Sierra Leone

Capital: Freetown Population: 6,000,000 Official Languages: English Time Zone: +0 Dialing Code: +232

Government: republic Area: 71,740 km2 largest city: Freetown Currency : Leone ISO 3166 code: /

Basic Info

Sierra Leone officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa that is bordered by Guinea to the northeast, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the southwest. Sierra Leone is a Constitutional Republic with a directly elected president and a Unicameral Legislature. The country has a tropical climate, with a diverse environment ranging from savannah to rainforests. The country covers a total area of 71,740 km2 (27,699 sq mi) and with an estimated population of 6 million (2011 United Nations estimate)

Geography

Sierra Leone is located on the west coast of Africa, lying mostly between latitudes 7° and 10°N (a small area is south of 7°), and longitudes 10° and 14°W. The country is bordered by Guinea to the north and northeast, Liberia to the south and southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west

Climate

The climate is tropical, although it could be classified as a tropical monsoon climate it could also be describe as a climate that is transitional between a continually wet tropical rainforest climate and a tropical savanna climate. There are two seasons determining the agricultural cycle: the rainy season from May to November, and a dry season from December to May, which includes harmattan, when cool, dry winds blow in off the Sahara Desert and the night-time temperature can be as low as 16 °C (60.8 °F). The average temperature is 26 °C (78.8 °F) and varies from around 26 °C (78.8 °F) to 36 °C (96.8 °F) during the year. Average rainfall is highest at the coast, 3000-5000 mm per year, moving inland this decreases and at the eastern border of the country the average rainfall is 2000-2500mm.

Religion

Followers of islam constitute the majority of the population, while Christians form a significant minority. muslims are estimated to comprise 60% of Sierra Leone's population according to the US Department of State, while 20 to 30% are reported to be followers of Christianity, and 5 to 10% of the population practice indigenous animist beliefs. The 2007 UNHCR's "Report on International Religious Freedom in Sierra Leone" estimated 60% muslim, 20 to 30% Christian and 5 to 10% other beliefs, with many citizens practising a mixture of islam and traditional indigenous religious beliefs or Christianity and traditional indigenous beliefs. The Pew Research Center estimates the muslim population at 71.3% (4,059,000). muslims predominate in all of the country's three provinces and the Western Area, though formerly they were concentrated in the north with the south being mainly Christian.

Administrative divisions

The Republic of Sierra Leone is composed of four regions the Northern Province, Southern Province, the Eastern Province and the Western Area. The first three provinces are further divided into 12 districts, and the districts are further divided into 149 chiefdoms. The Local Government Act 2004 designated units of government called localities each of which would have a directly elected local district council to exercise authority and carry out functions at a local level. There are 13 district councils, one for each of the 12 districts and one for the Western Area Rural, and six municipalities each with a council, Freetown, Bo, Bonthe, Kenema, Koidu and Makeni

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