Sierra Leone People 2008

Population:
6,144,562 (July 2007 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 44.8% (male 1,349,878/female 1,400,297)
15-64 years: 52% (male 1,531,763/female 1,664,996)
65 years and over: 3.2% (male 92,360/female 105,268) (2007 est.)

Median age:
total: 17.5 years
male: 17.2 years
female: 17.7 years (2007 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.292% (2007 est.)

Birth rate:
45.41 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)

Death rate:
22.64 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)

Net migration rate:
0.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population
note: refugees currently in surrounding countries are slowly returning (2007 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 0.964 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.877 male(s)/female
total population: 0.938 male(s)/female (2007 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 158.27 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 175.39 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 140.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 40.58 years
male: 38.36 years
female: 42.87 years (2007 est.)

See also: Healthy Life Expectancy

See also: Health Performance

Total fertility rate:
6.01 children born/woman (2007 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
7% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
170,000 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
11,000 (2001 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: malaria and yellow fever are high risks in some locations
water contact disease: schistosomiasis
aerosolized dust or soil contact disease: Lassa fever (2007)

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%)