 Sierra Leone
Facts and Figures
Source: CIA World Factbook |
| Coordinates |
8 30 N, 11 30 W |
| Area |
total: 71,740 sq km land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
| Climate |
tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) |
| Terrain |
coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east |
| Population |
6,144,562 (July 2007 est.) |
| Languages |
English (official, regular use limited to literate minority), Mende (principal vernacular in the south), Temne (principal vernacular in the north), Krio (English-based Creole, spoken by the descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area, a lingua franca and a first language for 10% of the population but understood by 95%) |
| Imports |
foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals |
| Exports |
diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish |
| Hazards |
dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms |
| Resources |
diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite |
| Geography |
rainfall along the coast can reach 495 cm (195 inches) a year, making it one of the wettest places along coastal, western Africa |
| Nationality |
noun: Sierra Leonean(s) adjective: Sierra Leonean |
| Capital |
name: Freetown geographic coordinates: 8 30 N, 13 15 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Internet Country Code |
.sl |
| Internet Users |
10,000 (2005) |
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