Located in western Africa, it borders Guinea to the north and northeast, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. The coastline is about 485 kilometers long. It has a tropical monsoon climate with high temperature and rainy season from May to October and dry season from November to April. The average annual temperature is about 26℃.
The Mande people entered the region in the 13th century, and in 1462 Portuguese colonialists invaded, followed by Dutch, French and British colonizers who brought 400 "free" black slaves to settle in Freetown (i.e., Freedom City). 1808, the coastal area became a British colony, and in 1896, it became a British "protectorate". "Independence was declared on April 27, 1961, but the country remained in the British Commonwealth. 19 April 1971 saw the establishment of the State of **** and State, with Siaka Stevens as President. 1978 saw the adoption by referendum of a one-party constitution for the State of **** and State in a June 1978 referendum. In the October 1985 general elections, Major General Joseph Seydou Momoh, commander of the armed forces, was elected president. During the latter part of Momoh's administration, the transition from a one-party to a multi-party system of government was accomplished; in 1991, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), led by Foday Sankoh, launched an insurgency, and in April 1992, a group of young military officers from the counter-insurgency front staged a coup d'état to overthrow Momoh's regime and establish the "National Provisional Ruling Council" (NPRC), led by Capt. Strasser, to be called the "National Provisional Ruling Council". "In January 1996, Bio, the vice-chairman of the National Provisional Ruling Council (NPRC), became its chairman in a bloodless coup d'état, and in February Sierra Leone held its first multi-party presidential and parliamentary elections. The SLPP candidate, Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, is elected President.
Politics Since Kabbah came to power, he has adhered to the policy of national reconciliation, and is committed to ending the civil war and restoring peace and stability in the country.
In May 1997, Major Koroma staged a coup d'état to form a military regime including the RUF, and President Kabbah went into exile in Guinea.
In February 1998, the peacekeeping force of the Economic ****ociation of West African States (ECOWAS) overthrew the military regime in the country, and President Kabbah returned to his country and resumed office in March. In November 2000, the Serbian government and the RUF signed a cease-fire agreement in Abuja, Nigeria, and proceeded to implement a disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) program; in January 2002, the end of the civil war was declared with a ceremony to mark the end of the DDR process and the burning of collected weapons; and in May President Kabbah was re-elected as president, having won the general election. In February 2004, the Serbian DDR program was officially terminated. At present, the political situation in Senegal is basically stable.
ConstitutionThe current constitution was promulgated on September 24, 1991, and stipulates that the president is the head of state, the cabinet and the executive. The Constitution establishes the President as the Head of State, Head of Cabinet and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, and authorizes the appointment and removal of the Vice-President, Cabinet Ministers, the Commander of the Armed Forces, the Inspector-General of Police, the Attorney-General, the Chief Justice, and a number of designated Members of Parliament. The President is appointed for a term of five years and may be re-elected for not more than two terms.
The Parliament is a single house system with members serving a five-year term. The current Parliament, which came into being in May 2002, has 124 Members of Parliament (MPs), comprising 12 Chieftaincy Members of Parliament (CMPs) elected by the Great Chiefs and 112 Ordinary Members of Parliament (OMPs) elected by the electorate, with the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) occupying 83 seats, the All People's Congress (APC) 27 seats, and the Peace and Liberation Party (PLP) 2 seats.
Presidential cabinet system of government. The current government was formed on July 12, 2002, and its principal members are: President and Minister of Defense Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, Vice President Samuel Sam Sumana, Minister of Finance David Carew, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Zainab Bangura, Minister of Defense Paolo Conteh, Justice Minister Abdul Serry-Kamal, Housing and Infrastructure Minister John Sahid Saab Trade and Industry Minister Alimamy Koroma, Health Minister Soccoh Kabia , Minister of Education, Youth and Sports Minkailu Bah, Minister of Transportation and Civil Aviation Kemoh Sesay, Minister of Agriculture Dr. Sam Sesay, Minister of Tourism and Culture Hindolo Trye, Minister of Information and Communication Alhaji Kalgbo ( Alhaji I.B. Kargbo, Minister of Energy and Power, Haja Afsatu Kabba, Minister of Mineral Resources, Abubacarr Jalloh, Minister of Lands, National Planning, Forestry and Environment, Benjamin Davies, Minister of Interior, Local Government and Rural Development, Dawoodah. Government and Rural Development Minister Dauda Sulaiman Kamara, Minister of Presidential and Public **** Affairs Alpha Kanu, Minister of Social Welfare and Children's Affairs Musa Kandeh, Minister of Employment and Social Security Minkailu Mansaray, Minister of Social Welfare and Children's Affairs Minkailu Mansaray, Minister of Social Welfare and Children's Affairs Minkailu Mansaray, Minister of Social Welfare and Children's Affairs Minkailu Mansaray, Minister of Social Welfare and Children's Affairs Minkailu Mansaray. Mansaray)