male: 8 years
female: 6 years (2001)

Education expenditures:

3.8% of GDP (2005)

Government
Sierra Leone

Country name:

conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone
conventional short form: Sierra Leone
local long form: Republic of Sierra Leone
local short form: Sierra Leone

Government type:

constitutional democracy

Capital:

name: Freetown
geographic coordinates: 8 30 N, 13 15 W
time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)

Administrative divisions:

3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western*

Independence:

27 April 1961 (from UK)

National holiday:

Independence Day, 27 April (1961)

Constitution:

1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times

Legal system:

based on English law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: President Ernest Bai KOROMA (since 17 September
2007); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of
government
head of government: President Ernest Bai KOROMA (since 17 September
2007)
cabinet: Ministers of State appointed by the president with the
approval of the House of Representatives; the cabinet is responsible
to the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term
(eligible for a second term); election last held 11 August 2007 and
8 September 2007 (next to be held in 2012)
election results: second round results; percent of vote - Ernest Bai
KOROMA 54.6%, Solomon BEREWA 45.4%

Legislative branch:

unicameral Parliament (124 seats; 112 members elected by popular
vote, 12 filled by paramount chiefs elected in separate elections;
to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 11 August 2007 (next to be held in 2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party -
APC 59, SLPP 43, PMDC 10

Judicial branch:

Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court

Political parties and leaders:

All People's Congress or APC [Ernest Bai KOROMA]; Peace and
Liberation Party or PLP [Darlington MORRISON]; People's Movement for
Democratic Change or PMDC [Charles MARGAI]; Sierra Leone People's
Party or SLPP [Solomon BEREWA]; numerous others

Political pressure groups and leaders:

other: student unions; trade unions

International organization participation:

ACP, AfDB, AU, C,