Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It shares its southeastern border with Liberia, and the northern half of the nation is surrounded by Guinea. Covering a total area of 71,740 km2 (27,699 sq mi), Sierra Leone has a tropical climate, with diverse environments ranging from savanna to rainforests. The country has a population of 7,092,113 as of the 2015 census. Freetown is the capital and largest city. The country is divided into five administrative regions, which are subdivided into 16 districts.
Foday Saybana Sankoh was the founder of the Sierra Leone rebel group Revolutionary United Front (RUF), which was supported by Charles Taylor-led NPFL in the 11-year-long Sierra Leone Civil War, starting in 1991 and ending in 2002. An estimated 50,000 people were killed during the war, and over 500,000 people were displaced in neighboring countries.
Major Johnny Paul Koroma was a Sierra Leonean military officer who was the head of state of Sierra Leone from May 1997 to February 1998.
Valentine Esegragbo Melvine Strasser is a former Sierra Leonean military officer who served as head of state of Sierra Leone from 1992 to 1996. He became the world's youngest Head of State in 1992, seizing power three days after his 25th birthday.
Major General Joseph Saidu Momoh, OOR, OBE was a Sierra Leonean politician and military officer who served as the second President of Sierra Leone from November 1985 to 29 April 1992.
Abdulai Osman Conteh is a lawyer and politician from Sierra Leone. He is a former vice president of Sierra Leone, who served under President Joseph Saidu Momoh before he was ousted by the military junta in 1992. Conteh later spent a considerable number of years in Belize, where he served as the country's chief justice before returning to Sierra Leone.
Kewullay Conteh is a Sierra Leonean former professional footballer who played as a defender. He spent most his career in Italy while representing the Sierra Leone national team at international level.
The Limba people are an ethnic group in Sierra Leone. They represent 12.4% of the total population, making them the third largest ethnic group in Sierra Leone. The Limba are based in the north of the country across seven provinces, but are predominantly found in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone.
The Temne, also called Atemne, Témené, Temné, Téminè, Temeni, Thaimne, Themne, Thimni, Timené, Timné, Timmani, or Timni, are a West African ethnic group, They are predominantly found in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone. Some Temne are also found in Guinea. The Temne constitute the largest ethnic group in Sierra Leone, at 35.5% of the total population, which is slightly bigger than the Mende people at 31.2%. They speak Temne, a Mel branch of the Niger–Congo languages.
The Western Area Rural District is one of the sixteen districts of Sierra Leone. It is located mostly around the peninsula in the Western Area of Sierra Leone. The Western Area Rural District has a 2015 census population of 442,951. The district capital and largest city is Waterloo. Other major towns in the district include Newton, Benguema, Leicester, Tombo and Regent. Most of the towns and villages in the Western area rural District are close to the capital Freetown; and are part of the Freetown Metropolitan Area.
Lamin Conteh, widely known by his nickname Junior Tumbu, was a Sierra Leonean professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He represented the Sierra Leone national team from 1994 until 2002.
Mass media in Sierra Leone began when the first modern printing press in Africa arrived at the start of the 19th century. In the 1860s the country became a journalist hub for Africa with professional travelling to the country from across the continent. At the end of the 19th century the industry went into decline and when radio was introduced in the 1930s this became the primary communication media. Print media is not widely read in Sierra Leone, especially outside Freetown, partially due to the low levels of literacy in the country. In 2008 there were 15 daily newspapers in addition to those published weekly. Among newspaper readership young people are likely to read newspapers weekly and older people daily. The majority of newspapers are privately run and are often critical of the government.
Clifford Nelson Fyle was a Sierra Leonean academic and author, known for writing the lyrics to the Sierra Leone National Anthem.
Christian Alusine Kamara-Taylor Popular known as C.A. was a Sierra Leonean politician and one of the founding members of the All People's Congress (APC), along with Siaka Stevens and Sorie Ibrahim Koroma. He served as Minister of Finance of Sierra Leone from 1971 to 1975. He became Minister of Interior in 1975. After the introduction of a one party constitution in 1978, Mr. C.A. Kamara-Taylor became the Second Vice-President of Sierra Leone, and held that post until his death in 1985.
Major General Alfred Claude Nelson-Williams, GCOR is a retired Major General in the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF). Nelson-Williams previously served as Chief of Defense Staff for Sierra Leone from 2008 to 2010.
In April 1961, Sierra Leone became politically independent of Great Britain. It retained a parliamentary system of government and was a member of the British Commonwealth of Nations. The Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP), led by Sir Milton Margai were victorious in the first general election under universal adult franchise in May 1962. Upon Sir Milton's death in 1964, his half-brother, Sir Albert Margai, succeeded him as Prime Minister. Sir Albert attempted to establish a one-party state had the ready cooperation of the opposition All People' Congress but met fierce resistance from some cadre within his party Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) and ultimately abandoned the idea.
Haja Umu Hawa Tejan-Jalloh, GCOR is a Sierra Leonean lawyer who was the first female Chief Justice of Sierra Leone from 2008 to 2015.
Sierra Leone is officially a secular state, although Islam and Christianity are the two main and dominant religions in the country. The constitution of Sierra Leone provides for freedom of religion and the Sierra Leone Government generally protects it. The Sierra Leone Government is constitutionally forbidden from establishing a state religion, though Muslim and Christian prayers are usually held in the country at the beginning of major political occasions, including presidential inauguration.
Colonel Kahota M.S. Dumbuya commonly known as K.M.S. Dumbuya was a senior military officer in the Sierra Leone Armed Forces. K.M.S Dumbua was the late husband of the religious Sierra Leonean evangelist preacher Mammy Dumbuya.
John Rosolu Bankole Thompson was a Sierra Leonean judge and jurist who published several studies on the law of Sierra Leone. Bankole Thompson served on the Special Court for Sierra Leone and headed the Commission of Inquiry for the Government of Sierra Leone and the Sierra Leone Anti-corruption Commission from 2018.