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| Sierra Leone lies on the western coast of Africa |
Some quick facts about Sierra Leone· About the size of South Carolina
· Borders Guinea and Liberia and Atlantic Ocean
· Tropical climate with two seasons…May-December (rainy) and January to April (dry)
· Population around 5.5 million*
· Life expectancy at birth is 43 years old
· Religious makeup: Muslim 60%, indigenous 20%, Christian 20%*
· Less than 31% of the population can read and write
· Freetown is the capital with 1.2 million people*
· Independence day is 27 April, 1961
· About $500 per capita income each year*
· The President is Ernest Korma (and is hoping to be re-elected in November)
· Currency is Leone with the exchange rate about 4334 SLL to $1 US but the rate changes daily.
*Many of the population statistics vary greatly from one source to another. It all depends on who is doing the counting and who gets counted.
Sierra Leone is known for its religious tolerance. Maybe this is an area that we will want to observe. How is it with the Muslim in such a majority and the Christians in such a minority that they get along so well? They work together for the good of all.
Elections for the country's leadership will end on November 17, 2012. President Korma is up for reelection. According to SL constitution, he may run for another 5 year team and must receive 55% of the vote to be elected. In 2007 he won in a run off election as there were 7 presidential candidates.
President Koroma was reelected in a generally peaceful election. There is some dissention among opposition leaders in the national assembly.
ReplyDeleteYes, I watched for news regarding the elections. For the most part, it sounds ok. We have a small team in Sierra Leone since the 22 November and all has been safe. Even in the US we find dissention among the opposition leaders of our national assembly. It was fun to do small comparisons of election proceedures.
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