Sierra Leone

The Republic of Sierra Leone is bordered by the North Atlantic Ocean, Guinea, and Liberia. With a [Page 1102]population of about 5.6 million in 2013, it has an area of 71,740 square kilometers (27,700 mi2) and an economy dependent on agriculture (51.5%), industry (14.9%), and services (33.6%).

In the 1980s Sierra Leone had a small but rapidly flourishing tourism industry with a number of foreign brands operating in the country such as AccorHotels Group, Caledonia Hotel Management (CHM), and Sofitel. The major motivation for tourists’ visits was for holidays, with activity participation in mostly catamaran tours, fishing expeditions, and traditional and cultural experience tours. From 1991 to 2002, the country was engaged in a widespread civil war over conflict diamonds that spread from the main diamond ...