Community enthusiasm in hard-hit Sierra Leone
Worthington, T.
Population Concern News 9: 3
1994
ISSN/ISBN: 1462-8627 PMID: 12318990 Document Number: 286479
Tony Worthington, a member of Population Concern, visited Sierra Leone to view conditions in one of the world's poorest countries (GNP of US$170 per person). The population there approximates 4.6 million and will double in 26 years at the current rate of increase. The country is about the size of Austria. Education and health services are underdeveloped. One-fourth of children reach the age of 5. 85% of the population is illiterate. The country is ranked 159/160 in the UN Human Development Index. The Liberian war has spilled over into the country, causing one-sixth of the population to be displaced. A coup in 1992 overthrew the democratically elected, but corrupt, government. Population Concern and the Planned Parenthood Association of Sierra Leone (PPASL) are bringing family planning services to the southern province through use of volunteers. Currently, only 2-4% of couples of childbearing age use modern contraception. However, people, especially women, are beginning to realize the burden many pregnancies places on a woman's health, the family's ability to care for children, and the environment's ability to support a large number of people.