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Compare Sierra Leone (2007) - Reunion (2005)

Compare Sierra Leone (2007) z Reunion (2005)

 Sierra Leone (2007)Reunion (2005)
 Sierra LeoneReunion
Administrative divisions 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons
Age structure 0-14 years: 44.8% (male 1,349,878/female 1,400,297)


15-64 years: 52% (male 1,531,763/female 1,664,996)


65 years and over: 3.2% (male 92,360/female 105,268) (2007 est.)
0-14 years: 30.4% (male 120,698/female 115,108)


15-64 years: 63.6% (male 243,668/female 250,143)


65 years and over: 6.1% (male 19,234/female 28,097) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn
Airports 10 (2007) 2 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total: 1


over 3,047 m: 1 (2007)
total: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 9


914 to 1,523 m: 7


under 914 m: 2 (2007)
-
Area total: 71,740 sq km


land: 71,620 sq km


water: 120 sq km
total: 2,517 sq km


land: 2,507 sq km


water: 10 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than South Carolina slightly smaller than Rhode Island
Background The government is slowly reestablishing its authority after the civil war from 1991 to 2002 that resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (about one-third of the population). The last UN peacekeepers withdrew in December 2005 leaving full responsibility for security with domestic forces. A new civilian UN mission - the UN Integrated Office in Sierra Leone (UNIOSIL) - was established to support the government's efforts to consolidate peace. The most pressing long-term threat to stability in Sierra Leone is the potential for political insecurity surrounding elections in July 2007. The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route.
Birth rate 45.41 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 19.26 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget revenues: $96 million


expenditures: $351 million (2000 est.)
revenues: $1.26 billion


expenditures: $2.62 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (1998)
Capital name: Freetown


geographic coordinates: 8 30 N, 13 15 W


time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Saint-Denis
Climate tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April
Coastline 402 km 207 km
Constitution 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times 4 October 1958 (French Constitution)
Country name conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone


conventional short form: Sierra Leone


local long form: Republic of Sierra Leone


local short form: Sierra Leone
conventional long form: Department of Reunion


conventional short form: Reunion


local long form: none


local short form: Ile de la Reunion


former: Bourbon Island
Death rate 22.64 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 5.48 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external $1.61 billion (2003 est.) $NA
Dependency status - overseas department of France
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) 515 000 or [232] (76) 515 000


FAX: [232] (22) 225471
none (overseas department 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 department of France)
Disputes - international as domestic fighting among disparate ethnic groups, rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone gradually abate, the number of refugees in border areas has begun to slowly dwindle; UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) has maintained over 4,000 peacekeepers in Sierra Leone since 1999; Sierra Leone considers excessive Guinea's definition of the flood plain limits to define the left bank boundary of the Makona and Moa rivers and protests Guinea's continued occupation of these lands including the hamlet of Yenga occupied since 1998 none
Economic aid - recipient $343.4 million (2005 est.) NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France (2001 est.)
Economy - overview Sierra Leone is an extremely poor 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. Nearly half 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. Alluvial diamond mining remains the major source of hard currency earnings accounting for nearly half of Sierra Leone's exports. 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. The IMF has completed a Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility program that helped stabilize economic growth and reduce inflation. A recent increase in political stability has led to a revival of economic activity such as the rehabilitation of bauxite and rutile mining. The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France.
Electricity - consumption 227.9 million kWh (2005) 1.084 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2005) 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2005) 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production 245 million kWh (2005) 1.166 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m


highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 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 depleted natural resources; overfishing NA
Environment - international agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
-
Ethnic groups 20 African ethnic groups 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 French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian
Exchange rates leones per US dollar - 2,961.7 (2006), 2,889.6 (2005), 2,701.3 (2004), 2,347.9 (2003), 2,099 (2002) euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000)
Executive branch chief of state: President Ernest Bai KOROMA (since 17 September 2007); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Ernest Bai KOROMA (since 17 September 2007)


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 (eligible for a second term); election last held 11 August 2007 and 8 September 2007 (next to be held in 2012)


election results: second round results; percent of vote - Ernest Bai KOROMA 54.6%, Solomon BEREWA 45.4%
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Laurent CAYREL (since 16 July 2005)


head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993)


cabinet: NA


elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils
Exports NA bbl/day NA
Exports - commodities diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%, (1993)
Exports - partners Belgium 52.1%, US 19.1%, Netherlands 6.8% (2006) France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2000)
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 - composition by sector agriculture: 49%


industry: 31%


services: 21% (2001 est.)
agriculture: 8%


industry: 19%


services: 73% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $6,000 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 7.1% (2006 est.) 2.5% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates 8 30 N, 11 30 W 21 06 S, 55 36 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 this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean
Heliports 2 (2007) -
Highways - total: 1,214 km (including 88 km of four-lane roads) (2001)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 0.5%


highest 10%: 43.6% (1989)
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Imports NA bbl/day NA
Imports - commodities foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products
Imports - partners Cote d'Ivoire 9.3%, US 7.7%, China 7.7%, Brazil 6.9%, UK 6.7%, Netherlands 5.5%, South Africa 4.5%, India 4.3%, France 4.2% (2006) France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2000)
Independence 27 April 1961 (from UK) none (overseas department of France)
Industrial production growth rate NA% NA%
Industries diamond mining; small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining, small commercial ship repair sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction
Infant mortality rate total: 158.27 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 175.39 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 140.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total: 7.78 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 8.52 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 6.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 1% (2002 est.) NA%
International organization participation ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO InOC, UPU, WFTU
Irrigated land 300 sq km (2003) 120 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel
Labor force 1.369 million (1981 est.) 309,900 (2000)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: NA%


industry: NA%


services: NA%
agriculture 13%, industry 12%, services 75% (2000)
Land boundaries total: 958 km


border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km
0 km
Land use arable land: 7.95%


permanent crops: 1.05%


other: 91% (2005)
arable land: 13.6%


permanent crops: 1.2%


other: 85.2% (2001)
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), Creole widely used
Legal system based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction French law
Legislative branch unicameral Parliament (124 seats; 112 members elected by popular vote, 12 filled by paramount chiefs elected in separate elections; to serve five-year terms)


elections: last held on 11 August 2007 (next to be held in 2012)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - APC 59, SLPP 43, PMDC 10
unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms)


elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA); Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2010)


election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council (second round) - percent of vote by party - PCR 44.9%, UMP 32.8%, PS-Greens 22.3%; seats by party - PCR 27, UMP 11, PS-Greens 7


note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1, PCR 1
Life expectancy at birth total population: 40.58 years


male: 38.36 years


female: 42.87 years (2007 est.)
total population: 73.95 years


male: 70.55 years


female: 77.52 years (2005 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic


total population: 35.1%


male: 46.9%


female: 24.4% (2004 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 88.9%


male: 87%


female: 90.8% (2003 est.)
Location Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
Map references Africa World
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
Merchant marine total: 113 ships (1000 GRT or over) 314,549 GRT/419,409 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 85, chemical tanker 4, combination ore/oil 1, container 4, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 4


foreign-owned: 47 (Belgium 1, China 8, Greece 1, Romania 2, Russia 5, Syria 8, Turkey 7, Ukraine 8, UAE 7) (2007)
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 28,264 GRT/44,885 DWT


by type: chemical tanker 1


foreign-owned: 1 (France 1)


registered in other countries: 1 (2005)
Military - note - defense is the responsibility of France
Military branches Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF): Army (includes Air Wing, Navy (Maritime Wing)) (2007) no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.3% (2006) -
National holiday Independence Day, 27 April (1961) Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Nationality noun: Sierra Leonean(s)


adjective: Sierra Leonean
noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)


adjective: Reunionese
Natural hazards dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano
Natural resources diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite fish, arable land, hydropower
Net migration rate 0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population


note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2007 est.)
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Political parties and leaders All People's Congress or APC [Ernest Bai KOROMA]; Peace and Liberation Party or PLP [Darlington MORRISON]; People's Movement for Democratic Change or PMDC [Charles MARGAI]; Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP [Solomon BEREWA]; numerous others Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP [leader NA]
Political pressure groups and leaders trade unions and student unions NA
Population 6,144,562 (July 2007 est.) 776,948 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line 70.2% (2004) NA%
Population growth rate 2.292% (2007 est.) 1.38% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors - Le Port
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (2001) AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001)
Religions Muslim 60%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs 30% Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 0.964 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.877 male(s)/female


total population: 0.938 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female


total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 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) (2000)
general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis


domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network


international: country code - 262; radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia
Telephones - main lines in use 24,000 (2002) 300,000 est (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular 113,200 (2003) 489,800 (2002)
Television broadcast stations 2 (1999) 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001)
Terrain coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast
Total fertility rate 6.01 children born/woman (2007 est.) 2.47 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate NA% 36% (1999 est.)
Waterways 800 km (600 km year round) (2005) -
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