Government and power in Sierra Leone

Who leads Sierra Leone, how the World Bank's governance indicators score it, how many women sit in parliament and government, what the state spends and taxes, and the official bodies that hold power to account. System of government: Unitary presidential republic.

Who leads Sierra Leone?

• Head of state: Julius Maada Bio (President of the Republic of Sierra Leone)
• Head of government: No Prime Minister
• Foreign minister: Mohamed Rahman Swaray (Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Sierra Leone)

Source: Heads of State, Heads of Government, Ministers for Foreign Affairs: Public List (United Nations Protocol and Liaison Service), list dated 15 October 2026. All world leaders.

Governance scores

The World Bank's Worldwide Governance Indicators combine surveys of households and firms with assessments by public, private and non-governmental bodies. Each score runs from 0 to 100; higher means the sources rate governance better. They measure perceptions, and each has a margin of error.

Voice and accountability

Measures how far citizens can choose their government, and freedom of expression, association and the media.

Political stability and absence of violence

Measures the likelihood of political instability or politically motivated violence, including terrorism.

Government effectiveness

Measures the quality of public services and the civil service, and how independent they are from political pressure.

Regulatory quality

Measures the government's ability to make and carry out policies that let the private sector develop.

Rule of law

Measures confidence in and respect for the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police and the courts.

Control of corruption

Measures how far public power is used for private gain, including petty and grand corruption and "capture" of the state by elites.

Official bodies that hold power in Sierra Leone

Government

• State House (Office of the President)
  Presidential press releases, Cabinet news and official announcements.

Elections

• Electoral Commission for Sierra Leone
  Election results, voter registration figures and electoral timetables.

Courts

• Judiciary of Sierra Leone
  Judicial news, court information and practice directions for the Supreme Court and lower courts.

Public audit

• Audit Service Sierra Leone
  The Auditor General's annual reports on public accounts and performance audits.

Ombudsman

• Office of the Ombudsman
  Reports on complaints against public officials and institutions.

Access to information

• Right to Access Information Commission (RAIC)
  Decisions on information requests and complaints, proactive disclosure guidance, regulations and annual reports on the Right to Access Information Act.

Asset declarations

• Anti-Corruption Commission
  Anti-corruption investigations and reports, and administration of asset declarations by public officers.

Public contracts

• National Public Procurement Authority
  Procurement regulations, procurement plans, contract awards, and lists of debarred suppliers.

Laws and the official gazette

• Sierra Leone Legal Information Institute (SierraLII)
  Acts, statutory instruments and court judgments of Sierra Leone.

Government below the national level

• Provinces (4) and the Western Area: Resident ministers appointed by the president
• Local councils (22: 6 city councils, 1 municipal council, 15 district councils): Councillors elected (by proportional representation since 2023); mayors and chairpersons directly elected; paramount chief councillors also sit on councils
• Chiefdoms (190 since 2017): Paramount chief elected for life by the Chiefdom Council (tribal authority) from candidates of recognised ruling houses
• Wards (446 in 2017) and sections/villages: Ward committees include the councillor, the paramount chief and up to ten residents chosen at a public meeting; section and town chiefs chosen locally

How local power works in Sierra Leone

Places in Sierra Leone

• All 5 provinces
• The 4 largest cities
• Official statistics for Sierra Leone

Sources

• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Voice and accountability (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 70f2804fd1e2…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Political stability and absence of violence (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1317de0c85e1…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Government effectiveness (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a775e808dc65…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Regulatory quality (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 83b57e36ff8c…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Rule of law (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0bccc3c054e8…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Control of corruption (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 3b15a5340cdd…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Seats held by women in national parliament (SG.GEN.PARL.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1ae1dc13981a…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Women in ministerial positions (SG.GEN.MNST.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a4e448a5b8bd…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Military spending (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a7f6913a783b…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Armed forces personnel (MS.MIL.TOTL.P1), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 fa4663c743ba…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Statistical Performance Indicator (overall score) (IQ.SPI.OVRL), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08ac7cde9129…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Births registered (SP.REG.BRTH.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 f8d443034ba7…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: People using the internet (IT.NET.USER.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0d78dc658329…)

Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.