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The government is slowly reestablishing its authority after the civil war from 1991 to 2002 that resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (about one-third of the population).

The last UN peacekeepers withdrew in December 2005 leaving full responsibility for security with domestic forces.

A new civilian UN mission - the UN Integrated Office in Sierra Leone (UNIOSIL) - was established to support the government's efforts to consolidate peace.

The most pressing long-term threat to stability in Sierra Leone is the potential for political insecurity surrounding elections in July 2007.
 6,144,562 (July 2007 est.)

0-14 years: 44.8% (male 1,349,878/female 1,400,297)
15-64 years: 52% (male 1,531,763/female 1,664,996)
65 years and over: 3.2% (male 92,360/female 105,268) (2007 est.)

total: 17.5 years
male: 17.2 years
female: 17.7 years (2007 est.)

2.292% (2007 est.)

45.41 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)

22.64 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)

0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2007 est.)

at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 0.964 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.877 male(s)/female
total population: 0.938 male(s)/female (2007 est.)

total: 158.27 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 175.39 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 140.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)

total population: 40.58 years
male: 38.36 years
female: 42.87 years (2007 est.)

6.01 children born/woman (2007 est.)

7% (2001 est.)

170,000 (2001 est.)

11,000 (2001 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: malaria and yellow fever are high risks in some locations
water contact disease: schistosomiasis
aerosolized dust or soil contact disease: Lassa fever (2007)

noun: Sierra Leonean(s)
adjective: Sierra Leonean

20 African ethnic groups 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

Muslim 60%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs 30%

definition: age 15 and over can read and write English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic
total population: 35.1%
male: 46.9%
female: 24.4% (2004 est.) Sierra Leone is an extremely poor nation with tremendous inequality in income distribution. While it possesses substantial mineral, agricultural, and fishery resources, its economic and social infrastructure is not well developed, and serious social disorders continue to hamper economic development. Nearly half 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. Alluvial diamond mining remains the major source of hard currency earnings accounting for nearly half of Sierra Leone's exports. 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 supplement government revenues. The IMF has completed a Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility program that helped stabilize economic growth and reduce inflation. A recent increase in political stability has led to a revival of economic activity such as the rehabilitation of bauxite and rutile mining.

$5.452 billion (2006 est.)

$1.236 billion (2006 est.)

7.1% (2006 est.)

agriculture: 49%
industry: 31%
services: 21% (2001 est.)

1.369 million (1981 est.)


68% (1989 est.)

lowest 10%: 0.5%
highest 10%: 43.6% (1989)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
62.9 (1989)

1% (2002 est.)

revenues: $96 million
expenditures: $351 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)

rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish


244 million kWh (2004)

226.9 million kWh (2004)



4 bbl/day (2004 est.)

6,600 bbl/day (2004 est.)




$185 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish

Belgium 51.7%, US 19%, Netherlands 6.7% (2006)

$531 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals

Cote d'Ivoire 9.7%, US 8.1%, China 8%, UK 7%, Netherlands 5.8%, South Africa 4.7%, India 4.6%, France 4.4% (2006)

$1.61 billion (2003 est.)

$297.4 million (2003 est.)

leone (SLL)

leones per US dollar - 2,961.7 (2006), 2,889.6 (2005), 2,701.3 (2004), 2,347.9 (2003), 2,099 (2002)

calendar year

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