Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone, formally recognized as the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a culturally diverse nation situated on the southwestern coast of West Africa. Comprising a land area of 71,740 square kilometers (27,699 square miles), Sierra Leone lies to the north of Guinea and to the southeast of Liberia. The country boasts a tropical temperature marked by a range of ecosystems, including vast savannas and thick rainforests. With Freetown as its capital and biggest city, Sierra Leone’s population was roughly 7 million according to the 2015 census. Comprising five administrative areas, each reflecting the cultural and ethnic variety of the country, the nation is divided further into sixteen districts.

Operating as a presidential republic with a unicameral parliament and a president chosen by direct voting, Sierra Leone The state is secular; its constitution guarantees the separation of state and church as well as preservation of freedom of conscience, so including freedom of thought and religion. About seventy-five percent of the population is Muslim, and there is a clear Christian minority mixed in. A major degree of religious tolerance sets Sierra Leone apart from other countries and functions as both a social norm and a basic component of the national cultural identity.

Sierra Leone’s current territory was created in two distinct eras during the British colonial era. Following the abolition of the slave trade, the Sierra Leone Colony was founded in 1808 as a community for returned Africans. Following the Berlin Conference of 1884–1885, the inland Protectorate was founded in 1896 and formally named the region British Sierra Leone Colony and Protectorate. Lead by Prime Minister Sir Milton Margai of the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), Sierra Leone attained independence from the United Kingdom in 1961 and became a Commonwealth country known as the Dominion of Sierra Leone.

Under Prime Minister Siaka Stevens of the All People’s Congress (APC), Sierra Leone adopted a new constitution in 1971, therefore creating a presidential republic with Stevens as first president. Stevens declared the APC the sole officially approved political party in 1978. His successor, Joseph Saidu Momoh, put a new constitution in place in 1991 restoring a multi-party system. The government and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebel faction started a protracted civil war that year. Comprising many coups d’état, this battle lasted for 11 years. Following the entry of ECOMOG forces and then the United Kingdom, the RUF was defeated in 2002, signifying the start of a phase marked by relative stability and efforts at war recovery from destruction. Still the two main political parties in the nation are the APC and the SLPP.

There are about eighteen ethnic groups in Sierra Leone; the Temne and Mende are the most well-known ones. Comprising descendants of emancipated African Americans, Afro-Caribbean slaves, and liberated Africans, the Creole population makes around 1.2% of all the population. Although Krio serves as the lingua franca, used by 97% of the population, English is the official language. The country boasts major natural resources including bauxite, aluminum, gold, and diamonds. 59.2% of the population lived in multidimensional poverty as of 2019; another 21.3% were at danger of becoming impacted.

Among the several international groups Sierra Leone belongs to are the United Nations, African Union, Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and Commonwealth of Nations. A well-known tourist destination with beautiful beaches along the Freetown Peninsula is the capital, Freetown. Among the well-known sites are Lumley-Aberdeen Beach, River Number 2 Beach, Laka Beach, Tokeh Beach, Bureh Beach, and Mom Beach. Rare and threatened chimpanzees live at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary within the peninsula’s rainforest reserve. The Freetown Cotton Tree, Bunce Island, the Sierra Leone Museum, and the National Railway Museum are among further areas of interest. The active nightlife of the Aberdeen-Lumley area reflects the cultural vitality of Sierra Leone.