Located in West Africa, Sierra Leone’s population of 8.8 million (2023) is very diverse, with 15 ethnic groups, each with its own language, and a common language, Krio – a combination of English and several local languages. Its main exports are diamonds (63%), cocoa and coffee. A 2024 World Bank Macro Poverty Outlook for Sierra Leone revealed the country’s 2023 poverty rate to be 25.3%.
Since 2005, Sierra Leone has developed three Poverty Reduction Strategy documents and is currently implementing its Medium-Term National Development Plan 2024-2030. The EIF’s partnership with Sierra Leone began in 2009 following a 2006 Integrated Framework-supported Diagnostic Trade Integration Study (DTIS). This DTIS was conducted by the World Bank and aimed at prioritizing and sequencing policy reforms and other interventions for mainstreaming trade into national poverty reduction and development strategies. Despite considerable constraints, Sierra Leone achieved significant progress in a range of areas specified in that analysis, including legal and regulatory changes to advance the overall business climate and improved institutional capacity for the formulation and implementation of trade policies. A DTIS Update followed in 2013, which was also conducted by the World Bank. This built on the progress made through the initial DTIS and aimed to complement and assist in its full realization.
