-SMART (UNPP)
40.5%

Legislative branch: unicameral House of Representatives (80 seats -
68 elected by popular vote, 12 filled by paramount chiefs elected in
separate elections; members serve five-year terms)

elections: last held 26-27 February 1996 (next to be held NA 2001)

election results: percent of vote by party - SLPP 36.1%, UNPP
21.6%, PDP 15.3%, APC 5.7%, NUP 5.3%, DCP 4.8%, other 11.2%; seats
by party - SLPP 27, UNPP 17, PDP 12, APC 5, NUP 4, DCP 3; note -
first elections since the former House of Representatives was shut
down by the military coup of 29 April 1992

Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court

Political parties and leaders: All People's Congress or APC [Edward
Mohammed TURAY, chairman]; Democratic Centre Party or DCP [Adu Aiah
KOROMA]; National Democratic Alliance or NDA [Amadu M. B. JALLOH];
National Republican Party or NRP [Sahr Stephen MAMBU]; National
Unity Party or NUP [Dr. John KARIMU, chairman]; People's Democratic
Party or PDP [Thaimu BANGURA, chairman]; People's Progressive Party
or PPP [Abass Chernok BUNDU, chairman]; Revolutionary United Front
Party or RUFP [Foday SANKOH, chairman]; Sierra Leone People's Party
or SLPP [President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH, chairman]; United National
People's Party or UNPP [John KARIFA-SMART in exile, Raymond KAMARA,
acting leader]

Political pressure groups and leaders: Trade Unions and Student
Unions

International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA,
ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD,
IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol,
IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL,
WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
John Ernest LEIGH

chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009

telephone: [1] (202) 939-9261 through 9263

FAX: [1] (202) 483-1793

Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
Joseph H. MELROSE, Jr.

embassy: Corner of Walpole and Siaka Stevens Streets, Freetown

mailing address: use embassy street address

telephone: [232] (22) 226481 through 226485

FAX: [232] (22) 225471

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of light green (top),
white, and light blue

Sierra Leone Economy

Economy - overview: Sierra Leone is an extremely poor African nation
with tremendous inequality in income distribution. It d