Situated on the west coast of Africa, Sierra Leone has a size of 71,740 square kilometers and a population of approximately 8.2 million people. The country’s official language is English, however, there are several local languages such as Mende, Temne, Krio, etc. Its capital city is called Freetown.

Sierra Leone is a member state of the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). It is ranked as a low-income country in the World Index. The country’s currency is the Sierra Leonean Leone (SLL).

Sierra Leone ranks 150^th in the World’s Economic Freedom and 34^th out of 47 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2020, the GDP in Sierra Leone was worth USD $3.87 billion.

Sierra Leone is a member of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO). It is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and is therefore bound by the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). Despite its recognition of international standards, Sierra Leone’s protection of IP is limited. Laws dating back to the colonial era mean that patents and trademarks registered in the United Kingdom can be extended to Sierra Leone. Other legal frameworks include the Copyright Act 2011, the Patents and Industrial Design Act 2012, and the Trademark Act 2014.

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