SIERRA LEONE

DESIGNED AND PRODUCED BY

BARCLAYS BANK D.C.O

54 LOMBARD STREET LONDON E.C.3

OFFICE OF THE MANAGER •

APRIL 1968 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The pictures in this booklet have been reproduced by permission of the Sierra Leone Department of Information, Freetown, and the Central Office of Information SIERRA LEONE

The coastal area of Sierra Leone was first discovered by the Portuguese navigator Pedro da Sintra in 1462. The Portuguese subsequently estab¬ lished trading posts, mainly in the area of the Sierra Leone River, and gave the hilly country around what is now Freetown the name which it still bears, Sierra Leone (the Lion Mountain). In 1788 the Settlement of Freetown was established on land leased by the British Government mainly for repatriated slaves from America, Nova Scotia, the West Indies and England. The Settlement encountered considerable hostility from the surrounding tribes and the difficulties this caused led, in 1808, to its being taken over as a Crown Colony. A much larger Protectorate, over 27,000 sq. miles, was established in 1896 after British influence had been gradually extended into the interior. In 1961, the Colony and Protectorate were merged and Sierra Leone attained full independence within the Commonwealth. Since then she has been admitted to the United Nations as the one-hundredth member.

situation and area. The country lies between latitudes 6° 55' and 10° 00' North and longitudes 10° 16' and 13° 18' West. The coastline is 212 miles long and nowhere in the country is more than 180 miles from the sea as the crow flies, while the longest distance from north to south is 200 miles. Sierra Leone has a total area of 27,925 sq. miles (73,326 sq. kilometres), a little smaller than Scotland. Of the total area the Western Province, the former Crown Colony, accounts for 256 sq. are three other miles. There provinces, Northern (13,925 sq. miles), Southern (7,868 sq. miles) and Eastern (5,876 sq. miles). Sierra Leone has only two neighbouring states, Guinea and , her boundaries with these two countries being largely settled between 1885 and 1905. Rivers account for just over half the total length of the inter¬ national boundary lines.

geographical and economic regions. The Country falls roughly into three main areas :— (a) The Sierra Leone peninsula in the extreme west is mostly moun¬ tainous, rising to a height of nearly 3,000 feet. This small area contains the commercial centre and port of Freetown, the capital. (,b) The western part of the territory, excluding the peninsula, con¬ sists of an inland belt of plains with mangrove swamps on the coast. There are many rivers, mostly running from north-east to south-west, most of which are navigable for short distances. This region is mainly agricultural. (c) In the east and north-east the land rises sharply to a plateau with peaks of 6,000 feet in the Loma Mountains and Tingi Hills. Pastoral activities tend to supplant agriculture in the more remote parts of this region.

climate. The weather usually conforms to a regular sequence of six seasons. Dry conditions, associated with the harmattan (a hot, dry wind from the interior) prevail along the coast on a score or so days from late December to early February, although inland areas (especially in the north-east), experience them for longer periods at this time. Con¬ sequently, relative humidities may fall to as low as 15 to 25 per cent while the strong, dusty easterly wind is blowing, contrasting sharply with the 80 to 90 per cent humidity normally experienced during the dry season. While day-time temperatures are likely to rise to 88°F to 90°F inland, at night it may feel cold. The short harmattan is followed by two or three months of rainless, but increasingly humid weather. From late March hot, humid days are characteristic. Maximum temperatures inland may rise to 95°F and have, at times, exceeded 100°F. Most coastal localities, however, have the benefit of sea breezes, the hills behind Freetown are especially favoured by frequent breezes and air temperatures are usually 3 to 4°F cooler than those in the city.

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SIERRA LEONE

Robertsport

Province Boundaries District » Railways

Monrovia: As the season proceeds, the rainless weather is interrupted by thunder¬ storms which increase in frequency to give, from mid-April to early July, the first squall period. The cooling effect of the rain is short-lived as the succeeding weather is usually hot, bright and sunny. Towards mid-June there is a sudden change in the weather pattern. Steady winds from the sea penetrate far inland bringing heavy and steady rainfall. This is the rainy season proper, during which the country receives most of its rainfall. In the north-west 95 per cent of the rain falls in this period. No part of the country receives much less than 100 inches. The rainfall in the Freetown area of the peninsula ranges from 120 inches to over 200 inches according to altitude. The maximum rainfall occurs in the peninsular mountains near the Guma Valley, one of the wettest areas in all Africa, where a 15-year average of 250 inches is recorded. A few sunny days are occasionally experienced in early August, but generally it is cool and damp. From mid-September, thunderstorm conditions are re-established (the second squall period), with bright days intervening although temperatures do not rise as high as during the corresponding period earlier in the year. Gradually the rainfall diminishes and there is a short rainless spell before the onset of the next harmattan. Climatic statistics for Freetown over ten years were as follows :—■

Sunshine Rainfall (daily average) Temperature (°F) Inches Hours Mean max. Mean min. Mean

January 0.53 7.9 84.3 75.3 79.5 February 0.62 7.8 85.0 76.0 80.5 March 0.60 7.9 85.8 76.7 81.3 April 2.13 7.2 86.3 77.4 81.9 May 5.85 6.2 86.2 76.3 81.3 June 15.52 5.1 85.0 74.7 79.9

July .. 31.42 2.9 82.3 73.5 77.9 77.6 August .. 29.19 2.5 81.7 73.4 83.0 73.9 78.5 September .. 19.49 4.0 October 9.09 6.3 84.3 74.1 79.2 November 4.49 6.9 84.8 75.1 80.0 December 1.10 7.4 84.4 75.9 80.2

120.08 6.0 84.4 75.2 79.8

6 population. The official census of 1963 showed that the popu¬ lation of Sierra Leone was 2,180,354. The geographical breakdown was as follows :—

Northern Province 897,565 Eastern Province 545,579 Southern Province 542,187 Western Province City of Freetown 127,917

Rural Areas .. 67,106 195,023

2,180,354

In December 1966, the population was estimated to be 2,367,000. The average density of the population for the country as a whole in 1963 was 78 to the square mile, but that of the Western Province was 762 per square mile (slightly less than that of England and Wales). More than 35 per cent of the population were under 15 years of age; yet at the same time there were few old people, only 7.7 per cent being 60 years of age and older.

The population is predominantly tribal in character, and relatively static, although in recent years migration towards Freetown and the diamond producing areas has occurred. The Mende tribe are dominant in the south, and the Temne in the north; both have their own language as do the various other tribes. Krio, the language of the Creoles, the liberated Africans, has a vocabulary drawn from many sources, English, Spanish, Portuguese and French, and is spoken mainly in and around Freetown. Principal Towns. Freetown, the capital, is situated four miles up the Sierra Leone river and possesses one of the finest natural harbours in Africa with anchorage for over 200 ships of unrestricted draught. The city has several hotels, departmental stores, cinemas, a thriving commercial area and a steadily expanding industrial estate at nearby Wellington. Freetown is just over 3,000 miles by sea from Liverpool and the direct air journey to the takes approximately six hours. The second largest town is Bo, with an estimated population of 30,000,

7 with Makeni, Lunsar, Magburaka, Kenema, Kabala and Koidu all with more than 5,000 population.

occupations. Although mining is increasingly important to the economy, contributing £24.82 million out of total exports of £31.82 million for the period June 1966-May 1967, agriculture remains the occupation of the majority of the working population. Over 700,000 of the labour force of 908,000 (over 10 years of age) were engaged in farming, forestry, hunting and fishing at the time of the 1963 census. This census reveals how the working force of the country is divided into various occupations and services:— Agriculture, forestry, hunting and fishing 702,056 Mining and quarrying 47,649 Manufacturing 41,197 Construction 16,175 Electricity and water 2,246 Commerce 53,125 Transport and communications 16,170 Services 28,604 Others 925

Total 908,147

Unemployment continues to be a problem with about 8,200 registered unemployed on average throughout the twelve month period October 1966-September 1967. The latest figures available at the end of Sep¬ tember 1967, show 9,403 unemployed, half of them in the Freetown area. A large contribution to the increase in unemployment is the con¬ tinued migration of labour from the rural districts, especially Northern Province, to the urban areas. There are twenty trade unions; labour disputes are referred to the particular industry's Council or Wages Board and wage agreements are usually negotiated on a nationwide basis for each industry. Per capita income continues to show an annual increase of 5 per cent and now stands at £48 a head.

agriculture. About 70 per cent of the total labour force depends on agriculture for a livelihood. The 1965/66 Agricultural Statistical Survey shows that 251,000 small holders cultivated 981,000 acres of land, an average of 3.9 acres per farm. An additional 22,700

8

acres are farmed by larger farms bringing the total acreage under culti¬ vation to over 1 million acres. About 98 per cent of land holdings are dependent on manual labour, mostly women, to cultivate the land, using machettes and short-handled hoes. Under the traditional system of cultivation most of the land is allowed to revert to bush after one or two years of farming to rejuvenate and regain fertility. It is expected in time that, with the growing demand for land, and the use of fertilisers, this practice of shifting cultivation will give way to continuous farming. The traditional system is almost universal in the uplands, three-quarters of the land for planting being newly cleared at the time of the Survey. The largest proportion of land cleared is for upland rice ; the smallest for groundnuts. The Survey showed farmers made very little use of either commercial (inorganic) fertilisers or organic manures from animal and vegetable substances. Most of the fertiliser used was applied in the growing of tobacco. Seventy different crops are produced, the majority of farmers growing rice (86 per cent), cassava (62 per cent), and okra (53 per cent). The most important crops in terms of quantity produced were rice, cassava, groundnuts, palm kernels, cocoa, coifee, kolanuts and maize.

rice. Two broad categories of rice are grown, upland and swamp¬ land rice. Upland rice is usually planted on a different plot of land each year. Swampland rice is grown on land along river banks, inland grass¬ land (bolilands) or marshlands, and inland valley swamps. These swamp¬ land areas are more suitable for mechanised cultivation and the Govern¬ ment has encouraged farmers to plant more in these areas where yields are higher, the soil more fertile and subject to less erosion and where deposits of alluvium are added from rivers and floodwaters. Rice is the staple diet of both the rural and urban population. The 1965/66 Survey calculated that 741,000 acres of rice were under cultiva¬ tion, 79 per cent of which was devoted to upland rice. Northern Province has the largest rice acreage of 310,000. Total domestic production of paddy rice during the year 1965/66 was 394,000 tons. Average yields per acre were 1,000 lb. on the uplands and 1,900 lb. on the swamplands. Consumption still far exceeds production although efforts are being

11

Above: Freetown harbour from Mount Aureol

Below: Street scene in Freetown made to make the country self sufficient by the use of mechanical imple¬ ments, improved seeds, greater use of fertilisers, double cropping and irrigation. Double cropping is being encouraged by agricultural experts from China (Taiwan) who are operating demonstration farms in selected areas of the country. An additional 21,000 acres of reclaimed swampland were put under cultivation in 1966. Imports of rice over the past few years emphasise how consumption continues to outpace local production :—

Year Imports Value Tons £ 1963 20,818 940,524 1964 542 47,234 1965 18,725 812,913 1966 34,549 1,724,558

palm produce. Oil palms grow wild throughout the whole country with the heaviest concentration in the Southern and Eastern Provinces wherever the rainfall is over 100 inches per annum. Improved varieties are grown on larger plantations which were until recently run by the Sierra Leone Produce Marketing Board and on private estates. One-third of all oil palms in natural stands are tapped for wine and bear no fruit. Another one-third may not be harvested if the market price is too low. Of the remainder, one-fourth will be young trees not yet fruit-bearing. Palm kernels are the country's most important cash crop. Exports during 1932/37 averaged 75,000 tons annually, with a peak of 85,000 tons in 1936. The post-war record year was 1949 with 76,500 tons. Production in recent years has been around the 50,000 ton mark. The Sierra Leone Produce Marketing Board controls the export of all palm produce and cash crops. Hitherto the board engaged in farming but sustained such heavy losses that the Government has decided that the board will con¬ centrate solely on marketing and exporting cash crops. During the first six months of 1967 palm kernel production dropped 27 per cent com¬ pared with the corresponding period in 1966. Exports for 1966 totalled 54,651 tons valued at £2,551,291, four-fifths going to the United Kingdom and the German Federal Republic. Exports for 1967 are estimated at 21,000 tons for palm kernels, 6,567 tons for palm kernel oil and 5,537 tons for palm kernel cake.

12 The newly-built palm kernel mill at Wellington, which came into operation in 1967, has an annual capacity of 45,000 tons and cost £650,000.

cocoa. This crop has been grown since the 18th century and has now become well established. Eleven million trees are estimated to be growing covering 46,000 acres, 60 per cent of which were of bearing age. The trees, usually grown under light forest shade mainly in the south¬ east, produce yields which compare favourably with those obtained in other West African countries. Exports in recent years were as follows :—

Year Quantity Value

Tons £ 1963 3,252 586,551 1964 3,123 568,096 1965 2,932 451,405 1966 4,463 717,437

The cocoa growing region lies in the south-east where the dry season is not as severe as elsewhere. Harvesting is usually carried out after the rains have stopped. Processing is by hand and done in the village com¬ pounds. Exports for 1967 are estimated at 3,260 tons.

coffee. The cultivation of colfee is now firmly established as a cash crop. It is more widely grown than cocoa, being less sensitive to unfavourable climatic and soil conditions. Nearly all the coffee produced is of the Robusta variety which is used in the manufacture of "instant" coffee. Little of the Liberica variety is now grown. Both, however, grow well in the lowlands of Southern Province and, like cocoa, require the shade of taller trees. The United States has been the chief buyer in recent years. It is estimated that 2,837 tons will be exported during 1967. Export figures (Robusta, not roasted) are as follows :—

Year Quantity Value

Tons £ 1963 3,834 642,910 1964 5,934 1,361,296 1965 3,806 670,382 1966 9,417 1,956,636

13 ginger. Grown as a cash crop for over 50 years, ginger was first exported in 1890. It is produced mainly for export, with a small proportion used locally for medicinal purposes. The largest concentra¬ tion is around Moyamba, Bo and in South Kono. Exports of ginger tend to fluctuate, the market being small and unstable. The United Kingdom, the United States and the Netherlands together bought over 50 per cent of the 1966 export crop. Exports for 1967 are expected to total 1,542 tons, and figures for recent years are as follows :— Value Year Quantity

Tons £ 1964 690 160,000 1965 816 160,315 1966 459 85,476

pi ass a va. This is a vegetable fibre obtained from the leaf-stalks of the raphia palm, commonly found in swamps. It is used for broom and brush bristles. Two types are grown, the high grade Prime Sherbro and the lower grade Standard Sulima. The fibre produced has a world¬ wide reputation for quality and Sierra Leone is one of the world's largest exporters. Quality depends mainly on the maturity of the stalks and careful retting and cleaning. Exports tend to fluctuate and the increasing substitution of nylon in the brushmaking industry will make it difficult to attain the level of 1964 shipments. Recent exports are as follows :—

Year Quantity Value

Tons £ 1961 5,257 250,686 1962 4,733 215,354 1963 5,124 243,540 1964 6,522 320,109 1965 3,704 177,855 1966 1,572 84,230

The principal buyer in the past was the United Kingdom but now the Federal Republic of Germany has become Sierra Leone's largest market with the Netherlands second. Exports for 1967 are estimated to be 4,500 tons.

14 kola nuts. These are chewed by a large section of the com¬ munity and are said to alleviate hunger and act as a mild stimulant; they have narcotic properties, although they are not considered harmful to health or to be habit-forming. They are grown largely in the Eastern Province. A small surplus is sometimes available for export and this usually goes to . In 1966 some 863 tons were exported valued at £120,000.

tobacco. This crop was introduced by the Aureol Tobacco Company in 1961 and since then there has been a steady increase in yields per acre and in total production. The tobacco is at present grown entirely in the Northern Province which has the most suitable climate. All the locally grown tobacco, except that for experiments, is grown on small farms, although the seedlings are in fact grown by the Com¬ pany for the farmers who eventually raise them. The Company has a staff of over 40 supervisors to assist the farmers in the use of correct agricultural practices. The growth of the tobacco crop is shown by the following table:—

Number of Yield Total Year Farmers Acres per acre production

lb. lb.

1961 .. 61 10 120 1,155

1962 .. 661 124 240 29,652

1963 .. 3,930 645 338 218,229

1964 .. 3,292 604 414 250,318

1965 .. 3,506 627 481 301,469

1966 .. 2,595 938 389 365,173

1967 .. 3,117 1,076 440* 470,000*

* Estimated

bananas. These have been grown for many years mainly in the west, in Kambia District, Port Loko District and around Songo. Exports are on a very small scale.

groundnuts. The latest survey showed 20,783 tons of dry, shelled groundnuts were produced in the 1965/66 season. Seventy per cent of the crop was grown in Northern Province. Total acreage was given at 47,000 acres and the average yield was 979 lb. to the acre.

15 othfr crops. Cassava, coconuts, peppers, sweet potatoes, broad beans and a variety of fruits such as oranges, grapefruit, paw-paw, pineapples, avocado pears, limes and lemons are grown on a limited scale for local consumption.

livestock. The epidemic of rinderpest in 1949 greatly reduced the country's cattle population and it is only in recent years that the numbers have begun to increase once again. The cattle-rearing and herding areas are mainly in the Bombali and Koinadugu districts of the Northern Province. Between 150,000 to 200,000 cattle are estimated to be within this area, most of them N'Dama cattle, remarkable for their longevity, resistance to the tsetse fly and ability to withstand humidity and drought. The animals are small, weighing about 500 lb. at four years compared with 800 lb. for other tropical breeds. Cattle are often kept as a symbol of wealth and prestige without regard to sound economic principles and only 12,000 to 13,000 head are slaughtered annually. In addition to cattle there are about 135,000 goats, 46,000 sheep and 26,000 pigs. Some 44 per cent of land holders raise poultry and there are a number of large units, using modern, intensive methods of production. The country is largely self-sufficient in poultry products, having about 978,000 chickens, the import of which has been severely restricted for several years.

forestry . About 60 species of trees are currently exploited in the natural forests of the Eastern Province within a 50-mile radius of Kenema. They include Guarea cedrata, Afzelia Africana, Lophira alata var, Prócera {red iromvood), Terminalia superba {white afara), Terminalia ivorensis {black afara), Khaya and various types of mahogany. Production exceeds 600,000 cu. ft. annually but this is insufficient for the country's needs. Recent timber imports are as follows :—

Quantity Value

Year cu. ft. £ 1964 134,573 75,991 1965 108,149 85,435 1966 91,381 49,639

There are over 1,400 sq. miles of forest land, most of which is classified

16 as forest reserve but, unfortunately, from the economic point of view, the greater proportion of the forest estate is situated in the more remote parts of the country. Forest Industries' sawmill at Kenema, opened in 1944, caters for an area of about 350 sq. miles. There is also a furniture factory nearby producing good quality furniture for sale throughout the country.

fishing. Sierra Leone is favourably situated on the West African coast at a point where the Continental Shelf widens. Abundant fish are to be found in the shallower waters of the shelf and also in the country's rivers. The main fishing settlements are scattered around the Bullom Peninsula, the Freetown Peninsula, Shenge and the Sherbro estuary. A year-long survey by the Fisheries Division of the inshore area suggests there may be lobster, scallop, shrimp and oyster in exploitable quantities, although further studies will have to be carried out to verify this. Some sites surveyed in the estuaries have proved unsuitable for oyster culture but a bed has been discovered in Yawri Bay, near Shenge, which supports oysters up to eight inches long and four inches across. This has confounded the experts who had come to the conclusion that the mangrove oyster does not grow to a large size. The United Nations Development Programme is expected to undertake a five-year survey of the pelagic fish resources which will be closely co-ordinated with similar surveys along the West African coast. A loan scheme introduced in 1962 to help local fishermen to improve their fishing had granted advances to 113 fishermen by the end of June 1967.

The decline in the numbers of trawlers, which began in 1965, con¬ tinued during 1966 until only four were being operated by the beginning of 1967, and these were mostly old and expensive to maintain, being laid up for many months at a time for major repairs. Three small 45 h.p. power boats bought from Japan in 1966, are being used successfully in purse seining. Catches for six months totalled 900 tons, mainly herrings. As the direct consequence of a decrease in the number of chartered vessels operating in 1966, total tuna fish landings fell below the average for previous years by 2,716 tons to a total of 5,424 tons, all but 115 tons being exported.

17 Canoe fishermen landed an estimated 24,000 tons of bonga, herring, etc., during 1966, exceeding previous estimates by 8,000 to 9,000 tons. This increase is the result of the adoption by local fishermen of ring-net fishing for herrings, a practice previously introduced by immigrant Ghanaian fishermen. In spite of large catches, fish has still to be imported and the total value of imports for all classes of fish and fish products for 1966 increased by Le 356,820. Fish represents about 80 per cent of the country's protein intake with over 30 lb. per head consumed annually. Fish imports in 1966 were as follows:—

Quantity Value

Tons Le Fresh, chilled or frozen 7,662 859,264 Dried or smoked bonga 406 36,586 99 Other fish, salted dried or smoked .. 15,142 Crustacea and molluscs 9 5,729 Sardines and pilchards 929 331,425 Salmon 21 20,264 88 Other preserved or prepared fish .. 41,644

9,214 1,310,054

minerals. All mineral rights are vested in the Government and permission to prospect and mine must be obtained from them. A pros¬ pecting right entitles a holder to search for a mineral in any part of the country not closed to prospecting. Exclusive prospecting licences are also granted, allowing the sole right to search for a specified mineral within a given area. Deposits of gold, platinum, alluvial diamonds, ilmenite, chromite as well as large deposits of iron ore were discovered in the latter half of the 1920s. More recently, economic deposits of bauxite, and rutile have been found. Mining products have accounted for more than 80 per cent of the country's Gross National Product in recent years. Diamonds. Diamonds are by far the most important mineral and contribute 10 per cent to the Gross National Product. They are found widely scattered over a large area, mainly in the upper reaches of the Sewa River and its tributaries. The existence of a diamond field of major importance was confirmed in 1934. In that year the Sierra

18 Leone Selection Trust Limited was formed, obtaining exclusive pros¬ pecting, mining and marketing rights for the whole country, excluding the Marampa and Tonkolili iron ore concession areas. The discovery, in the 1950s, of shallow, alluvial diamond deposits resulted in much illicit digging and this led to the introduction of the Alluvial Diamond Scheme by the Government in 1956. This limited S.L.S.T.'s concession area and provided for the issue of licences to individuals as well as to companies, permitting holders to prospect for diamonds in some 9,500 sq. miles designated "Alluvial Diamonds Mining Areas". All diamonds mined in these areas must be sold to the Government Diamond Office. The Diamond Corporation of West Africa manages the export of diamonds for the Government Diamond Office. S.L.S.T. still continues to mine diamonds on the remainder of its concession but has to sell at least half of its diamonds to the Diamond Corporation and the balance to any licensed dealer provided the selling price is not higher than that quoted by the G.D.O. Most of the diamonds are exported to London where they are sorted, valued and sold to international buyers by the Central Selling Organisa¬ tion which handles 85 per cent of the world's diamond production. In December 1965 a diamond cutting factory was opened in Freetown by Sierra Leone Diamonds Ltd., in which the Government has a 15 per cent stake, the other participants being S.L.S.T., the Diamond Corporation and Leon Templesman and Sons of New York, the latter managing the enterprise. The company has a monopoly in diamond cutting in Sierra Leone for 10 years. Sierra Leoneans are currently being trained in this highly skilled and exacting work by expert diamond cutters and polishers from Europe. Recent export figures are as follows:—

Year Value

£ 1963 16,163,000 1964 19,912,000 1965 18,475,000 1966 15,646,000

Iron. Iron ore is found in several areas but only the Marampa

19 deposits (haematite) are worked. These deposits have been mined by Sierra Leone Development Co. Ltd. (DELCO) since 1933 who have exported over 36 million tons in 33 years. The annual output is about 2 million tons, the bulk of which has 65 per cent iron content. A rela¬ tively small quantity of fines and ferromax, 58 per cent and 69 per cent iron content respectively, are also shipped. Ferromax is used in the manufacture of electrodes. A 3 ft. 6 in. gauge railway 52 miles long connects the mine at Marampa with the loading port of Pepel on the Sierra Leone river.

A £9 million expansion programme carried out by DELCO was com¬ pleted in 1965 and consisted of dredging the river channel to the loading pier at Pepel enabling ships of up to 40,000 tons to be accommodated and loaded at the rate of 2,000 tons an hour. The re-laying of the railway line, purchase of new diesel-electric locomotives and modern ore wagons, the construction of an aerofall mill and the replacement of earth moving by mobile grabs are all part of the plan to raise annual production to 3 million tons. Studies are being made of ways of improving the approach to Pepel so that the giant bulk-carriers being planned or built can navigate the river to the pier. The export price (f.o.b.) of Sierra Leone ore has dropped considerably since 1964 when it averaged Le 5.27 per ton. In 1965 it declined to Le 4.75 per ton and further still in 1966 to Le 4.50. Bauxite. The Sierra Leone Ore Metal Co., a subsidiary of a Swiss company, started full mining operations near Moyamba in late 1963, four years after the discovery of a relatively high grade ore at Gbonge Hill to the south of the Mokanji Hills. Here the ore has a 45 per cent alumina content. Usually the mineral, when found in tropical areas, does not have an alumina content high enough to warrant commercial exploitation. The Mokanji Hills have a narrow outcrop of ore with 62 per cent content running for 25 miles along the hill crest and it is estimated there are about 9 to 10 million tons of workable ore. The ore was mainly shipped to Switzerland in 1966 and in previous years to West Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. Average f.o.b. export price for bauxite in 1966 was Le 3.31 per ton, with 240,488 tons exported and valued at £387,282. In 1965 some 173,472 tons valued at £289,308 were exported.

20 Chrornite. Considerable deposits are found in an arc sweeping from the north round to the south-west of the town of Kenema, on the eastern slope of the Kambui Hills. It was first discovered in 1929 and was initially mined by opencast methods. Most of the ore has a rela¬ tively low chrome content (43-44 per cent), and in view of this and the distance of 180 miles from the port of shipment, mining was abandoned in 1963. Exports in 1956 amounted to 18,774 tons valued at £194,630 but by 1963 had declined to 8,700 tons valued at £87,000. Rutile. Rutile, a source of titanium oxide, has been discovered in very large quantities in the Bonthe and Moyamba Districts of Southern Province. It has been established that the proven reserves are 3 million tons with another estimated 30 million tons. These reserves, not only the largest in the world, contain a very high mineral content, 3-4 per cent (1-2 per cent is considered economically workable). The gravel lies in a 25 by 15 mile strip, 0-50 feet from the surface. In the past Australia has produced 90 per cent of the world's rutile, but as her share of the market is now declining at a time when world consumption is increasing, Sierra Leone is in a most favourable position. British Titan Products and the Pittsburg Plate Glass Co. formed a subsidiary, Sherbro Minerals Ltd., in 1964 to mine the Gbangbama deposits, the initial investment being in the region of £5 million. Produc¬ tion, expected at first to be about 30,000 tons annually, has started and the first shipment to the United Kingdom was made in June 1967. When the mine is in full production the yearly output should rise to 100,000 tons. Current world production of rutile is in the region of 170,000- 180,000 tons a year. Titanium dioxide, into which the original raw mineral is processed, is one of the whitest materials known, possessing reflecting power greater than a diamond and a very high opacity. It is an essential raw material for a variety of products including plastics, paper, floor coverings and textiles. Rutile is also the basic source of titanium metal, the strong, light, heat-resisting metal which is becoming increasingly important in the construction of supersonic aircraft and space craft. Other Minerals. Gold mining was formerly important but very little is now produced. Sierra Leone lacks minerals for producing energy such as coal and oil. In recent years there has been some unsuccessful

21 prospecting for oil along the coastal and off-shore areas of the Southern Province. There are outcrops of lignite, a type of low-grade coal, in several coastal areas but deposits have not been developed commercially. Other minerals, which have no present economic significance, which have been found in Sierra Leone, are platinum, molybdenite, columbite, cassiterite, graphite, corundum and syenite.

industrial development. In spite of considerable progress in the manufacturing industries the industrial sector remains relatively small. During the past six years, over twenty factories have been estab¬ lished in the country. The Government has participated in many new ventures and is a shareholder in companies producing plastic and other footwear, cement and spirits. The cement factory, opened in 1964, has an annual productive capa¬ city of 50,000 tons of Portland type cement (BSS 12/1958). Cement clinker, the main raw material, is imported from Norway. The Aureol Tobacco Co. produced the first locally-made cigarettes in 1960 and now manufactures a wide range of brands using modern machinery and the latest techniques. Other factories, either foreign or privately owned, are engaged in producing beer, frozen and tinned tuna, furniture, suitcases, umbrellas, matches, soft drinks, nails, confectionery, retreaded tyres, oxygen, carbon dioxide, paint, buckets, knitted garments, clothing and cardboard cartons. The new flour mill went into operation in September 1967, at Cline Town. Seventy Sierra Leoneans are employed in the mill which is expected to produce 2,000 bags of flour a day. Guinness stout, a very popular drink in Sierra Leone, is to be brewed and bottled locally starting in early 1968. An agreement was signed in 1966 between the Government, a Japanese company, Nissho Co. Ltd., and Haifa Refineries, an Israeli firm, covering the construction of a wholly Government-owned petroleum refinery at Freetown. Haifa Refineries will manage the plant until sufficient Sierra Leoneans have been trained. To encourage industrial development the Government has set aside ' and developed an industrial estate of 114 acres at Wellington, a few miles

22 outside Freetown. A nominal annual rent of £15 an acre is charged together with a low, once-and-for-all development charge of £57 an acre. In October 1967, the Government revoked the Non-Citizen (Trade and Business) Act of 1966. This Act excluded non-citizens from partici¬ pating in various trades or business in certain areas and from certain industries as well. Non-citizens were expressly excluded from the manu¬ facture of building blocks, sale of cement and other building materials and transportation businesses. Now non-citizens are at liberty to parti¬ cipate in or operate any business or trade. The construction industry has grown rapidly although by the end of 1966, with a 15 per cent drop in employment in this section, it seemed that the rate of building was slowing down. On the other hand the number of building licences issued has increased steadily since 1963 and it is likely that the slowing down is due partly at least to a lack of finance.

tourism. There is a first-class residential hotel in the centre of Freetown—"Paramount"—with 72 air-conditioned bedrooms, in ad¬ dition to a number of other hotels of various grades. A luxury holiday hotel has been built at Lumley Beach a few miles from Freetown, near to the Casino and the mature, 12-hole golf course. The various hotels and restaurants in and around Freetown cater for most tastes and serve Chinese, Lebanese, Armenian as well as African and European dishes. There are excellent beaches, fringed with palm trees against a back¬ ground of steep, tree-clad peaks, stretching for thirty miles along the peninsula coast and easily accessible from Freetown. The number of tourists coming to Sierra Leone has continued to show a steady increase. Cruise liners are making visits during the "dry" season and 2,400 German tourists are expected to visit Freetown in early 1968.

communications Roads. In the past few years a number of road building projects have been completed; the Nyadenhun/Pendembu road, the improvement of the Freetown/Lunsar road and the first phase of the Tonkolili/Kono road. Even so, there are only about 400 miles of paved bituminous roads with 4,500 miles of unpaved laterite roads. The construction of the

23 second phase of the Tonkolili/Kono road began in November 1967, the West German Government granting a further loan to enable the undertaking to be completed and bringing the total of their loan to £2.4 million.

The number of motor vehicles registered has sharply increased over the last eight years, from 5,000 in 1959 to over 26,000 in 1966. With the gradual phasing-out of the heavily subsidised railway system it is expected that more of the country's financial resources will be devoted to road construction and improvement.

Railways. The Budget speech of 1967 revealed that as the result of a survey commissioned by the World Bank it has been decided to close down the railway system over a period of time. This decision has been sent to the World Bank and it is hoped this will lead to the Bank giving aid to develop the road network. At present there are just over 310 miles of 2 ft. 6 in. gauge railway track most of it laid between 1895 and 1916. In recent years the Sierra Leone Railway has lost much of its passenger traffic to lorries and mini-buses, partly through slow speed of the trains and delays in delivering freight.

Air. The international airport at Lungi is situated on the opposite side of the Sierra Leone estuary to Freetown and the journey from the city to the airport by ferry is lengthy and inconvenient. A new terminal building was opened in 1964 designed to cope with 8,000 passengers a day. The extension to the runway has been completed. Now 10,500 ft. long, the runway can be used by VC10, DC8 and Boeing 707 jet air¬ liners. At the present time British United Airways operates B.A.C. One- Eleven jets to the United Kingdom, calling at Bathurst, Las Palmas and Lisbon. VClOs fly to London direct in just over six hours flying time. Other airlines making regular flights through Lungi include U.T.A. (Paris direct), and Airways, K.L.M., Middle East Airlines and Air Afrique. Sierra Leone Airways operate internal services using de Havilland Herons between Freetown (Hastings), Bo, Kenema, Bonthe and Yengema, making a profit of £30,000 in the 1965/66 financial year.

24 Growth in air traffic is indicated by the following figures:—

International Domestic Year passengers passengers

1962 28,672 7,812 1964 30,238 9,929 1966 32,648 13,072

Sea. Elder Dempster Lines provide a regular mail service with the United Kingdom and other West African ports. Work continues on the extension of the Queen Elizabeth II Quay at Cline Town which will eventually allow six vessels to load or discharge simultaneously. During 1966, some 1,523 ships entered the port of Freetown from other countries, discharging 656,907 tons of cargo and loading 2,024,925 tons. Telecommunications. An automatic telex exchange has recently been introduced, replacing the telegraph system. Television and Radio. The Sierra Leone Television Service and Radio Sierra Leone operate daily programmes.

electricity. The new hydro-electric plant at Guma Valley, costing £650,000, was opened in February 1967. Water from the recently completed £3 million Guma Valley Dam is used to generate 2,400 kW. supplying Freetown with a quarter of its electricity. At the end of 1966 there were 22 generating stations in the country producing over 66 million units, more than 80 per cent of which was consumed by the city of Freetown. Over the next five years the Sierra Leone Electricity Corpora¬ tion will have to spend at least £3 million on improving the general electricity supply in the Western Province.

water. Work continues on the £2£ million contract signed in 1964 between the Government and a French engineering firm, for the provision of pumps and a treated water supply for 21 towns in the provinces. The project, which is expected to take four years to complete, is being financed by the French Government. The Freetown area now obtains most of its water requirements from the Guma Dam which has a reservoir covering 250 acres and storage for about 4,400 million gallons of water.

25 balance of payments. The National Reformation Council, which took over the running of the country in March 1967, produced its "Stabilisation Budget" in the following June. The Government has budgeted for a net deficit of £1.1 million, this figure being substantially below the deficit of £3.8 million for the 1966/67 fiscal year. One of the objects of the Budget is to stop the drain in the country's foreign exchange reserves. The International Monetary Fund report stated that previous Government attempts to accelerate economic development had out¬ stripped the country's resources. Subsequent budget deficits were financed by bank borrowing and by the use of cash deposits, thereby leading to rising domestic prices and a substantial loss in external reserves. Government expenditure is to be pegged and £1.7 million in increased taxes are to be raised. Between 1961 and the end of 1966 Sierra Leone's net foreign exchange reserves fell by £8.8 million (61 per cent), more than half of this decline occurring in 1965 when the fall was £5.7 million. The closing balance of £5.57 million at the end of 1966 is the equivalent of two months' imports. Recent figures were as follows:—

External Reserves (£'000)

31st December, 1958 14.58 31st December, 1960 14.38 31st December, 1962 13.37 31st December, 1964 12.12 31st December, 1965 6.40 31st December, 1966 5.57

external trade. By the end of September 1967, the trade deficit showed a slight improvement compared with the first nine months of 1966. Total figures in recent years were as follows:—

Exports Imports Trade (fo.b.) (.c.i.fi) Deficit

Year (Le'000) (Le'000) (Le'000) 1964 67,974 71,018 3,044 1965 63,224 76,874 13,650 1966 59,168 71,748 12,580 1967 (January-September) .. 42,440 50,350 7,910

26

Above: The Law Courts

Below: Sorting Diamonds

Peeling ginger, a traditional industry Principal Imports, 1966 Value

Le Cotton and synthetic fabrics 7,142,000 Motor spirit, kerosene, diesel, etc. 5,693,000 Chemicals 3,817,000 Excavating, levelling, boring equipment and spares 3,527,000 Rice 3,449,000 Tobacco (manufactured) 2,536,000 Clothing 2,463,000 Motor cars 1,809,000 Beet and cane sugar, refined 1,770,000 Wheat meal and flour 1,741,000 Lorries and trucks 1,525,000 Fish 1,310,000 Corrugated roofing sheeting 797,000 Radios, radiograms 720,000 Buses and coaches 565,000 Agricultural machinery and spares 475,000 Stout 439,000

Distribution of Trade (Le'000)

Imports 1964 1965 1966

United Kingdom 26,953 25,257 20,266 Commonwealth countries 8,830 9,309 8,981 U.S.A 3,509 11,012 4,512 Japan 7,231 6,449 7,371 Netherlands 5,182 4,992 4,508 Western Germany 5,623 3,302 4,410 France 2,485 4,396 5,273 Others 11,206 12,158 16,427

Total 71,019 76,875 71,748

Exports 1964 1965 1966

United Kingdom 47,681 43,417 36,404 Commonwealth countries 334 453 643 Netherlands 5,961 6,106 6,677 Western Germany 4,206 4,275 3,624 Other West European countries 1,060 2,644 2,239 U.S.A 1,032 376 3,376 Others 610 267 534

Total 60,884 57,538 53,497

29 import licences. Most goods may be imported under open general licence.

customs duties. Specific or ad valorem duties are levied on practically all imports. Preferential rates for Commonwealth goods have been abolished. Examples of rates of duty (1967 Budget):—

Per cent Motor cars up to 2,000 c.c 40 ad valorem 2,000-2,500 c.c 60 Over 2,500 c.c 70 Mini buses 45 Lorries, vans 30 Motor cycles 100-250 c.c. 35 Over 250 c.c. 40 40 Shirts, underwear .. Sugar (cane or beet) £30 per ton Cigarettes £2 6s. per lb.

capital investment. There are no Government restrictions on investment in Sierra Leone or on the repatriation of capital and dividends. Foreign investment has been actively encouraged by the Government who, in addition, offers special tax concessions to manu¬ facturing industries. A tax-holiday for a period of up to five years may be granted. During this time a company is granted the privilege of reduced duty on the importation of equipment and construction materials for the factory. In special cases where a new industry would lead to the exploitation of indigenous resources or assist large-scale development, the tax-holiday period can be extended beyond five years. currency and banking. The Leone = 100 cents = 10s. Ster¬ ling. The currency in circulation consists of notes of Le 5, Le 2 and Le 1 denomination and coins of 20 cents, 10 cents, 5 cents, 1 cent and \ cent. The Leone is at par with Sterling, having been devalued in November, 1967, in line with the pound. The Bank of Sierra Leone, established in 1964, is the Central Bank and acts as Government Banker, issues the currency, Government Treasury Bills and manages the Exchange Control Regulations. During 1966 the volume of bank credit expanded by 22.5 per cent to £11.5 million.

30 Currency in Circulation (Le'000) Held by Date Issued Commercial Currency in Banks Circulation

31st December, 1964 15,023 1,599 13,424 30th June, 1965 15,829 1,316 14,513 31st December, 1965 15,502 1,332 14,170 30th June, 1966 16,651 1,167 15,484 31st December, 1966 16,116 1,671 14,445 30th June, 1967 — — 15,320

Savings and Time Deposits (Le'OOO) Commercial Banks Post Office Total

Date Total Savings Time

31st December, 1964 6,925 6,027 898 3,178 10,103 30th June, 1965 7,326 6,274 1,052 3,199 10,525 31st December, 1965 7,860 6,609 1,251 3,102 10,962 30th June, 1966 8,438 7,075 1,363 3,000 11,438 31st December, 1966 8,942 7,118 1,824 2,813 11,755 30th June, 1967 9,370 7,190 2,180 2,700 12,070

A National Development Bank is to be set up to mobilise local capital resources for economic development of the country. Share capital will be £500,000, 51 per cent of which is to be held by the Bank of Sierra Leone and other institutions and Sierra Leoneans, the rest to be held by foreign commercial banks, mining companies, insurance companies, and other foreign investors.

taxation. The main sources of taxation are customs duties, excise duties, company and income tax. Company taxation is 45 per cent with a temporary surcharge of 15 per cent, while turnover tax is 3 per cent for those businesses keeping proper books of account, and 5 per cent for those which do not keep proper accounts. Companies and the like are not liable for both Company and Turn¬ over tax, but for either one or the other, whichever produces the most revenue for the Government. Income Tax. There is a flat rate for all personal incomes and a P.A.Y.E. system. There are no allowances. Husband and wife are

31 assessed separately on their individual incomes. The following examples give an approximate idea of tax liability under existing rates :—

Monthly Salary Monthly Tax

£ £ s. d.

50 . . 110 100 3 12 6

200 .. 20 2 0

250 .. 37 5 0

(The above figures do not take into account a 10 per cent and 12£ per cent surcharge imposed during 1967, on gross annual salaries exceeding £500 and £2,500, respec¬ tively.) land tenure. Private ownership of land is possible only in the Western Province. Elsewhere land is communally owned. No non- citizen has been permitted to own any freehold land in the Western Province since 1963.

exchange control. Payments may be made without restric¬ tion to other countries within the Scheduled Territories. Remittances in respect of imports from outside the Scheduled Territories can usually be approved by the commercial banks. The basic foreign travel allowance is £250 per person per annum.

cost of living. The index was relatively stable between 1962 and 1963. Since then prices have increased steadily, the sharp rise in Freetown rents in 1962/63 being accompanied by increases in the prices of food, drink and clothing. Prices again rose sharply in 1966, rents and miscellaneous items accounting mainly for a rise of 5.1 points in the Freetown area. During the first nine months of 1967 the index rose nearly 9 points, the steepest rise since 1965. Index of Consumer Prices—Freetown (1961 = 100)

Year All Items FoodjDrink Housing Clothing Miscellaneous

1962 100 95.6 106.1 97.1 105.2 1963 99.9 89.8 124.2 94.9 106.2 1964 111.4 98.5 151.0 94.8 109.2 1965 116.5 102.3 161.8 95.2 113.1 1966 121.6 104.8 175.7 98.0 115.5

1967 — — —— (September) .. 130.3

32 A rental of approximately £1,000-£1,200 per annum is usual in Freetown for a small, two-bedroomed house or bungalow, unfurnished, with usual services including air-conditioning. There is an acute shortage of accommodation suitable for expatriates and rents are increasing in consequence. In Freetown and certain other towns there is piped water and elec¬ tricity, the cost of the latter being 3 cents a unit (domestic tariff) in Freetown. Kerosene and wood fuel are used quite extensively in the Provinces while bottled gas for cooking is preferred by the majority in Freetown, a cylinder costing just over £3 plus a deposit. Domestic help is easy to obtain and most expatriate households employ a steward or cook-steward whose wages vary from about £10 to £14 a month. Gardeners' wages are in the region of £12 a month. Various citrus fruits produced locally are available in season at reasonable prices. Fresh vegetables and fruits are imported mainly from the Canary Islands and the Netherlands. Sometimes, in the English soft fruit season, it is possible to buy fresh fruit air-freighted from the United Kingdom.

education. Sierra Leone has the oldest-established grammar schools and the first University college on the west coast of Africa. There is a long and proud tradition of education back to the time when every English-speaking country on the west coast had administrators and civil servants trained at Fourah Bay College. For expatriate children up to the age of eight, or at the latest nine, there are good nursery schools and junior primary schools in Freetown. These are fee-paying and the rates vary with age from about £1 10s. per month to about £9 per term. Above the age of eight expatriate children as a rule go to boarding schools in their home country. For these older children it is often difficult to find the exact equivalent between their form at school at home and where they would be placed at school in Sierra Leone, if they were to remain. There are 68 secondary schools and well over 950 primary schools in the country and 10 teacher training colleges to back them.

{Note.—These estimates were based on conditions in early 1968.)

33 "oversea service college". This organisation operates Introductory Courses for men and women going abroad from the United Kingdom for the first time. These facilities are widely utilised. Enquiries should be addressed to Oversea Service College, The Castle, Farnham, Surrey.

BARCLAYS BANK D.C.O.

Offices in Sierra Leone

BLAMA KOIDU TOWN MAKENI

BO LUNSAR MOYAMBA

FREETOWN (4) MAGBURAKA YENGEMA

KENEMA Whilst every care is taken to ensure the accuracy of the statements made in this booklet, Barclays Bank D.C.O. cannot accept any responsibility for errors.

PRINTED IN ENGLAND BY WILLIAMS LEA/WLP GROUP/LONDON

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