Geologic Country Report with Emphasis on Diamonds, Gold, and Titanium (July 2011)
The Republic of Sierra Leone is located on the West Coast of Africa, between latitudes 7 and 10 north and longitudes 10.5 and 13 west.
The mining sector is a significant contributor to Sierra Leone’s economy; it accounted for about 90 % of export revenues, mainly from diamond exports, and 20 % of the gross domestic product (GDP). Sierra Leone was the world’s 10th ranked producer of diamond by volume in 2009 and the world’s third ranked producer of rutile.
Sierra Leone’s primary mineral resources are diamonds, gold, rutile, bauxite and iron ore. The mineral sector in Sierra Leone is made up of three sub-sectors:
a) Large-scale production of non-precious minerals – rutile and bauxite;
b) Large scale production of precious minerals – diamonds;
c) Artisanal and small-scale production of precious minerals – mainly diamonds, and to a much lesser extent, gold.
This geologic country report was performed in 2011 and gives an brief description of the general geology as well as the mining industry with emphasis on gold, diamonds and rutile.