Swaziland (2007) | Sierra Leone (2003) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 40.3% (male 230,238/female 226,184)
15-64 years: 56.1% (male 304,899/female 331,036) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 15,870/female 24,839) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 44.8% (male 1,259,421; female 1,310,516)
15-64 years: 52% (male 1,420,900; female 1,557,597) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 89,078; female 95,169) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco, rice, citrus, pineapples, sorghum, peanuts; cattle, goats, sheep | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish |
Airports | 18 (2007) | 10 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 17
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2007) |
total: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
Area | total: 17,363 sq km
land: 17,203 sq km water: 160 sq km |
total: 71,740 sq km
land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than New Jersey | slightly smaller than South Carolina |
Background | Autonomy for the Swazis of southern Africa was guaranteed by the British in the late 19th century; independence was granted in 1968. Student and labor unrest during the 1990s pressured King MSWATI III, the world's last ruling monarch, to grudgingly allow political reform and greater democracy, although he has backslid on these promises in recent years. Swaziland recently surpassed Botswana as the country with the world's highest known rates of HIV/AIDS infection. | 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 11-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. National elections were held in May 2002 and the government continues to slowly reestablish its authority. |
Birth rate | 26.98 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 43.89 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $977 million
expenditures: $1.034 billion (2006 est.) |
revenues: $96 million
expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | name: Mbabane
geographic coordinates: 26 18 S, 31 06 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Lobamba (royal and legislative capital) |
Freetown |
Climate | varies from tropical to near temperate | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 402 km |
Constitution | signed by the King in July 2005 went into effect on 8 February 2006 | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Swaziland
conventional short form: Swaziland local long form: Umbuso weSwatini local short form: eSwatini |
conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone
conventional short form: Sierra Leone |
Currency | - | leone (SLL) |
Death rate | 30.35 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 20.66 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $484 million (2006 est.) | $1.5 billion (2002 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Lynn ALLISON
embassy: Central Bank Building, Mahlokahla Street, Mbabane mailing address: P. O. Box 199, Mbabane telephone: [268] 404-6441 through 404-6445 FAX: [268] 404-5959 |
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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Ephraim Mandla HLOPHE
chancery: 1712 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5002 FAX: [1] (202) 234-8254 |
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 |
Disputes - international | in 2006, Swazi king advocates resort to ICJ to claim parts of Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal from South Africa | large UN peacekeeping presence ended civil war but rebel gang fighting, ethnic rivalries, illegal diamond trading, corruption, and refugees spill over into neighboring states beset with their own civil disorder, refugees, and violence |
Economic aid - recipient | $46.03 million (2005) | $103 million (2001 est.) |
Economy - overview | In this small, landlocked economy, subsistence agriculture occupies more than 80% of the population. The manufacturing sector has diversified since the mid-1980s. Sugar and wood pulp remain important foreign exchange earners. Mining has declined in importance in recent years with only coal and quarry stone mines remaining active. Surrounded by South Africa, except for a short border with Mozambique, Swaziland is heavily dependent on South Africa from which it receives more than nine-tenths of its imports and to which it sends 60% of its exports. Customs duties from the Southern African Customs Union and worker remittances from South Africa substantially supplement domestically earned income. The government is trying to improve the atmosphere for foreign investment. Overgrazing, soil depletion, drought, and sometimes floods persist as problems for the future. More than one-fourth of the population needed emergency food aid in 2004-05 because of drought, and nearly two-fifths of the adult population has been infected by HIV/AIDS. | 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 11-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. Plans continue 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, which is essential to offset the severe trade imbalance and to supplement government revenues. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.3 billion kWh (2005) | 232.6 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 872 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 460 million kWh (2005) | 250.1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Great Usutu River 21 m
highest point: Emlembe 1,862 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m |
Environment - current issues | limited supplies of potable water; wildlife populations being depleted because of excessive hunting; overgrazing; soil degradation; soil erosion | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
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 | African 97%, European 3% | 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 |
Exchange rates | emalangeni per US dollar - 6.85 (2006), 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002) | leones per US dollar - 2,099.03 (2002), 1,986.15 (2001), 2,092.12 (2000), 1,804.19 (1999), 1,563.62 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: King MSWATI III (since 25 April 1986)
head of government: Prime Minister Absolom Themba DLAMINI (since 14 November 2003) cabinet: Cabinet recommended by the prime minister and confirmed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch from among the elected members of the House of Assembly |
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 (APC) 22.4% |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | soft drink concentrates, sugar, wood pulp, cotton yarn, refrigerators, citrus and canned fruit | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish (1999) |
Exports - partners | South Africa 59.7%, EU 8.8%, US 8.8%, Mozambique 6.2% (2006) | Belgium 41.9%, Germany 28.1%, UK 3.6% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in yellow; centered in the red band is a large black and white shield covering two spears and a staff decorated with feather tassels, all placed horizontally | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $2.826 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11.9%
industry: 46.1% services: 41.9% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: 49%
industry: 31% services: 21% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $500 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.1% (2006 est.) | 6.6% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 26 30 S, 31 30 E | 8 30 N, 11 30 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa | 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 (2002) |
Highways | - | total: 11,330 km
paved: 895 km unpaved: 10,435 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 40.7% (2001) |
lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 43.6% (1989) |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | motor vehicles, machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals (1995) |
Imports - partners | South Africa 95.6%, EU 0.9%, Japan 0.9%, Singapore 0.3% (2006) | Germany 25%, UK 10.9%, Netherlands 7.5%, US 5.7%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.9%, Italy 4.3% (2002) |
Independence | 6 September 1968 (from UK) | 27 April 1961 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.7% (FY95/96) | NA% |
Industries | coal, wood pulp, sugar, soft drink concentrates, textile and apparel | mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 70.66 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 74 deaths/1,000 live births female: 67.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 146.86 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 164.23 deaths/1,000 live births female: 128.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.7% (2006 est.) | 1% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACP, AfDB, C, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, 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, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2001) |
Irrigated land | 500 sq km (2003) | 290 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Court; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the monarch | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court |
Labor force | 300,000 (2006) | 1.369 million (1981 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | total: 535 km
border countries: Mozambique 105 km, South Africa 430 km |
total: 958 km
border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
Land use | arable land: 10.25%
permanent crops: 0.81% other: 88.94% (2005) |
arable land: 6.76%
permanent crops: 0.78% other: 92.46% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official, government business conducted in English), siSwati (official) | 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%) |
Legal system | based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts and Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations | based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Libandla consists of the Senate (30 seats; 10 members appointed by the House of Assembly and 20 appointed by the monarch; to serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (65 seats; 10 members appointed by the monarch and 55 elected by popular vote; to serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 18 October 2003 (next to be held in October 2008) election results: House of Assembly - balloting is done on a nonparty basis; candidates for election are nominated by the local council of each constituency and for each constituency the three candidates with the most votes in the first round of voting are narrowed to a single winner by a second round |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 32.23 years
male: 31.84 years female: 32.62 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 42.84 years
male: 40.33 years female: 45.42 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 81.6% male: 82.6% female: 80.8% (2003 est.) |
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.) |
Location | Southern Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | contiguous zone: 24 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 7,435 GRT/8,750 DWT
ships by type: cargo 2 |
Military branches | Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (USDF): Ground Force (includes air wing), Royal Swaziland Police Force (RSPF) (2007) | Army (RSLAF) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $10.26 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.7% (2006) | 1.5% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,228,664 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 596,617 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 September (1968) | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) |
Nationality | noun: Swazi(s)
adjective: Swazi |
noun: Sierra Leonean(s)
adjective: Sierra Leonean |
Natural hazards | drought | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms |
Natural resources | asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold and diamond deposits, quarry stone, and talc | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 6.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2003 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | the status of political parties, previously banned, is unclear under the new (2006) Constitution and currently being debated - the following are considered political associations; African United Democratic Party or AUDP [Stanley MAUNDZISA, president]; Imbokodvo National Movement or INM; Ngwane National Liberatory Congress or NNLC [Obed DLAMINI, president]; People's United Democratic Movement or PUDEMO [Mario MASUKU, president] | 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Trade Unions and Student Unions |
Population | 1,133,066
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 2007 est.) |
5,732,681 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 69% (2006) | 68% (1989 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.337% (2007 est.) | 2.94% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 2 (plus 4 repeaters), shortwave 3 (2004) | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) |
Railways | total: 301 km
narrow gauge: 301 km 1.067-m gauge (2006) |
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) |
Religions | Zionist 40% (a blend of Christianity and indigenous ancestral worship), Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 10%, other (includes Anglican, Bahai, Methodist, Mormon, Jewish) 30% | Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.018 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.921 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.639 male(s)/female total population: 0.947 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
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: 0.94 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: a somewhat modern but not an advanced system
domestic: system consists of carrier-equipped, open-wire lines and low-capacity, microwave radio relay international: country code - 268; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: marginal telephone and telegraph service
domestic: the national microwave radio relay trunk system connects Freetown to Bo and Kenema international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 44,000 (2006) | 25,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 250,000 (2006) | 30,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 12 (includes 7 relay stations) (2004) | 2 (1999) |
Terrain | mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east |
Total fertility rate | 3.43 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 5.86 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 40% (2006 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | - | 800 km (of which 600 km is navigable year round) |