Chapter 12 SIERRA LEONE

Sierra Leone has an area of 72,325 square kilometers and is bordered in the northeast by the Republic of Guinea, in the south and southeast by the Republic of Liberia, and in the west by the North Atlantic Ocean. The country is divided into five main geographical regions: coastline, interior lowland plains, interior plateau, mountains, and Freetown Peninsula. The coastline is part of the general coastline of the West and Central Africa region, a low plain, sandy and surf beaten. The general coastline orientation, northwest–southeast, is strongly influenced by the local structural and lithological framework. Agriculture is the largest sector in the economy of Sierra Leone, providing employment for over 65 percent of the labor force and contributing about 35–47 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) (Sierra Leone, MOAFFS and MOF 2004). Rice is the staple foodcrop in Sierra Leone, grown mainly by small-scale farmers. The impact of climate change is already felt in the country in seasonal droughts, strong winds, thunderstorms, landslides, heat waves, floods, and changed rainfall patterns. As reported in Sierra Leone’s National Adaptatio