Sierra Leone (2008) | Guinea (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* | 33 prefectures and 1 special zone (zone special)*; Beyla, Boffa, Boke, Conakry*, Coyah, Dabola, Dalaba, Dinguiraye, Dubreka, Faranah, Forecariah, Fria, Gaoual, Gueckedou, Kankan, Kerouane, Kindia, Kissidougou, Koubia, Koundara, Kouroussa, Labe, Lelouma, Lola, Macenta, Mali, Mamou, Mandiana, Nzerekore, Pita, Siguiri, Telimele, Tougue, Yomou |
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:
43.12% (male 1,637,000; female 1,645,786) 15-64 years: 54.19% (male 2,015,199; female 2,110,745) 65 years and over: 2.69% (male 84,586; female 120,554) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish | rice, coffee, pineapples, palm kernels, cassava (tapioca), bananas, sweet potatoes; cattle, sheep, goats; timber |
Airports | 10 (2007) | 15 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
total:
5 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
total:
10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 71,740 sq km
land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
total:
245,857 sq km land: 245,857 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | slightly smaller than Oregon |
Background | Democracy is slowly being reestablished 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 military, which took over full responsibility for security following the departure of UN peacekeepers at the end of 2005, is increasingly developing as a guarantor of the country's stability. The armed forces remained on the sideline during the 2007 presidential election, but still look to the UN Integrated Office in Sierra Leone (UNIOSIL) - a civilian UN mission - to support efforts to consolidate peace. The new government's priorities include furthering development, creating jobs, and stamping out endemic corruption. | Independent from France since 1958, Guinea did not hold democratic elections until 1993 when Gen. Lansana CONTE (head of the military government) was elected president of the civilian government. He was reelected in 1998. Unrest in Sierra Leone has spilled over into Guinea, threatening stability and creating a humanitarian emergency. |
Birth rate | 45.41 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 39.78 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $96 million
expenditures: $351 million (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$NA expenditures: $417.7 million, including capital expenditures of $NA million (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: Freetown
geographic coordinates: 8 30 N, 13 15 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Conakry |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) | generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds |
Coastline | 402 km | 320 km |
Constitution | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times | 23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale) |
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:
Republic of Guinea conventional short form: Guinea local long form: Republique de Guinee local short form: Guinee former: French Guinea |
Currency | - | Guinean franc (GNF) |
Death rate | 22.64 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 17.53 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.61 billion (2003 est.) | $3.6 billion (1999 est.) |
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 |
chief of mission:
Charge d'Affaires Timberlake FOSTER embassy: Rue Ka 038, Conakry mailing address: B. P. 603, Conakry telephone: [224] 41 15 20, 41 15 21, 41 15 23 FAX: [224] 41 15 22 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Hassan M. CONTECH
chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9261 through 9263 FAX: [1] (202) 483-1793 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Mohamed Aly THIAM chancery: 2112 Leroy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-9420 FAX: [1] (202) 483-8688 |
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 | border incursions by Revolutionary United Front combatants from Sierra Leone; civil war in that country has engendered a massive flow of refugees to southern Guinea and Liberia |
Economic aid - recipient | $343.4 million (2005 est.) | $359.2 million (1998) |
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 physical 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. | Guinea possesses major mineral, hydropower, and agricultural resources, yet remains a poor underdeveloped nation. The country possesses over 30% of the world's bauxite reserves and is the second largest bauxite producer. The mining sector accounted for about 75% of exports in 1999. Long-run improvements in government fiscal arrangements, literacy, and the legal framework are needed if the country is to move out of poverty. The government made encouraging progress in budget management in 1997-99, and reform progress was praised in the World Bank/IMF October 2000 assessment. However, escalating fighting along the Sierra Leonean and Liberian borders will cause major economic disruptions. In addition to direct defense costs, the violence has led to a sharp decline in investor confidence. Foreign mining companies have reduced expatriate staff, while panic buying has created food shortages and inflation in local markets. Real GDP growth is expected to fall to 2% in 2001. |
Electricity - consumption | 227.9 million kWh (2005) | 697.5 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 245 million kWh (2005) | 750 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
46.67% hydro: 53.33% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Nimba 1,752 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 | deforestation; inadequate supplies of potable water; desertification; soil contamination and erosion; overfishing, overpopulation in forest region |
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 |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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 | Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10% |
Exchange rates | leones per US dollar - NA (2007), 2,961.7 (2006), 2,889.6 (2005), 2,701.3 (2004), 2,347.9 (2003) | Guinean francs per US dollar - 1,855.0 (October 2000), 1,572.0 (2000), 1,387.4 (1999), 1,236.8 (1998), 1,095.3 (1997), 1,004.0 (1996) |
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 Lansana CONTE (head of military government since 5 April 1984, elected president 19 December 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Lamine SIDIME (since 8 March 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; candidate must receive a majority of the votes cast to be elected president; election last held 14 December 1998 (next to be held NA December 2003); the prime minister is appointed by the president election results: Lansana CONTE reelected president; percent of vote - Lansana CONTE (PUP) 56.1%, Mamadou Boye BA (UNR-PRP) 24.6%, Alpha CONDE (RPG) 16.6%, |
Exports | 431.1 bbl/day (2004) | $820 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish | bauxite, alumina, gold, diamonds, coffee, fish, agricultural products |
Exports - partners | Belgium 52.1%, US 19.1%, Netherlands 6.8% (2006) | US, Benelux, Ukraine, Ireland (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue | three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag of Rwanda, which has a large black letter R centered in the yellow band |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 49%
industry: 31% services: 21% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
22.3% industry: 35.3% services: 42.4% (1998 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.8% (2007 est.) | 5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 30 N, 11 30 W | 11 00 N, 10 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 | - |
Heliports | 2 (2007) | - |
Highways | - | total:
30,500 km paved: 5,033 km unpaved: 25,467 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 43.6% (1989) |
lowest 10%:
2.6% highest 10%: 32% (1994) |
Imports | 8,864 bbl/day (2004) | $634 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals | petroleum products, metals, machinery, transport equipment, textiles, grain and other foodstuffs |
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, Belgium, US, Cote d'Ivoire (1999) |
Independence | 27 April 1961 (from UK) | 2 October 1958 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 3.2% (1994) |
Industries | diamond mining; small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining, small commercial ship repair | bauxite, gold, diamonds; alumina refining; light manufacturing and agricultural processing industries |
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.) |
129.03 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2002 est.) | 6% (2000 est.) |
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, UNMIT, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MINURSO, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 300 sq km (2003) | 930 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 1.369 million (1981 est.) | 3 million (1999) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 958 km
border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
total:
3,399 km border countries: Cote d'Ivoire 610 km, Guinea-Bissau 386 km, Liberia 563 km, Mali 858 km, Senegal 330 km, Sierra Leone 652 km |
Land use | arable land: 7.95%
permanent crops: 1.05% other: 91% (2005) |
arable land:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 22% forests and woodland: 59% other: 17% (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%) | French (official), each ethnic group has its own language |
Legal system | based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on French civil law system, customary law, and decree; legal codes currently being revised; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 People's National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale Populaire (114 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 11 June 1995 (next scheduled for 26 November 2000 postponed indefinitely due to border fighting with rebels from Sierra Leone and Liberia) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PUP 71, RPG 19, PRP 9, UNR 9, UPG 2, PDG-AST 1, UNP 1, PDG-RDA 1, other 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 40.58 years
male: 38.36 years female: 42.87 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
45.91 years male: 43.49 years female: 48.42 years (2001 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: 35.9% male: 49.9% female: 21.9% (1995 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 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) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF): Army (includes Air Wing, Navy (Maritime Wing)) (2007) | Army, Navy, Air Force, Republican Guard, Presidential Guard, paramilitary National Gendarmerie, National Police Force (Surete National) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $56 million (FY96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.3% (2006) | 1.4% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
1,764,912 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
891,166 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) | Independence Day, 2 October (1958) |
Nationality | noun: Sierra Leonean(s)
adjective: Sierra Leonean |
noun:
Guinean(s) adjective: Guinean |
Natural hazards | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms | hot, dry, dusty harmattan haze may reduce visibility during dry season |
Natural resources | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite | bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish |
Net migration rate | 0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2007 est.) |
-2.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: as a result of civil war in neighboring countries, Guinea is host to almost half a million Liberian and Sierra Leonean refugees |
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 | Democratic Party of Guinea or PDG-AST [Marcel CROS]; Democratic Party of Guinea-African Democratic Rally or PDG-RDA [El Hadj Ismael Mohamed Gassim GUSHEIN]; National Union for Progress or UNP [Paul Louis FABER]; Party for Unity and Progress or PUP [Lansana CONTE] - the governing party; Party for Renewal and Progress or PRP [Siradiou DIALLO]; Rally for the Guinean People or RPG [Alpha CONDE]; Union for Progress of Guinea or UPG [Jean-Marie DORE, secretary-general]; Union for the New Republic or UNR [Mamadou Boye BA]; Union of Republican Forces or UFR [Sidya TOURE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | trade unions and student unions | NA |
Population | 6,144,562 (July 2007 est.) | 7,613,870 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 70.2% (2004) | 40% (1994 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.292% (2007 est.) | 1.96% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Boke, Conakry, Kamsar |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 4, FM 8, shortwave 3 (1998) |
Radios | - | 357,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | total:
1,086 km standard gauge: 279 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 807 km 1.000-m gauge (includes 662 km in common carrier service from Kankan to Conakry) |
Religions | Muslim 60%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs 30% | Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7% |
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:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: marginal telephone 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:
poor to fair system of open-wire lines, small radiotelephone communication stations, and new microwave radio relay system domestic: microwave radio relay and radiotelephone communication international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 24,000 (2002) | 20,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 113,200 (2003) | 2,868 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1999) | 6 (1997) |
Terrain | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east | generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior |
Total fertility rate | 6.01 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 5.39 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA% |
Waterways | 800 km (600 km year round) (2005) | 1,295 km (navigable by shallow-draft native craft) |