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Sierra Leone — Population growth
Population Growth (Annual %) for Sierra Leone, 1961–2025.
Latest value · 2025
2.04%
Population Growth (Annual %) · annual % · +29.8% since 1961
Population growth for Sierra Leone was 2.04% in 2025, according to the latest World Bank data. The series covers 65 years, from 1961 to 2025. The highest recorded value was 5.91% in 2001. The lowest was -1.90% in 1992 (about -1.1× the low point). Across that span the compound annual growth rate works out to 0.41% per year.
Sierra Leone ranks 47 of 217 economies on this measure (1 = highest), putting it in the top 22%. The median for Sub-Saharan Africa is 2.30%, so Sierra Leone sits below it. It peaked in 2001 and has fallen 66% since. Over the last decade (2015–2025) the figure moved down 12%.
Key figures
Latest (2025)
2.04%
First (1961)
1.57%
Change
+29.8%
Highest
5.91%
in 2001
Lowest
-1.90%
in 1992
Average
2.09%
Annual growth (CAGR)
0.41%
Years of data
65
Recent years
| Year | annual % |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 2.04% |
| 2024 | 2.12% |
| 2023 | 2.2% |
| 2022 | 2.23% |
| 2021 | 2.27% |
| 2020 | 2.31% |
| 2019 | 2.32% |
| 2018 | 2.35% |
| 2017 | 2.39% |
| 2016 | 2.35% |
| 2015 | 2.32% |
| 2014 | 2.39% |
Reading this correctly. Annual population growth rate. A negative value means the population shrank, usually through emigration or low birth rates. Figures are in annual %. Comparing this series with a different measure of the same concept (for example a nominal figure against a purchasing-power-parity figure) will give misleading results.
Related data
Source. World Bank Open Data, indicator
SP.POP.GROW — Population Growth (Annual %). Data licensed under CC BY 4.0. Values are reproduced as published; this page computes the summary statistics (change, CAGR, extremes) from the underlying annual series. View the original dataset on data.worldbank.org.