|
|
 |
 |
|
Flag |
Coat of arms |
|
Motto: "Unity
-
Freedom
-
Justice"
Anthem: High
We Exalt
Thee,
Realm of
the Free |
|
|
Capital
(and
largest
city) |
Freetown
(1,070,200)
8°31′N,
13°15′W |
|
Official
languages |
English |
|
Demonym |
Sierra
Leonean |
|
Government |
Constitutional
republic |
|
- |
President |
Ernest
Bai
Koroma |
|
- |
Vice
President |
Samuel
Sam-Sumana |
|
Independence |
|
- |
from the
United
Kingdom |
April
27,
1961 |
|
- |
Republic
declared |
April
17,
1971 |
|
Area |
|
- |
Total |
71,740 km² (119th)
27,699 sq mi |
|
- |
Water (%) |
1.0 |
|
|
Population |
|
- |
July
2008
CIA estimate |
6,294,774[1] (103rd1) |
|
- |
Density |
83/km² (114th1)
199/sq mi |
|
GDP (PPP) |
2005 estimate |
|
- |
Total |
$4.921
billion (151st) |
|
- |
Per
capita |
$903 (172nd) |
|
Gini (2003) |
62.9 (high) |
|
HDI (2007) |
▲
0.336 (low) (177th) |
|
Currency |
Leone (SLL) |
|
Time
zone |
GMT
(UTC+0) |
|
Internet
TLD |
.sl |
|
Calling
code |
+232 |
|
1
Rank
based on
2007
figures. |
|
Sierra Leone,
officially the
Republic of
Sierra Leone, is
a country in
West Africa. It
is bordered by
Guinea in the
northeast,
Liberia in the
southeast, and
the Atlantic
Ocean in the
southwest.
Sierra Leone
covers a total
area of 71,740
sq km (27,699 sq
mi)[1] and has a
population
estimated at
6,294,774 in
July 2008
The country has
a tropical
climate, with a
diverse
environment
ranging from
savannah to
rainforests.[3]
Freetown is the
capital, seat of
government, and
largest city.
Other major
cities in the
country with a
population over
100,000 are Bo, Kenema, Koidu
Town and Makeni.
Early
inhabitants of
Sierra Leone
included the
Sherbro, Temne
and Limba
peoples, and
later the Mende,[4]
who knew the
country as
Romarong, and
the Kono who
settled in the
East of the
country. In
1462, it was
visited by the
Portuguese
explorer Pedro da Cintra, who
gave it its name
Serra de Lećo,
meaning 'Lion Mountains'.[6]
Sierra Leone became an important
centre of the transatlantic
slave trade, until 1787 when
Freetown was founded by the
Sierra Leone Company as a home
for formerly enslaved African
and West Indians.[7] In 1808,
Freetown became a British Crown
Colony, and in 1896, the
interior of the country became a
British Protectorate; in 1961,
the two combined and gained
independence. Over two decades
of government neglect of the
interior followed by the
spilling over of the Liberian
conflict into its borders
eventually led to the Sierra
Leone Civil War, which began in
1991 and was resolved in 2000
after the United Nations led by
Nigeria defeated the rebel
forces and restored the civilian
government elected in 1998 to
Freetown. Since then, almost
72,500 former combatants have
been disarmed[9] and the country
has reestablished a functioning
democracy.[10] The Special Court
for Sierra Leone was set up in
2002 to deal with war crimes and
crimes against humanity
committed since 1996.
Sierra Leone is
the lowest ranked country on the
Human Development Index and
seventh lowest on the Human
Poverty Index, suffering from
endemic corruption and
suppression of the press.
