Liberia vs. Sierra Leone
Government
| Liberia | Sierra Leone | |
|---|---|---|
| Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Liberia conventional short form: Liberia etymology: name derives from the Latin word "liber" meaning "free"; so named because the nation was created as a homeland for liberated African-American slaves | conventional long form: Republic of Sierra Leone conventional short form: Sierra Leone local long form: Republic of Sierra Leone local short form: Sierra Leone etymology: the Portuguese explorer Pedro de SINTRA named the country "Serra Leoa" (Lion Mountains) for the impressive mountains he saw while sailing the West African coast in 1462 |
| Government type | presidential republic | presidential republic |
| Capital | name: Monrovia geographic coordinates: 6 18 N, 10 48 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: named after James Monroe (1758-1831), the fifth president of the United States and supporter of the colonization of Liberia by freed slaves; one of two national capitals named for a US president, the other is Washington, D.C. | name: Freetown geographic coordinates: 8 29 N, 13 14 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: name derived from the fact that the original settlement served as a haven for free-born and freed African Americans, as well as for liberated Africans rescued from slave ships |
| Administrative divisions | 15 counties; Bomi, Bong, Gbarpolu, Grand Bassa, Grand Cape Mount, Grand Gedeh, Grand Kru, Lofa, Margibi, Maryland, Montserrado, Nimba, River Cess, River Gee, Sinoe | 4 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, North Western, Southern, Western* |
| Independence | 26 July 1847 | 27 April 1961 (from the UK) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 26 July (1847) | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) |
| Constitution | history: previous 1847 (at independence); latest drafted 19 October 1983, revision adopted by referendum 3 July 1984, effective 6 January 1986 amendments: proposed by agreement of at least two thirds of both National Assembly houses or by petition of at least 10,000 citizens; passage requires at least two-thirds majority approval of both houses and approval in a referendum by at least two-thirds majority of registered voters; amended 2011, 2020 | history: several previous; latest effective 1 October 1991 amendments: proposed by Parliament; passage of amendments requires at least two-thirds majority vote of Parliament in two successive readings and assent of the president of the republic; passage of amendments affecting fundamental rights and freedoms and many other constitutional sections also requires approval in a referendum with participation of at least one half of qualified voters and at least two thirds of votes cast; amended several times, last in 2016 |
| Legal system | mixed legal system of common law, based on Anglo-American law, and customary law | mixed legal system of English common law and customary law |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President George WEAH (since 22 January 2018); Vice President Jewel HOWARD-TAYLOR (since 22 January 2018); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President George WEAH (since 22 January 2018); Vice President Jewel HOWARD-TAYLOR (since 22 January 2018) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president, confirmed by the Senate elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 6-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 10 October 2017 with a run-off on 26 December 2017) (next to be held on 10 October 2023); the runoff originally scheduled for 7 November 2017 was delayed due to allegations of fraud in the first round, which the Supreme Court dismissed election results: George WEAH elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - George WEAH (Coalition for Democratic Change) 38.4%, Joseph BOAKAI (UP) 28.8%, Charles BRUMSKINE (LP) 9.6%, Prince JOHNSON (MDR) 8.2%, Alexander B. CUMMINGS (ANC) 7.2%, other 7.8%; percentage of vote in second round - George WEAH 61.5%, Joseph BOAKAI 38.5% | chief of state: President Julius Maada BIO (since 4 April 2018); Vice President Mohamed Juldeh JALLOH (since 4 April 2018) ; note - the president is both chief of state, head of government, and minister of defense head of government: President Julius Maada BIO (since 4 April 2018); Vice President Mohamed Juldeh JALLOH (since 4 April 2018) cabinet: Ministers of State appointed by the president, approved by Parliament; the cabinet is responsible to the president elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 4 April 2018 (next to be in 2023) election results: Julius Maada BIO elected president in second round; percent of vote - Julius Maada BIO (SLPP) 51.8%, Samura KAMARA (APC) 48.2% |
| Legislative branch | description: bicameral National Assembly consists of: The Liberian Senate (30 seats; members directly elected in 15 2-seat districts by simple majority vote to serve 9-year staggered terms; each district elects 1 senator and elects the second senator 3 years later, followed by a 6-year hiatus, after which the first Senate seat is up for election) House of Representatives (73 seats; members directly elected in single-seat districts by simple majority vote to serve 6-year terms; eligible for a second term) elections: Senate -general election held on 8 December 2020 with half the seats up for election (next election 2023) House of Representatives - last held on 10 October 2017 (next to be held in October 2023) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - Collaborating Political Parties 40.27%, Congress for Democratic Change 28.02%, People's Unification Party 6.40, Movement for Democracy and Reconstructions 4.30%, All Liberia Coalition 1.09%,Rainbow Alliance 1.09%, Liberia Restoration Party 0,82%, Liberia National Union 0.77%, Movement for Progressive Change 0.74%, United People's Party 0.66%, Liberia Transformation Party 0.16%, National Democratic Coalition 0.07%, Movement for One Liberia 0.01; seats by coalition/party- CPP 13, CDC 5, PUP 2, MDR 1, NDC 1 House of Representatives - percent of vote by party/coalition - Coalition for Democratic Change 15.6%, UP 14%, LP 8.7%, ANC 6.1%, PUP 5.9%, ALP 5.1%, MDR 3.4%, other 41.2%; seats by coalition/party - Coalition for Democratic Change 21, UP 20, PUP 5, LP 3, ALP 3, MDR 2, independent 13, other 6; composition - men 64, women 9, percent of women 12.3%; total Parliament percent of women 11.7% | description: unicameral Parliament (146 seats; 132 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 14 seats filled in separate elections by non-partisan members of Parliament called "paramount chiefs;" members serve 5-year terms) elections: last held on 7 March 2018 (next to be held in March 2023) election results: percent of vote by party - n/a; seats by party - APC 68, SLPP 49, C4C 8, other 7; composition - men 131, women 15, percent of women 10.3% |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court (consists of a chief justice and 4 associate justices); note - the Supreme Court has jurisdiction for all constitutional cases judge selection and term of office: chief justice and associate justices appointed by the president of Liberia with consent of the Senate; judges can serve until age 70 subordinate courts: judicial circuit courts; special courts, including criminal, civil, labor, traffic; magistrate and traditional or customary courts | highest courts: Superior Court of Judicature (consists of the Supreme Court - at the apex - with the chief justice and 4 other judges, the Court of Appeal with the chief justice and 7 other judges, and the High Court of Justice with the chief justice and 9 other judges); note - the Judicature has jurisdiction in all civil, criminal, and constitutional matters judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court chief justice and other judges of the Judicature appointed by the president on the advice of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission, a 7-member independent body of judges, presidential appointees, and the Commission chairman, and are subject to approval by Parliament; all Judicature judges serve until retirement at age 65 subordinate courts: magistrates' courts; District Appeals Court; local courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Peace and Democracy or APD [Marcus S. G. DAHN] All Liberian Party or ALP [Benoi UREY] Alternative National Congress or ANC [Orishil GOULD] Coalition for Democratic Change [George WEAH] (includes CDC, NPP, and LPDP)Congress for Democratic Change or CDC [George WEAH] Liberia Destiny Party or LDP [Nathaniel BARNES] Liberia National Union or LINU [Nathaniel BLAMA] Liberia Transformation Party or LTP [Julius SUKU] Liberian People Democratic Party or LPDP [Alex J. TYLER] Liberian People's Party or LPP Liberty Party or LP [J. Fonati KOFFA] Movement for Democracy and Reconstruction or MDR [Prince Y. JOHNSON] Movement for Economic Empowerment [J. Mill JONES, Dr.] Movement for Progressive Change or MPC [Simeon FREEMAN] National Democratic Coalition or NDC [Dew MAYSON] National Democratic Party of Liberia or NDPL [D. Nyandeh SIEH] National Patriotic Party or NPP [Jewel HOWARD TAYLOR] National Reformist Party or NRP [Maximillian T. W. DIABE] National Union for Democratic Progress or NUDP [Victor BARNEY] People's Unification Party or PUP [Isobe GBORKORKOLLIE] Unity Party or UP [Varney SHERMAN] United People's Party [MacDonald WENTO] Victory for Change Party [Marcus R. JONES] | All People's Congress or APC [Ernest Bai KOROMA] Coalition for Change or C4C [Tamba R. SANDY] National Grand Coalition or NGC [Dr. Dennis BRIGHT] Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP [Dr. Prince HARDING] numerous other parties |
| International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, EITI (compliant country), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, EITI (compliant country), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNISFA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador George S.W. PATTEN, Sr. (since 11 January 2019) chancery: 5201 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 723-0437 FAX: [1] (202) 723-0436 email address and website: info@liberiaemb.org http://www.liberianembassyus.org/ consulate(s) general: New York | chief of mission: Ambassador Sidique Abou-Bakarr WAI (since 8 April 2019) chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009-1605 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9261 FAX: [1] (202) 483-1793 email address and website: info@embassyofsierraleone.net https://embassyofsierraleone.net/ |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael A. MCCARTHY (since 22 January 2021) embassy: 502 Benson Street, Monrovia mailing address: 8800 Monrovia Place, Washington DC 20521-8800 telephone: [231] 77-677-7000 FAX: [231] 77-677-7370 email address and website: ACSMonrovia@state.gov https://lr.usembassy.gov/ | chief of mission: Ambassador David REIMER (since 24 March 2021) embassy: Southridge-Hill Station, Freetown mailing address: 2160 Freetown Place, Washington DC 20521-2160 telephone: [232] 99 105 000 email address and website: consularfreetown@state.gov https://sl.usembassy.gov/ |
| Flag description | 11 equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; a white five-pointed star appears on a blue square in the upper hoist-side corner; the stripes symbolize the signatories of the Liberian Declaration of Independence; the blue square represents the African mainland, and the star represents the freedom granted to the ex-slaves; according to the constitution, the blue color signifies liberty, justice, and fidelity, the white color purity, cleanliness, and guilelessness, and the red color steadfastness, valor, and fervor note: the design is based on the US flag | three equal horizontal bands of light green (top), white, and light blue; green symbolizes agriculture, mountains, and natural resources, white represents unity and justice, and blue the sea and the natural harbor in Freetown |
| National anthem | name: All Hail, Liberia Hail! lyrics/music: Daniel Bashiel WARNER/Olmstead LUCA note: lyrics adopted 1847, music adopted 1860; the anthem's author later became the third president of Liberia | name: High We Exalt Thee, Realm of the Free lyrics/music: Clifford Nelson FYLE/John Joseph AKA note: adopted 1961 |
| International law organization participation | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| National symbol(s) | white star; national colors: red, white, blue | lion; national colors: green, white, blue |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Liberia dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 2 years | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent or grandparent must be a citizen of Sierra Leone dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years |
Source: CIA Factbook
