Sierra Leone Diamonds

DISCOVER SIERRA LEONE

 

  • Country Profile
Sierra Leone is extremely poor and nearly half of the working-age population engages in subsistence agriculture. The country possesses substantial mineral, agricultural, and fishery resources, but it is still recovering from a civil war that destroyed most institutions before ending in the early 2000s.
In recent years economic growth has been driven by mining – particularly iron ore. The country’s principal exports are iron ore, diamonds, and rutile, so the economy is vulnerable to fluctuations in international prices. Since 2014, the rapid spread of Ebolavirus has caused a contraction of economic activity in several areas, including transportation, healthcare, and industrial production. Iron ore production has dropped, due to low global prices and high costs, driven by the epidemic. A long-term shutdown of the industry would badly hurt the economy because it supports thousands of jobs and creates about 20% of GDP.
Until 2014, the government had relied on external assistance to support its budget, but it was gradually becoming more independent. While the World Health Organization declared Sierra Leone free of Ebolavirus in November 2015, the epidemic has disrupted economic activity, deterred private investment, and strained the budget and restricted public investment projects. A rise in international donor support will partially offset these fiscal constraints.

Source: Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Library

  • AGOA Apparel Status

Sierra Leone was designated as AGOA Eligible Country on October 23rd  2002. Sierra Leone has been declared eligible for Apparel Provision on April 5th 2004 and benefits the Lesser Developed Country Special Rule for Apparel (3rd country fabric) and Lesser Developed Country Rule for Certain Textile Articles (Category 0). Regarding the Category 9 Textile Products, Sierra Leone is eligible to export Handloomed / Handmade as well as the folklore annex but not the ethnic printed fabrics.