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Geography
Sierra Leone is situated on the west coast of Africa between latitudes 10° and 13° west and longitudes 7 and
100 north, and covers an area of some 71,620 km2. To the west and southwest its Atlantic coastline extends
for almost 400 km. The country shares its north and northeastern border with the Republic of Guinea, and its
southeastern border with Liberia. Sierra Leone possesses a tropical and humid climate, with a clearly defined
rainy season. Annual rainfall averages about 380 cm (150 inches) in Freetown, decreasing inland to about 200
cm (80 inches) in the north of the country. Most of the rain falls between July and September. There are mangrove
swamps amps along the coast but most of the country is covered with dense secondary forest or bush, and over large
areas the land surface comprises residual laterite. or detrital material. The country possesses numerous streams
and rivers.
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Broadly speaking, the western half of Sierra Leone comprises a large plain, while the eastern half consists of
a number of elevated plateaux rising to a maximum height of 1,950 m (6,390ft) above sea-level at Bintumani in
the Loma Mountains. The plain comprises a 50 km wide coastal belt composed of marine or deltaic sediments running
parallel to the coast, and a continental belt stretching some 95 km inland from the coastal plain, underlain by
rocks of the 01(1 continental land mass.
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Geography Continued
The eastern half of Sierra Leone consists of elevated plateau country lying between 300 m and 600 m
above sea-level. Other plateaux and plateau remnants rise above this general level, especially near
the eastern frontier with Guinea. The western margin of the plateau is more or less clearly defined by
an eroded escarpment, and the existing scarp face is flanked by parallel hill ranges and by numerous
residual domes and inselbergs of granite. Most of the rivers descend from the plateau to the coastal
plain in a series of rapids and waterfalls. The estimated population of Sierra Leone in 2001 was 5.43
million and there was an overall population density of 76 persons/km2. Sierra Leone has a high annual
population growth rate of (2001) Freetown, the capital, is the largest city. Major towns include Kenema,
Bo and Makeni.
The surface of the plain is gently undulating and rises towards the east
to about 120 -150 m above sea-level at the base of the plateau escarpment. It is characterized by numerous isolated
hills and hill ranges, or monadnocks. remnants of an earlier plateau. The igneous intrusion underlying the Freetown
Peninsula forms a well-forested, highly dissected mountainous area and is one of the most distinctive physical
features on the west coast of Africa.
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Social Background
There are about 18 ethnic groups exhibiting similar cultural features. These include a system of government
based on chieftaincies and Patrilineal descent, subsistence farming and secret societies The Mende found
in the east and south and the Ternne, in the north, are the two largest groups. The Creoles descendants of
freed blacks, arrived in the 19th century and live mainly in the wertern area and Freetown. There has been
much intermarriage between ethnic groups.
Islam is Practiced by 60% of the population, and Christianity by about 10% The remainder follow traditional
beliefs. English is the official language, although its regular use is limited to a literate minority Mende
is the principal vernacular in the east and south, and Temne in the north. Krio (English-based Creole) is a
lingua franca and a first language for l0% of the population but is understood by 95%.
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