227 lines
18 KiB
Plaintext
227 lines
18 KiB
Plaintext
SIERRA LEONE
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GEOGRAPHY
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Total area: 71,740 km2; land area: 71,620 km2
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Comparative area: slightly smaller than South Carolina
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Land boundaries: 958 km total; Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km
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Coastline: 402 km
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Maritime claims:
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Territorial sea: 200 nm
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Climate: tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to
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December); winter dry season (December to April)
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Terrain: coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country,
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upland plateau, mountains in east
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Natural resources: diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold,
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chromite
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Land use: arable land 25%; permanent crops 2%; meadows and pastures
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31%; forest and woodland 29%; other 13%; includes irrigated NEGL%
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Environment: extensive mangrove swamps hinder access to sea;
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deforestation; soil degradation
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PEOPLE
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Population: 4,274,543 (July 1991), growth rate 2.6% (1991)
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Birth rate: 46 births/1,000 population (1991)
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Death rate: 20 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
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Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
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Infant mortality rate: 151 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
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Life expectancy at birth: 42 years male, 48 years female (1991)
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Total fertility rate: 6.1 children born/woman (1991)
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Nationality: noun--Sierra Leonean(s); adjective--Sierra Leonean
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Ethnic divisions: native African 99% (Temne 30%, Mende 30%);
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Creole, European, Lebanese, and Asian 1%; 13 tribes
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Religion: Muslim 30%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10%,
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other or none 30%
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Language: English (official); regular use limited to literate
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minority; principal vernaculars are Mende in south and Temne in north;
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Krio is the language of the resettled ex-slave population of the Freetown
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area and is lingua franca
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Literacy: 21% (male 31%, female 11%) age 15 and over can
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read and write English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic (1990 est.)
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Labor force: 1,369,000 (est.); agriculture 65%, industry 19%,
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services 16% (1981); only about 65,000 earn wages (1985); 55% of
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population of working age
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Organized labor: 35% of wage earners
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GOVERNMENT
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Long-form name: Republic of Sierra Leone
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Type: republic under presidential regime
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Capital: Freetown
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Administrative divisions: 4 provinces; Eastern, Northern, Southern,
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Western
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Independence: 27 April 1961 (from UK)
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Constitution: 14 June 1978
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Legal system: based on English law and customary laws indigenous to
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local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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National holiday: Republic Day, 27 April (1961)
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Executive branch: president, two vice presidents, Cabinet
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Legislative branch: unicameral House of Representatives
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Judicial branch: Supreme Court
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Leaders:
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Chief of State and Head of Government--President Gen. Joseph
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Saidu MOMOH (since 28 November 1985); First Vice President Abu Bakar
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KAMARA (since 4 April 1987); Second Vice President Salia JUSU-SHERIFF
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(since 4 April 1987)
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Political parties and leaders: only party--All People's Congress
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(APC), Gen. Joseph Saidu MOMOH; note--constitutional referendum to
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adopt a multiparty system is scheduled for June 1991
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Suffrage: universal at age 18
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Elections:
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President--last held 1 October 1985 (next to be held October 1992);
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results--Gen. Joseph Saidu MOMOH was elected without opposition;
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House of Representatives--last held 30 May 1986 (next to be
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held February 1992);
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results--APC is the only party;
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seats--(127 total, 105 elected) APC 105
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Communists: no party, although there are a few Communists and a
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slightly larger number of sympathizers
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Member of: ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA,
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IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC,
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ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO,
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WIPO, WMO, WTO
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Diplomatic representation: Ambassador George CAREW; Chancery at
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1701 19th Street NW, Washington DC 20009; telephone (202) 939-9261;
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US--Ambassador Johnny YOUNG; Embassy at the corner of Walpole and
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Siaka Stevens Street, Freetown; telephone 232 (22) 26481
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Flag: three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and
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light blue
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ECONOMY
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Overview: The economic and social infrastructure is not well
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developed. Subsistence agriculture dominates the economy, generating
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about one-third of GDP and employing about two-thirds of the working
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population. Manufacturing accounts for less than 10% of GDP, consisting
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mainly of the processing of raw materials and of light manufacturing for
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the domestic market. Diamond mining provides an important source of hard
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currency. The economy suffers from high unemployment, rising inflation,
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large trade deficits, and a growing dependency on foreign assistance.
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The government in 1990 was attempting to get the budget deficit under
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control and, in general, to bring economic policy in line with the
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recommendations of the IMF and the World Bank.
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GDP: $1,302 million, per capita $325; real growth rate 2.8% (FY90)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices): over 100% (1990)
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Unemployment rate: NA%
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Budget: revenues $134 million; expenditures $187 million,
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including capital expenditures of $32 million (FY91 est.)
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Exports: $138 million (f.o.b., 1990);
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commodities--rutile 50%, bauxite 17%, cocoa 11%, diamonds 3%,
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coffee 3%;
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partners--US, UK, Belgium, FRG, other Western Europe
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Imports: $146 million (c.i.f., 1990);
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commodities--capital goods 40%, food 32%, petroleum 12%,
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consumer goods 7%, light industrial goods;
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partners--US, EC, Japan, China, Nigeria
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External debt: $572 million (1990)
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Industrial production: growth rate - 19% (FY88 est.); accounts
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for 14% of GDP
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Electricity: 83,000 kW capacity; 180 million kWh produced,
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45 kWh per capita (1989)
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Industries: mining (diamonds, bauxite, rutile), small-scale
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manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear), petroleum
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refinery
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Agriculture: accounts for over 30% of GDP and two-thirds of the
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labor force; largely subsistence farming; cash crops--coffee, cocoa, palm
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kernels; harvests of food staple rice meets 80% of domestic needs;
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annual fish catch averages 53,000 metric tons
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Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $161
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million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
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(1970-87), $698 million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $18 million;
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Communist countries (1970-89), $101 million
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Currency: leone (plural--leones); 1 leone (Le) = 100 cents
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Exchange rates: leones per US$1--196.0784 (January 1991),
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144.9275 (1990), 58.1395 (1989), 31.2500 (1988), 30.7692 (1987),
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8.3963 (1986), 4.7304 (1985)
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Fiscal year: 1 July-30 June
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COMMUNICATIONS
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Railroads: 84 km 1.067-meter narrow-gauge mineral line is used on a
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limited basis because the mine at Marampa is closed
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Highways: 7,400 km total; 1,150 km bituminous, 490 km laterite
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(some gravel), remainder improved earth
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Inland waterways: 800 km; 600 km navigable year round
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Ports: Freetown, Pepel
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Civil air: no major transport aircraft
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Airports: 12 total, 8 usable; 5 with permanent-surface runways;
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none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m;
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3 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
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Telecommunications: marginal telephone and telegraph service;
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national microwave radio relay system unserviceable at present; 23,650
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telephones; stations--1 AM, 1 FM, 1 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth
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station
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DEFENSE FORCES
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Branches: Army, Navy, Police
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Manpower availability: males 15-49, 939,214; 453,877 fit for
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military service; no conscription
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Defense expenditures: $6 million, 0.7% of GDP (1988 est.)
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