| Country (long form) |
Republic of Sierra Leone |
| Capital |
Freetown |
| Total Area |
27,698.97 sq mi
71,740.00 sq km
(slightly smaller than South Carolina) |
| Population |
5,232,624 (July 2000 est.) |
| Estimated Population in 2050 |
15,667,452 |
| 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%) |
| Literacy |
31.4% total, 45.4% male, 18.2% female (1995 est.) |
| Religions |
Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% |
| Life Expectancy |
42.37 male, 48.21 female (2000 est.) |
| Government Type |
constitutional democracy |
| Currency |
1 leone (Le) = 100 cents |
| GDP (per capita) |
$500 (1999 est.) |
| Labor Force (by occupation) |
agriculture N/A%, industry N/A%, services N/A% |
| Industry |
mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages,
textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining |
| Agriculture |
rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts;
poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish |
| Arable Land |
7% |
| Exports |
diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish |
| Imports |
foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and
lubricants, chemicals |
| Natural Resources |
diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold,
chromite |
| Current Environmental 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 |
| Telephones (main lines in use) |
17,000 (1995) |
|