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Compare West Bank (2008) - Sierra Leone (2004)

Compare West Bank (2008) z Sierra Leone (2004)

 West Bank (2008)Sierra Leone (2004)
 West BankSierra Leone
Administrative divisions - 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western*
Age structure 0-14 years: 42.4% (male 551,243/female 524,800)


15-64 years: 54.2% (male 704,209/female 670,382)


65 years and over: 3.4% (male 36,175/female 49,118) (2007 est.)
0-14 years: 44.8% (male 1,291,621; female 1,343,827)


15-64 years: 52% (male 1,458,610; female 1,599,109)


65 years and over: 3.2% (male 91,232; female 99,490) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish
Airports 3 (2007) 10 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2007)
total: 1


over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total: 9


914 to 1,523 m: 7


under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)
Area total: 5,860 sq km


land: 5,640 sq km


water: 220 sq km


note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967
total: 71,740 sq km


land: 71,620 sq km


water: 120 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Delaware slightly smaller than South Carolina
Background The September 1993 Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements provided for a transitional period of Palestinian self-rule in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Under a series of agreements signed between May 1994 and September 1999, Israel transferred to the Palestinian Authority (PA) security and civilian responsibility for Palestinian-populated areas of the West Bank and Gaza. Negotiations to determine the permanent status of the West Bank and Gaza stalled following the outbreak of an intifada in September 2000, as Israeli forces reoccupied most Palestinian-controlled areas. In April 2003, the Quartet (US, EU, UN, and Russia) presented a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005 based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. The proposed date for a permanent status agreement was postponed indefinitely due to violence and accusations that both sides had not followed through on their commitments. Following Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT's death in late 2004, Mahmud ABBAS was elected PA president in January 2005. A month later, Israel and the PA agreed to the Sharm el-Sheikh Commitments in an effort to move the peace process forward. In September 2005, Israel unilaterally withdrew all its settlers and soldiers and dismantled its military facilities in the Gaza Strip and withdrew settlers and redeployed soldiers from four small northern West Bank settlements. Nonetheless, Israel controls maritime, airspace, and most access to the Gaza Strip. A November 2005 PA-Israeli agreement authorized the reopening of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt under joint PA and Egyptian control. In January 2006, the Islamic Resistance Movement, HAMAS, won control of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). The international community refused to accept the HAMAS-led government because it did not recognize Israel, would not renounce violence, and refused to honor previous peace agreements between Israel and the PA. HAMAS took control of the PA government in March 2006, but President ABBAS had little success negotiating with HAMAS to present a political platform acceptable to the international community so as to lift economic sanctions on Palestinians. The PLC was unable to convene throughout most of 2006 as a result of Israel's detention of many HAMAS PLC members and Israeli-imposed travel restrictions on other PLC members. Violent clashes took place between Fatah and HAMAS supporters in the Gaza Strip in 2006 and early 2007, resulting in numerous Palestinian deaths and injuries. ABBAS and HAMAS Political Bureau Chief MISHAL in February 2007 signed the Mecca Agreement in Saudi Arabia that resulted in the formation of a Palestinian National Unity Government (NUG) headed by HAMAS member Ismail HANIYA. However, fighting continued in the Gaza Strip, and in June, HAMAS militants succeeded in a violent takeover of all military and governmental institutions in the Gaza Strip. ABBAS dismissed the NUG and through a series of presidential decrees formed a PA government in the West Bank led by independent Salam FAYYAD. HAMAS rejected the NUG's dismissal and has called for resuming talks with Fatah, but ABBAS has ruled out negotiations until HAMAS agrees to a return of PA control over the Gaza Strip and recognizes the FAYYAD-led government. FAYYAD and his PA government initiated a series of security and economic reforms to improve conditions in the West Bank. ABBAS participated in talks with Israel's Prime Minister OLMERT and secured the release of some Palestinian prisoners and previously withheld customs revenue. During a November 2007 international meeting in Annapolis Maryland, ABBAS and OLMERT agreed to resume peace negotiations with the goal of reaching a final peace settlement by the end of 2008. 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 (well over 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.
Birth rate 30.99 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 43.34 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget revenues: $1.149 billion


expenditures: $2.31 billion


note: includes Gaza Strip (2006)
revenues: $96 million


expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000 est.)
Capital - Freetown
Climate temperate; temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April)
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 402 km
Constitution - 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: West Bank
conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone


conventional short form: Sierra Leone
Currency - leone (SLL)
Death rate 3.85 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 20.62 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external $NA $1.5 billion (2002 est.)
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
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
Disputes - international West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation; Israel continues construction of a "seam line" separation barrier along parts of the Green Line and within the West Bank; Israel withdrew from four settlements in the northern West Bank in August 2005; since 1948, about 350 peacekeepers from the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO), headquartered in Jerusalem, monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN personnel in the region domestic fighting among disparate rebel groups, warlords, and youth gangs in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone have created insurgencies, street violence, looting, arms trafficking, ethnic conflicts, and refugees in border areas; in 2003, Guinea and Sierra Leone established a boundary commission to resolve a dispute over the town of Yenga
Economic aid - recipient $1.4 billion; (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.) $103 million (2001 est.)
Economy - overview The West Bank - the larger of the two areas comprising the Palestinian Authority (PA) - has experienced a general decline in economic conditions since the second intifada began in September 2000. The downturn has been largely a result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of closures and access restrictions in response to security concerns in Israel - which disrupted labor and trading relationships. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in PA areas resulted in the destruction of capital, the disruption of administrative structures, and widespread business closures. International aid of at least $1.14 billion to the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2004 prevented the complete collapse of the economy and allowed some reforms in the government's financial operations. In 2005, high unemployment and limited trade opportunities - due to continued closures both within the West Bank and externally - stymied growth. Israel's and the international community's financial embargo of the PA when HAMAS ran the PA during March 2006 - June 2007 has interrupted the provision of PA social services and the payment of PA salaries. Since June the Fayyad government in the West Bank has restarted salary payments and the provision of services but would be unable to operate absent high levels of international assistance. 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 NA kWh 232.6 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports - 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports NA kWh 0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - production NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants 250.1 million kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m


highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 m
Environment - current issues adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment 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, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
Ethnic groups Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% 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 new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.14 (2007), 4.4565 (2006), 4.4877 (2005), 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003) leones per US dollar - 2,347.94 (2003), 2,099.03 (2002), 1,986.15 (2001), 2,092.12 (2000), 1,804.19 (1999)
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 (APC) 22.4%
Exports $301 million f.o.b.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish (1999)
Exports - partners Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006) Belgium 61.2%, Germany 14.2%, UK 4.5%, US 4.5% (2003)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description - three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue
GDP - purchasing power parity - $3.057 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 8%


industry: 13%


services: 79% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.)
agriculture: 49%


industry: 31%


services: 21% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $500 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate -8% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006 est.) 6.5% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates 32 00 N, 35 15 E 8 30 N, 11 30 W
Geography - note landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 242 West Bank settlements and 29 East Jerusalem settlements in addition to at least 20 occupied outposts (August 2005 est.) 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 (2003 est.)
Highways - total: 11,330 km


paved: 895 km


unpaved: 10,435 km (1999)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: 0.5%


highest 10%: 43.6% (1989)
Imports $2.44 billion c.i.f.; (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) NA (2001)
Imports - commodities food, consumer goods, construction materials foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals (1995)
Imports - partners Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip (2006) Germany 23.7%, UK 9.9%, Cote d'Ivoire 7.4%, France 7.4%, US 5.3%, Netherlands 5.1%, Ukraine 4.6% (2003)
Independence - 27 April 1961 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate 2.4% (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) NA
Industries generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining
Infant mortality rate total: 18.67 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 20.59 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 16.64 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total: 145.24 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 162.64 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 127.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 3.6% (includes Gaza Strip) (2006) 1% (2002 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
Irrigated land 150 sq km; note - includes Gaza Strip (2003) 290 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch - Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court
Labor force 605,000 (2006) 1.369 million (1981 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 18%


industry: 15%


services: 67% (2006)
agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA
Land boundaries total: 404 km


border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km
total: 958 km


border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km
Land use arable land: 16.9%


permanent crops: 18.97%


other: 64.13% (2001)
arable land: 6.98%


permanent crops: 0.89%


other: 92.13% (2001)
Languages Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) 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 English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; 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 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: 73.46 years


male: 71.68 years


female: 75.35 years (2007 est.)
total population: 42.69 years


male: 40.23 years


female: 45.21 years (2004 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 92.4%


male: 96.7%


female: 88% (2004 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 Middle East, west of Jordan Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia
Map references Middle East Africa
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm
Merchant marine - total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 7,435 GRT/8,750 DWT


by type: cargo 2 (2004 est.)
Military branches - Army (RSLAF)
Military expenditures - dollar figure - $11.7 million (2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA 1.5% (2003)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 1,265,140 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 614,338 (2004 est.)
National holiday - Independence Day, 27 April (1961)
Nationality noun: NA


adjective: NA
noun: Sierra Leonean(s)


adjective: Sierra Leonean
Natural hazards droughts dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms
Natural resources arable land diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite
Net migration rate 2.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population


note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2004 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
Political pressure groups and leaders - Trade Unions and Student Unions
Population 2,535,927


note: in addition, there are about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2004 est.)
5,883,889 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line 46% (2007 est.) 68% (1989 est.)
Population growth rate 2.985% (2007 est.) 2.27% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors - Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel
Radio broadcast stations AM 0, FM 25, shortwave 0 (2008) AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999)
Religions Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10%
Sex ratio at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.736 male(s)/female


total population: 1.038 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: 0.92 male(s)/female


total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage - 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: NA


domestic: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for fixed line services; the Palestinian JAWAL company provides cellular services


international: country code - 970 (2004)
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)
Telephones - main lines in use 349,000 (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) 24,000 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular 1.095 million (includes Gaza Strip) (2005) 67,000 (2002)
Television broadcast stations 30 (2008) 2 (1999)
Terrain mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east
Total fertility rate 4.17 children born/woman (2007 est.) 5.79 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate 18.6% (2006) NA
Waterways - 800 km (2003)
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