Western Area

Western Area
Western Area
	Nickname: Freetown Peninsula
	Coordinates: 8°20′N 13°00′W / 8.333°N 13.000°W
Country	Sierra Leone
Capital	Freetown
Area
• Total	557 km2 (215 sq mi)
Population (2015 national census)
• Total	1,493,252
• Density	2,700/km2 (6,900/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC0 (Greenwich Mean Time)

The Western Area or Freetown Peninsula (formerly the Colony of Sierra Leone) is one of five principal divisions of Sierra Leone. It comprises the oldest city and national capital Freetown and its surrounding towns and countryside. It covers an area of 557 km² and has a population of 1,447,271. The Western Area is located mostly around the peninsula and is divided into two districts: the Western Area Rural and the Western Area Urban.

Geography

Western Area is the wealthiest region of Sierra Leone, having the largest economy, the country's financial and cultural center, as well as the seat of the country's national government. Unlike the other regions in Sierra Leone, the western area is not a province.

It is divided into two districts:

Freetown serves as the administrative headquarters of both the Western Area and the Urban District, and served as the capital of the Rural District until 2009 when it was formally moved to the city of Waterloo.

Borders

To the northeast, the Western Area borders the North-Western Province, and to the southeast it borders the Southern Province. However, most of the boundaries of the Western Area is the shoreline of the Atlantic Ocean. The Western Area is the only region of Sierra Leone without a foreign border.

Cities, towns and villages include

Adonkia
Banana Islands, including (Dublin Island and Ricketts Island)
Bathkump
Bathurst
Baw Baw
Benguema
Bunce Island
Bureh Town
Charlotte
Cole Town
Dublin
Fogbo
Freetown, largest city and national capital
Gloucester
Grafton
Joe Town
Kebbie Town
Kent
Kerry Town
Kola Town
Kossoh Town
Koya
Kwama
Lakka
Leicester
Newton
Ricketts
Rokel^[1]
Rokupa
Russell
Samuel Town
Stones Town
Sussex^[2]
Tissana
Tokeh
Tombo
Waterloo, second largest city and capital of the Western Area Rural District
York

Religion

Religion in Western Area District (2015)^[3]
Religion			Percent(%)
Islam			69.1%
Christianity			30.1%
Baháʼí			0.1%
Traditional African religions			0.0%
Other			0.6%
No Religion			0.1%

References

^ "Rokel, Sierra Leone". Retrieved 13 November 2016.
^ "Domain parking page".
^ "Population and Housing Census" (PDF). sierraleone.unfpa.org. Sierra Leone Statistics. 2015. pp. 1–54. Retrieved 14 March 2023.

External links

3242455 (x j a h) Western Area on OpenStreetMap

[1] "Rokel, Sierra Leone". Retrieved 13 November 2016.

[2] "Domain parking page".

[Sierra_Leone_2015_Population_and_Housing_Census-3] "Population and Housing Census" (PDF). sierraleone.unfpa.org. Sierra Leone Statistics. 2015. pp. 1–54. Retrieved 14 March 2023.

[1]

[2]

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