Name: Sierra Leone Population Density — record 117.21 per sq. km (2023)
Creator: World Bank Development Data Group
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Keywords: Sierra Leone, Population Density (people per sq. km), World Bank, WDI

Latest value (2023)
117.21 per sq. km

Year-over-year change
2.22%

Historical peak
117.21 per sq. km

Historical low
31.92 per sq. km

Year-by-Year Detail

Year	Value	YoY Change
2023	117.21 per sq. km	+2.2%
2022	114.67 per sq. km	+2.3%
2021	112.14 per sq. km	+2.3%
2020	109.62 per sq. km	+2.3%
2019	107.12 per sq. km	+2.3%
2018	104.66 per sq. km	+2.4%
2017	102.23 per sq. km	+2.4%
2016	99.82 per sq. km	+2.4%
2015	97.50 per sq. km	+2.3%
2014	95.27 per sq. km	+2.4%
2013	93.02 per sq. km	+2.5%
2012	90.76 per sq. km	+2.6%
2011	88.49 per sq. km	+2.6%
2010	86.21 per sq. km	+2.8%
2009	83.90 per sq. km	+2.7%
2008	81.67 per sq. km	+2.5%
2007	79.65 per sq. km	+2.2%
2006	77.92 per sq. km	+2.2%
2005	76.22 per sq. km	+2.7%
2004	74.20 per sq. km	+3.4%
2003	71.73 per sq. km	+4.1%
2002	68.88 per sq. km	+5.9%
2001	65.01 per sq. km	+6.1%
2000	61.29 per sq. km	+2.4%
1999	59.82 per sq. km	+0.5%
1998	59.51 per sq. km	+1.0%
1997	58.93 per sq. km	+1.3%
1996	58.18 per sq. km	+0.5%
1995	57.90 per sq. km	+0.1%
1994	57.82 per sq. km	+0.4%
1993	57.59 per sq. km	-0.2%
1992	57.72 per sq. km	-1.9%
1991	58.83 per sq. km	+1.2%
1990	58.14 per sq. km	+4.0%
1989	55.89 per sq. km	+2.5%
1988	54.51 per sq. km	+2.7%
1987	53.06 per sq. km	+2.7%
1986	51.65 per sq. km	+2.5%
1985	50.41 per sq. km	+2.2%
1984	49.30 per sq. km	+2.2%
1983	48.24 per sq. km	+2.2%
1982	47.22 per sq. km	+2.1%
1981	46.26 per sq. km	+2.0%
1980	45.33 per sq. km	+2.0%
1979	44.44 per sq. km	+2.0%
1978	43.58 per sq. km	+1.9%
1977	42.75 per sq. km	+1.9%
1976	41.96 per sq. km	+1.8%
1975	41.21 per sq. km	+1.9%
1974	40.46 per sq. km	+1.9%
1973	39.72 per sq. km	+1.9%
1972	38.99 per sq. km	+1.9%
1971	38.28 per sq. km	+1.9%
1970	37.58 per sq. km	+1.9%
1969	36.87 per sq. km	+1.9%
1968	36.18 per sq. km	+1.9%
1967	35.50 per sq. km	+1.9%
1966	34.84 per sq. km	+1.9%
1965	34.20 per sq. km	+1.8%
1964	33.59 per sq. km	+1.8%
1963	33.00 per sq. km	+1.7%
1962	32.45 per sq. km	+1.6%
1961	31.92 per sq. km	—

Time Series (1961–2023)

1961
1992
2023

Notable Inflection Points

1991 — local peak at 58.83 per sq. km.
1993 — local trough at 57.59 per sq. km.

Trend Analysis

Metric	Value
Compound annual growth rate (1961–2023)	+2.12%
Coefficient of variation	39.0%
Long-run mean	62.91 per sq. km
Long-run median	57.82 per sq. km
Observations	63

Decade Averages

Decade	Mean	Low	High	Obs.
1960s	34.28 per sq. km	31.92 per sq. km	36.87 per sq. km	9
1970s	40.90 per sq. km	37.58 per sq. km	44.44 per sq. km	10
1980s	50.19 per sq. km	45.33 per sq. km	55.89 per sq. km	10
1990s	58.45 per sq. km	57.59 per sq. km	59.82 per sq. km	10
2000s	74.05 per sq. km	61.29 per sq. km	83.90 per sq. km	10
2010s	96.51 per sq. km	86.21 per sq. km	107.12 per sq. km	10
2020s	113.41 per sq. km	109.62 per sq. km	117.21 per sq. km	4

Sierra Leone in 2023: Development Context

Environment

Indicator	2023
Access to Electricity (% of population)	35.5%
Agricultural Land (% of land area)	54.71%
CO2 Emissions (metric tons per capita)	0.167 metric tons/capita
Forest Land (% of land area)	34.3%
Land Area (sq. km)	72,180 sq. km
Other Greenhouse Gas Emissions	7.79

Health

Indicator	2023
Birth Rate (per 1,000 people)	30.60 per 1,000
Death Rate (per 1,000 people)	8.29 per 1,000
Government Health Expenditure (% of GDP)	0.789%
Life Expectancy at Birth (years)	61.79 years

Governance

Indicator	2023
Control of Corruption (Estimate)	-0.569
Control of Corruption (Std. Error)	0.154
Government Effectiveness (Estimate)	-0.954
Government Effectiveness (Std. Error)	0.184
Government Expenditure on Education (% of GDP)	2.62%
Individuals Using the Internet (% of population)	23.71%
Political Stability (Estimate)	-0.556
Political Stability (Std. Error)	0.238
Regulatory Quality (Estimate)	-0.999
Regulatory Quality (Std. Error)	0.155
Rule of Law (Estimate)	-0.827
Rule of Law (Std. Error)	0.137
Statistical Performance Indicators	61.11
Voice and Accountability (Estimate)	-0.466
Voice and Accountability (Std. Error)	0.142

Economic

Indicator	2023
GDP (current US$)	$6.42B
Inflation, Consumer Prices (annual %)	47.64%
Military Expenditure (% of GDP)	0.603%
Real Interest Rate (%)	-7.44
Risk Premium on Lending (%)	18.25
Time to Get Operating License (days)	17.93
Trade in Services (% of GDP)	6.59%

Demographics

Indicator	2023
Population, Total	8.46M people
Rural Population	4.67M people

Source: World Bank — World Development Indicators. Data licensed CC BY 4.0.

Sierra Leone Population Density — record 117.21 per sq. km (2023)