Coor din ates: 8°3 0′N 1 1 °3 0′W Sierra Leone Sierra Leone (/siˌɛrə liˈoʊn, -ˈoʊni/, UK also /siˌɛərə-, [6] Republic of Sierra Leone ˌsɪərə-/), officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the northeast, Liberia to the southeast and the Atlantic Ocean to the southwest. It has a tropical climate, with a diverse environment ranging from savanna to 2 rainforests. The country has a total area of 7 1,7 40 km Flag Coat of arms (27 ,699 sq mi)[7] and a population of 7 ,07 5,641 as of Motto: "Unity, Freedom, Justice" the 2015 census.[2] Sierra Leone is a constitutional republic with a directly elected president and a Anthem: High We Exalt Thee, Realm of the Free unicameral legislature. Sierra Leone has a dominant unitary central government. The country's capital and largest city is Freetown (population 1,050,301). The second most populous city is Kenema (population 200,354) located 200 miles from Freetown. Sierra Leone is made up of five administrative regions: the Northern Province, North West Province, Eastern Province, Southern Province and the Western Area. These regions are subdivided into sixteen districts, which are further divided into 190 chiefdoms.[8][9] Sierra Leone was a British colony from 1808 to 1961. Sierra Leone became independent from the United Location of Sierra Leone (dark blue) Kingdom on 27 April 1961, led by Sir Milton Margai, – in Africa (light blue & dark grey) – in the African Union (light blue) – [Legend] who became the country's first prime minister. In May 1962, Sierra Leone held its first general elections as an Independent nation, and Sir Milton Margai"s Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) won most seats in parliament. The main opposition leader Siaka Stevens" All People's Congress (APC) defeated the ruling SLPP under Sir Albert Margai"s leadership in the closely contested 1967 Sierra Leone parliamentary election. Stevens ruled Sierra Leone from 1968 to 1985. While in office, Stevens suppressed oppositions and critics of his government. In 197 1, Stevens abolished Sierra Leone"s parliamentary government system and declared Sierra Leone a presidential republic. In July 197 5, Over a dozen senior military and government officials Capital Freetown convicted of planning to overthrow president Stevens, and largest city 8°29.067′N 13°14.067′W were executed. Sierra Leone was a one party state from 197 8 to 1985, in which Stevens" APC was the only legal Official languages English Temne · Mende · Krio political party in the country. The current constitution Spoken languages Temne · Mende · Krio of Sierra Leone, that includes multi party democracy Ethnic groups 35.5% Temne [1] was adopted in 1991 by the government of President (2013 ) 33.2% Mende Joseph Saidu Momoh, Stevens' hand picked successor. 6.4% Limba 4.4% Kono In 1991, a rebel group known as the Revolutionary 3.4% Fula United Front led by former Sierra Leone army Corporal 2.9% Loko Foday Sankoh launched a brutal civil war in the 2.8% Koranko country. In April 1992 a group of Junior military 2.6% Sherbro officers toppled Momoh from power and a twenty-five 2.4% Mandingo year old Captain Valentine Strasser became the head of 1.2% Krio (Creole) State. In January 1996 Strasser was toppled from power 5.2% Other by his deputy Brigadier General Julius Maada Bio. Bio Demonym Sierra Leonean returned the country to multi party democracy and the 1991 constitution was reestablished. Bio handed power Government Unitary presidential Constitutional Republic to Ahmad Tejan Kabbah of the SLPP after his victory in the 1996 Sierra Leone presidential election. In May • President Julius Maada Bio • Vice-President Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh 1997 , the military overthrew president Kabbah. • Chief Minister David J. Francis However, in February 1998, a coalition of West African • Speaker of Abass Bundu Ecowas armed forces lead by Nigeria removed the Parliament military Junta from power by military force and • Chief Justice Abdulai Hamid Charm president Kabbah was reinstated as president. In 1998, Legislature Parliament the leaders of the coup were executed after they were Independence convicted and sentenced to death by a court martial in • from the United 27 April 1961 Freetown. Sierra Leone has had an interrupted Kingdom democracy since 1998 to present. In January 2002, • Republic declared 19 April 1971 President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah fulfilled his campaign Area promise by officially ending the civil war as the rebels • Total 71,740 km2 were defeated by military force with the help and (27,700 sq mi) (117th) • Water (%) 1.1 support of Ecowas, the British Government, the African Union, and the United Nations. Population • 2015 census 7,075,641[2] (103rd) About sixteen ethnic groups inhabit Sierra Leone, each • Density 79.4/km2 (205.6/sq mi) with its own language and customs. The two largest and (114tha) most influential are the Temne and Mende. The Temne GDP (PPP) 2017 estimate are predominantly found in the northwest of the • Total $12.357 billion[3] country, and the Mende are predominant in the • Per capita $1,848[3] southeast. Comprising a small minority, about 2%, are GDP (nominal) 2017 estimate the Krio people, who are descendants of freed African • Total $4.757 billion[3] American and West Indian slaves. The Krios are • Per capita $711[3] overwhelmingly found in the capital Freetown and its Gini (2011) 35.4[4] surrounding countryside. Although English is the medium official language, used in schools and government HDI (2015) 0.420[5] administration, Krio, an English-based creole, is the low · 179th most widely spoken language across Sierra Leone and is spoken by 97 % of the country's population. The Krio Currency Leone (SLL) language unites all the different ethnic groups in the Time zone GMT (UTC+0) country, especially in their trade and social interaction. Drives on the rightb Calling code +232 Sierra Leone is a Muslim-majority country, with the overall Muslim population at 7 8%; though there is an ISO 3166 code SL [10] influential Christian minority at 21%. Sierra Leone is Internet TLD .sl regarded as one of the most religiously tolerant states in the world. Muslims and Christians collaborate and a. Rank based on 2007 figures. interact with each other very peacefully, and religious b. Since 1 March 1971. violence is very rare. The major Christian and Muslim holidays are officially public holidays in the country, including Christmas, Easter, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al- Adha. In politics, the vast majority of Sierra Leoneans vote for a candidate without regard to whether the candidate is a Muslim or a Christian.[11][12] Sierra Leone has relied on mining, especially diamonds, for its economic base. It is also among the largest producers of titanium and bauxite, a major producer of gold and has one of the world's largest deposits of rutile. Sierra Leone is home to the third-largest natural harbour in the world. Despite this natural wealth, 53% of its population lived in poverty in 2011.[13] Sierra Leone is a member of many international organisations, including the United Nations, the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Mano River Union, the Commonwealth of Nations, the African Development Bank and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. Contents History Early history European trading Early colonies Colonial era (1800–1960) 1960 Independence Conference Independence (1961) and Margai Administration (1961–1964) Final years of democracy (1964–1967) Military coups (1967–1968) One-party state (1968–1991) Sierra Leone Civil War (1991–2002) Kabbah's government and the end of civil war (2002–2014) Struggle with epidemic (2014–2016) 14 August 2017 mudslides Geography and climate Environment Government and politics Parliament Judiciary Foreign relations Administrative divisions Military Law enforcement Economy Agriculture Mining Transport infrastructure Society Demographics Religion Ethnic groups Education Health Endemic and infectious diseases 2014 Ebola outbreak Mental health Maternal and child health Drinking water supply Culture Polygamy Food and customs Media Arts Sports See also References Bibliography Further reading Fiction and memoir Secondary sources External links History Early history Archaeological finds show that Sierra Leone has been inhabited continuously for at least 2,500 years,[15] populated successively by societies who migrated from other parts of Africa.[16] The people adopted the use of iron by the 9th century and by 1000 AD agriculture was being practised along the coast.[17] The climate changed considerably and boundaries among different ecological zones changed as well, affecting migration and conquest.[18] Fragments of prehistoric pottery from Kamabai Rock Shelter Sierra Leone's dense tropical rainforest and swampy environment was considered impenetrable; it was also host to the tsetse fly, which carried a disease fatal to horses and the zebu cattle used by the Mande people. This environmental factor protected its people from conquests by the Mande and other African empires.[18][19] This also reduced the Islamic influence of the Mali Empire but Islam, introduced by Susu traders, merchants and migrants from the north and east, became widely adopted in the 18th century.[20] European trading European contacts within Sierra Leone were among the first in West Africa in the 15th century. In 1462, Portuguese explorer Pedro de Sintra mapped the hills surrounding what is now Freetown Harbour, naming the shaped formation Serra da Leoa or "Serra Leoa" (Portuguese for Lioness Mountains).[21] The Spanish rendering of this geographic formation is Sierra Leona, which later was adapted and, misspelled, became the country's current name. Although according to the professor C. Magbaily An 1835 illustration of liberated Fyle this could have been a misinterpretation of historians: Africans arriving in Sierra Leone according to him, there has been evidence of travellers calling the region Serra Lyoa well before 1462, the year when Sintra first arrived.