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Sierra Leone

Who are the people?

Sierra Leone is a mosaic of ethnic tribes. Nine of every 10 people are descendents of tribes native to Africa. The remaining 10 percent are descendents of freed slaves, called “Creoles.”

The capital of Sierra Leone, Freetown, was established by Creoles in the late 1700s. The Creoles spoke a derivative of English, called Krio, which continues to be the common language throughout the country today. Only a small minority of Sierra Leoneans speak the country’s official language, English.

Most of the population lives in rural farming communities. Sierra Leone dwellings are generally mud huts with dirt floors and thatched roofs.

Sierra Leone has one of the lowest average incomes in the world. Nearly 75 percent of the population lives on less than $2 a day, with over half the population living on less than $1 a day. Most families do not have sufficient resources to purchase essential items.

Approximately two-thirds of the population depends on subsistence farming for survival. A typical family’s diet consists of rice, cassava root, and leafy vegetables. They grow barely enough food to feed their families; half of the population is chronically undernourished.

Access to health care is severely limited, especially in rural areas. Sierra Leone also has a high maternal mortality rate: one of every 50 births results in the mother’s death.

What is it like to live there?


 
Country Statistics 
Population5.5 million
Land Mass27,653 sq. miles
Life Expectancy41 years
Infant Mortality Rate165 / 1,000
Literacy Rate35%
School Enrollment41%
Access to Safe Water57%
Average Annual Income (GNI per capita)US$220
 
 
The West African country of Sierra Leone is bordered by Guinea to the north, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Originally founded by freed slaves, Sierra Leone was a British colony until the mid-1900s. From 1991 to 2002, a crippling civil war caused tens of thousands of deaths, 2 million displaced people (almost one-third of the population), and a ruined infrastructure.

The illicit trade of “conflict diamonds” has contributed heavily to Sierra Leone’s status as one of the least developed countries in the world. Conflict diamonds are diamonds sold to fund human rights abuses either by insurgent groups or corrupt governments. They were a crucial factor in prolonging the civil war in Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone’s diverse landscape includes a coastline of mangrove swamps, an interior of forest-covered plateaus rising 1000 feet above sea level, and mountains to the east. The country has a hot, tropical climate with up to 195 inches of rainfall a year on the coast—making it one of the wettest places in West Africa.

Wildlife abounds in Sierra Leone. It is home to elephants, crocodiles, chimpanzees, monkeys, hippopotamuses, and antelope. On the Freetown peninsula alone, there are more than 375 kinds of birds.

How You Can Pray for Your Sponsored Child
  • Pray that your sponsored child might be open to God’s love and grace.
  • Ask God to guide your sponsored child as he or she learns, grows, and moves toward a future full of hope and possibilities.
  • Pray for God to protect the health of your sponsored child and his or her family.
  • Pray that churches and families will respond to God’s call to care for orphans and widows, especially those most affected by the recent civil war.
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