Land use | arable land: 6.98%
permanent crops: 0.89% other: 92.13% (2001) |
arable land: 2.23%
permanent crops: 0.14% other: 97.63% (2005) |
Languages | English (official, regular use limited to literate minority), Mende (principal vernacular in the south), Temne (principal vernacular in the north), Krio (English-based Creole, spoken by the descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area, a lingua franca and a first language for 10% of the population but understood by 95%) | English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Hindi, Urdu |
Legal system | based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law with certain admixtures of Roman-Dutch law; has not accepted 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 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 (65 members elected by popular vote, also not more than four non-elected non-voting ministers and two non-elected non-voting parliamentary secretaries appointed by the president; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 28 August 2006 (next to be held by August 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - PPP/C 54.6%, PNC/R 34%, AFC 8.1%, other 3.3%; seats by party - PPP/C 36, PNC/R 22, AFC 5, other 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 39.87 years
male: 37.74 years female: 42.06 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 65.86 years
male: 63.21 years female: 68.65 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic
total population: 29.6% male: 39.8% female: 20.5% (2000 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 98.8% male: 99.1% female: 98.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Suriname and Venezuela |
Map references | Africa | South America |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the outer edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 7,435 GRT/8,750 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 2 (2005) |
total: 7 ships (1000 GRT or over) 12,461 GRT/15,155 DWT
by type: cargo 5, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: 1 (Germany 1) registered in other countries: 4 (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3, unknown 1) (2006) |
Military branches | Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF): Army (includes Air Wing, Maritime Wing) | Guyana Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Corps (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $13.2 million (2004) | $6.48 million (2003 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (2004) | 0.9% (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) | Republic Day, 23 February (1970) |
Nationality | noun: Sierra Leonean(s)
adjective: Sierra Leonean |
noun: Guyanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Guyanese |
Natural hazards | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms | flash floods are a constant threat during rainy seasons |
Natural resources | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite | bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2005 est.) |
-7.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | All People's Congress or APC [Ben KANU]; Peace and Liberation Party or PLP [Darlington MORRISON, interim chairman]; Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP [Sama BANYA]; numerous others | Alliance for Change or AFC [Raphael TROTMAN and Khemraj RAMJATTAN]; Guyana Action Party or GAP [Paul HARDY]; Justice for All Party [C.N. SHARMA]; People's National Congress/Reform or PNC/R [Robert Herman Orlando CORBIN]; People's Progressive Party/Civic or PPP/C [Bharrat JAGDEO]; Rise, Organize, and Rebuild or ROAR [Ravi DEV]; The United Force or TUF [Manzoor NADIR]; The Unity Party [Joey JAGAN]; Vision Guyana [Peter RAMSAROOP]; Working People's Alliance or WPA [Rupert ROOPNARAINE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | trade unions and student unions | Amerindian People's Association; Guyana Citizens Initiative; Guyana Bar Association; Guyana Human Rights Association; Guyana Public Service Union or GPSU; Private Sector Commission; Trades Union Congress |
Population | 6,017,643 (July 2005 est.) | 767,245
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 68% (1989 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.22% (2005 est.) | 0.25% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Freetown, Pepel, Sherbro Islands | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) | AM 3, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 187 km
standard gauge: 139 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 48 km 0.914-m gauge note: all dedicated to ore transport (2001 est.) |
Religions | Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% | Christian 50%, Hindu 35%, Muslim 10%, other 5% |
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: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2006 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 international: country code - 232; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: fair system for long-distance service
domestic: microwave radio relay network for trunk lines international: country code - 592; tropospheric scatter to Trinidad; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 24,000 (2002) | 110,100 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 67,000 (2002) | 281,400 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1999) | 3 (one public station; two private stations which relay US satellite services) (1997) |
Terrain | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east | mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south |
Total fertility rate | 5.72 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.04 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 9.1% (understated) (2000) |
Waterways | 800 km (2003) | Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km respectively (2005) |