The People of Sierra Leone
The People of Sierra Leone
Sierra Leonean People
Population: 6,440,053 (July 2009 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 44.5% (male 1,407,226/female 1,460,366) 15-64 years: 52.2% (male 1,613,554/female 1,750,250) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 95,533/female 113,124) (2009 est.)
Median age: total: 17.5 years male: 17.2 years female: 17.8 years (2009 est.)
Population growth rate: 2.282% (2009 est.)
Death rate: 22.26 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2009 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 154.43 deaths/1,000 live births male: 171.57 deaths/1,000 live births female: 136.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 41.24 years male: 38.92 years female: 43.64 years (2009 est.)
Total fertility rate: 5.88 children born/woman (2009 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 1.7% (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 55,000 (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 3,300 (2007 est.)
Nationality: noun: Sierra Leonean(s) adjective: Sierra Leonean
Ethnic groups: 20 African ethnic groups 90% (Temne 30%, Mende 30%, other 30%), Creole (Krio) 10% (descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area in the late-18th century), refugees from Liberia's recent civil war, small numbers of Europeans, Lebanese, Pakistanis, and Indians
Religions: Muslim 60%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs 30%
Languages: English (official, regular use limited to literate minority), Mende (principal vernacular in the south), Temne (principal vernacular in the north), Krio (English-based Creole, spoken by the descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area, a lingua franca and a first language for 10% of the population but understood by 95%)
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic total population: 35.1% male: 46.9% female: 24.4% (2004 est.)