Sierra Leone

Lore & Background

Sierra Leone's current territorial configuration was established in two phases: in 1787, the coastal Sierra Leone Colony was founded as the Province of Freedom, becoming a British Crown Colony in 1808, to be a place to resettle returning Africans after the abolition of the slave trade; then in 1896, the inland Protectorate was established by a British proclamation, not as a direct outcome of the Berlin Conference of 1884–1885, though the conference influenced the broader colonial context. This led to the formal recognition of the territory as the Sierra Leone Colony and Protectorate. Sierra Leone attained independence from the United Kingdom in 1961 under the leadership of Prime Minister Sir Milton Margai of the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP). In 1971, under Prime Minister Siaka Stevens of the All People's Congress (APC), the country adopted a new constitution, transforming Sierra Leone into a presidential republic, with Stevens as the inaugural president. In 1978, Stevens declared the APC to be the sole legally recognised party. In 1985, he was succeeded by Joseph Saidu Momoh. Momoh's enactment of a new constitution in 1991 reintroduced a multi-party system. That same year, a protracted civil war broke out between the government and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebel group. The conflict, characterised by multiple coups d'état, persisted for 11 years. Intervention by ECOMOG forces and later by the United Kingdom resulted in the defeat of the RUF in 2002, ushering in a period of relative stability.

Reader's Guide

Sierra Leone is a presidential republic, with a unicameral parliament and a directly elected president. It is a secular state. Its constitution provides for the separation of state and religion and freedom of conscience. Muslims constitute three-quarters of the population, and there is a significant Christian minority. Religious tolerance is very high. English is the official language, while Krio is the lingua franca, spoken by 97% of the population. The country is rich with natural resources, notably diamonds, gold, bauxite and aluminium. As of the most recent survey in 2019, 59.2% of the population is affected by multidimensional poverty and an additional 21.3% vulnerable to it.

Did You Know?

• Sierra Leone derives its name from the Lion Mountains near its capital, Freetown, originally named Serra Leoa by Portuguese explorer Pedro de Sintra in 1462.
• The Creole people, descendants of freed African-American, Afro-Caribbean slaves and liberated Africans, constitute about 1.2% of the population.
• Sierra Leone is home to approximately 18 ethnic groups, with the Temne and Mende peoples being predominant.
• The country maintains membership in the United Nations, African Union, ECOWAS, and the Commonwealth of Nations.